We take virtual tours of homes listed on community classifieds before buying or renting. Prior to making an investment decision, we monitor the progress of buildings under construction via a timelapse video sequence. We check the food map of an area before deciding to move there, and count supermarkets on a street map. Hollywood filmstar Gwyneth Paltrow even lists an app called Remodelista, which works as a sourcebook for interiors, as one of her obsessions. And, of course, goaded by investment consultants’ focus on geographical diversification, we download an app to check out properties across continents. Technology is changing the way we evaluate real estate.
Rising from the dust
Having watched the Burj Khalifa rise, storey by storey, to become the world’s tallest tower, Dubai residents and visitors are familiar with timelapse videos and time-stamped photos. While developers of iconic projects such as Etihad Rail, the UAE’s Expo 2020 pavilion, Yas Mall and the largest bottling plant in the region continue to use timelapse videos for archival purposes, these are increasingly being used to build confidence in smaller projects.
“Seeing is believing. In 2008 some investors were burnt by a few companies which were only present on a website, brochures and 3D videos, using these to generate cash without building anything, so since the crash, reliable developers have been using timelapse videos to build confidence,” says Sarfraz Mansuri, Chief Executive, Timelapse Middle East.
As well as investors, project managers also work with digital reports to share progress with partners across the globe. “I create a timelapse sequence as a monthly progress report. At the end of e a c h month we create one sequence showing that month’s progress, and another showing progress from the time the project began. A written report may say that the second slab is complete, but the video shows it,” says Mansuri, whose company is documenting the advance of Etihad Rail and Yas Mall, along with numerous other projects.
Sobha’s 200-villa development at Mohammed Bin Rashid City is one such project where videos documenting the progress of eight show villas, from start to finish in four months, are available to potential investors at Cityscape Global.
“This lets developers showcase their property to investors. They can visit the site, but the timelapse video gives them a virtual tour,” says Mansuri.
While under-construction projects are monitored via time stamps, completed projects make their way to apps and portals. In April this year, the UK’s Zoopla Property Group announced that it has partnered with over 40 property portals in locations including China, Russia, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, USA, France, Spain, Poland, the UAE, Australia, Brazil and Mexico to provide a daily feed of listings.
Global property consultancy Knight Frank has had its app for iPhone and iPad for a while now. “Our app is in the top 70 list of lifestyle apps to be downloaded. We have had over 4.4 million property viewings and 90,000 downloads so far,” Marketing and PR UAE, Nicola Milton, tells GN Focus.
The app allows users to search for properties in varied locations from the UK and USA to Australia, the Middle East, Monaco and Russia. The device’s location service allows users to find a property nearby. You can view floor plans and then reach an agent. “The most popular regions are Europe and the UK along with Asia [particularly] Singapore,” says Milton.
Adopting technology
Internationally, more and more estate agents are relying on technology to reach the right buyers. A survey, released by the California Association of Realtors in July, showed found that 85 per cent of buyers used a mobile device during the homebuying process, with the majority of buyers (70 per cent) accessing the internet from a smartphone, and 15 per cent accessing it from a tablet.
While the majority of buyers (61 per cent) found their home through an agent, the percentage who found their home online more than doubled from 16 per cent in 2012 to a record 37 per cent in 2013. The use of social media in the homebuying process continued to increase, with three quarters of buyers now using it, compared to 52 per cent who used social media in 2011. Purchasers primarily used social media for buying tips and suggestions from friends (43 per cent), neighbourhood information
(42 per cent) and to view their agents’ Facebook pages (41 per cent).
While similar data is not available for the UAE, which is ranked among the top six countries in the world for the highest rates of smartphone and tablet use, anecdotal evidence suggests that the reality would not be too different among residents and visitors here.
For a sector that relies on buzz phrases such as “location, location, location”, it is no surprise that google maps have become crucial. Potential buyers can check the property’s exact address and explore the neighbourhood for schools, malls, major highways, community amenities and parks.
Most developers are aware of the need for an effective and interactive online presence. Last month, Dubai Properties Group (DPG), a member of Dubai Holding, and the master developer of Business Bay, Dubailand and JBR, launched online tools to provide potential buyers and residents with video footage, pictures and a DPG news feed. DPG has also launched a mobile-optimised version of the website for browsing on smartphones and tablets. Chief Marketing Officer Jayne O’Brien says, “The internet is essential and indispensable in the real estate search process and we wanted to develop a set of tools in line with customer preferences.”
Technology will inevitably continue to develop and diversify, and as it does, both the number of homebuyers turning to the internet and using apps to faciliate their search, and the number of agencies adopting this technology to promote their services look set for continued growth. Eventually, buyers may even be able to make downpayments.
