Virtual Reality is no longer a concept, told and retold in the books and papers. It has been incorporated as part of several products, boosting the ability of the resources and enhancing the industry. VR is slowly trying to dissolve the issues that exist in the different industries, and is creating a solid difference for the end users.
Real estate is no different. For a while, the industry stayed away from technology, and was more of an offline industry. With mobile apps and websites becoming the norm, real estate soon became an online industry, flourishing and converting with its best ability. VR will further this traditional industry, and make it more user friendly. The adoption of VR will not only help in attracting new users, but also reduce the overall costs for the companies within this segment.
The real estate industry is not without issues, and there are a lot of pain points that need to be solved by the booming enterprises. Here we will discuss a few pain areas that the industry is currently facing, and how the adoption of VR will help reduce the pain and help the industry flourish.
Pain Points of Real Estate Industry
- The buyer has to see the numerous properties listed, and has to shortlist before they can complete the buying. This means, they have to physically check on all the aspects of the real estate, make sure that the place they are planning to buy fulfills their checklist, and then complete the purchase. This takes up a lot of time and money for the buyer.
- The agents within this industry need to offer a complete tour of the place, clear all the doubts that arise in the minds of the buyer and make sure they are responsive to the buyer. The agents are normally busy, which is why the communication is disturbed and not as responsive as it should be.
- The buyers need all sorts of data before investing in a particular property. It is essential that the real estate agents or the property seller offer all the data at a single place to the buyer, for them to read and understand. It is impossible for the real estate to operate without a mobile app in the present circumstances and the increased levels of data intake.
- The real estate industry thrives on relationship management. If the communication between the broker and the buyer/seller is not good, then the whole deal goes off.
Mobile apps and websites have catered to a lot of issues, including mentioning the prices and improving communication between realtors and the buyers.
However, there are a few instances where VR would prove to be more helpful to the real estate industry. Let’s see how VR will enhance the real estate segment with its innovative applications.
Applications of VR in Real Estate
Most of the pain areas will be relieved with the adoption of VR in real estate. Here are a few applications of VR that should potentially help both the realtors and buyers.
#1 Touring through Virtual Reality
What is the first thing that you want to do as a potential buyer? Check the property. With VR, you can take a tour of the property from the convenience of your home or office. VR will give you a 360-degree tour of the entire property, and will be your interactive guide through your tour. This applies to both cases, the ones buying the property and the ones renting it out.
So, when you have shortlisted two or more than two properties, you don’t need to drive all the way to see those properties. Use your VR headset, and connect to the 360-degree view video for these properties, and check every part of the property.
With this innovation, the time and efforts are saved for both the realtors as well as the buyers. A virtual walk-through is an interesting and money plus time saving effort.
#2 Show the Model Home through Virtual Reality
Earlier, people used to invest in new property without seeing it. It was the case specifically for those living abroad, as they could not travel to their land, and buy the property. This can be solved with the help of VR. Whether you live in the same location or abroad, you can view the model homes developed by the realtor, have a complete walk-through, and experience what it would be like to live in there.
The amenities and other details are also shown in the walk-through. This would help you get a complete tour of the model home, and improve your decision making ability.
#3 Virtual staging of homes
With VR, you can show how to set up the furniture in the model home, and show a furnished version so that they would get an idea on how big/small the house is. It is a perfect way to sell your property to the potential buyers.
According to real estate agents, staging helps in converting buyers quickly as against showing an empty property. The investment is higher in this case but, it definitely proves to be an excellent way of marketing your property.
#4 Three Dimensional Visuals
Virtualizing the architectural view of the house or commercial property is made easy with the help of VR. This helps if you are still in the planning stage and have nothing in reality to show to your customers. The architectural view will give insights into the type of property you are building, and how it can help them.
You can even show how the markets, and the shops around your property would look like. The whole idea is to give a 3D feel to the idea you have in mind.
#5 Virtual Commerce
Finally, you can have buyers make changes to the property you have shown them, virtually. If they want to customize the interiors or make slightly structural changes, they can propose these changes via VR. The buyers can give the property their custom touch with the help of this technology. They can also buy the pieces of furniture shown in the model home, and click on buy now using the VR technology.
Summing up
VR is definitely changing the way realtors and buyers interact in the virtual world. It will make it more interactive and engaging, as compared to the traditional methods and techniques. VR will definitely improve the conversions and increase the visibility of the real estate segment. If you are planning on adopting VR app development in your niche or industry, then make sure you have thought of a suitable application, and planned the roadmap for the same.
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About Author:Vishal Virani is a Founder and CEO of Coruscate Solutions, a mobile app development company. He enjoys writing about technology, VR mobile apps, custom web development and latest industry trends.
