How Technology Continues to Change the Real Estate Industry
Times have changed. Technology is finally disrupting the real estate industry the same way it disrupted countless others. But rather than just get lost in the technology why not look at what really matters and that’s how it affects human interaction.
After all a smartphone is just a paper weight if no one is holding it right? The impact that technology has helped real estate and on how the consumer shops for real estate and how a Realtor interacts with that consumer cannot be overstated.
In the past 15 years technology continues to affect potential buyers and sellers in tremendous ways. The detailed information that listing agents used to keep private from the public is now readily available online for anyone to search for.
Listings are now readily available online on any of a number of websites and finding recent sales isn’t too much work either. Now smart phone and tablet apps are becoming so advanced that now you don’t even need a computer to access all this information.
Technology has drastically impacted how Realtors and their clients interact as well. The wealth of information available in this digital age has made the average client a bit more impatient when it comes to interactions.
Modern clients expect immediate feedback on showings, instant home listing updates, immediate document signings, and a host of other things. The old Queen song “I want it all and I want it now” very much applies. Effectively the public is demanding everything is very efficient and everything they want “on demand.”
For some Realtors efficient at automation and document management this isn’t much of a problem. But, for other Realtors that aren’t quite so tech savvy keeping up with the immediate demands of their clients can prove cumbersome.
The interesting twist to this entire scenario is real estate has been innovating for quite some time, but that innovation is pushed to an aging Realtor demographic which is very set in its ways.
The average Realtor is about 54 years old and doesn’t understand nor is interested in learning new technologies. When you put a smartphone or tablet in the hands of a teenager or young adult they immediately begin to innovate with it and learn how to manipulate it to suit their needs.
Most mid 50’s Realtors are more concerned with balloons, open house signs, and newspaper ads than learning about latest tech gadget.
However, an aging Realtor population cannot avoid the fact that buyers are getting younger and they expect their agent to communicate and interact with them in the same way most modern companies do.
Technology has inspired the younger generation and Realtors will have to adapt to this fact or see their clients look for younger Realtors who more suit their needs. Technology has made everything smarter, faster, and more efficient which has brought on a price crunch for all industries.
Search for a vacation rental, shoes, or anything else and there are numerous apps and companies fighting to sell you their product faster and cheaper than the next guy.
Technologically savvy discount Real Estate brokers are popping up bringing that crunch to the world of real estate too which will make the next few years very interesting.
