With a record number of real estate transactions taking place and new property technology (“PropTech”) popping up left and right, it can be hard to differentiate between shiny but temporary new objects and problem-solving innovations that are here to stay.
Brad Inman, founder of prominent real estate news website Inman News, and Marnie Blanco, Vice President of Industry Relations with second-home ownership platform Pacaso, joined RE/MAX President Nick Bailey on the latest episode of Keepin’ It Real with Nick Bailey to explore the current – and future – impacts of new innovation.
Inman points to the financial technology (“FinTech”) industry as an adjacent component to real estate and applauds advancements that assist real estate agents and homebuyers and sellers without removing the personal, face-to-face components of the transaction.
“Entrepreneurs are about trying to solve problems, and we all know there’s a problem for people who have to compete with all-cash buyers,” Inman says of the recently turbulent housing market.
“[What’s] fantastic [is] the amount of money and entrepreneurs that seek to solve these difficult problems that are helping everyday Realtors close deals,” he adds.
Blanco believes that some of the most prominent advancements to the real estate industry in recent years are platforms that offer alternative forms of homeownership, like Pacaso, which assists buyers in securing second homes through a shared format. She notes the generational differences in the approach to real estate and believes younger generations – millennials included – are more open to utilizing tech in their real estate transaction alongside an agent.
“Whenever there are entrepreneurs at the forefront of an industry, you always see people pushing the boundaries.”
Nick Bailey, RE/MAX President
Inman, Blanco and Bailey agree that AI technology can enhance the real estate industry as long as it doesn’t violate consumer privacy. Agents using innovative tools that expand business and boost client experience can in turn better serve clients while still prioritizing the value of in-person interaction.
“AI is going to continue if it’s done in a smart way,” Blanco says. “I think if people [are] just using it for the good of the consumer … it’s going to continue on and it’s going to get adopted faster and faster.”
With assistance from tech, agents are better equipped to meet all client prefrences by continually adding valuable platforms to their toolbelts, Bailey believes.
“I think innovation will always be part of this industry because this industry is based on entrepreneurship, whether it’s at the ownership of an office level, whether it be at the team leader [level], [or] whether it be at the agent being the CEO of their own business [level],” says Bailey. “Whenever there are entrepreneurs at the forefront of an industry, you always see people pushing the boundaries.”
Tune in to the latest episode to catch the experts’ hot takes on concepts like cryptocurrency, AI and machine learning – and hear what real estate-related innovations they’re hoping to see in the near future.
Written by Leah Curtis
