The world of real estate has been around for over a century. In 1855, the first real estate brokerage was established and by 1908, the National Association of Real Estate Agents, the predecessor to today’s National Association of Realtors, was founded. 

Throughout the course of the United States’ short history, real estate has seen its highs and lows, often driven by the state of our economy. This has also determined how innovation in real estate has evolved, as more demand and new technologies have come about to help make the real estate process more efficient. Innovation is crucial to the real estate industry, which still struggles with archaic reporting methodologies and tools—even in cities with the most modern buildings in the world.

Now we’re two decades into the 2000’s and the industry is more advanced than ever before. Cities have grown, more homes have been built, and more people have been born to take residence in them. The coronavirus pandemic drove mortgage interest rates to historic lows. 

Currently, the market is reporting record-low interest rates, leading to an increased interest in buying homes and causing prices to skyrocket. 

With this hot market, wondering how innovation in real estate has evolved to meet the needs and demands of buyers, sellers and agents? 

We’re diving into this important topic in this blog, so you know which trends and technologies to turn to and look out for to assist you in your real estate journey. 

Bring this to the table when discussing with clients to show them that you are forward-thinking and have your finger on the pulse of the latest updates in the real estate world. 

1. Mobile Apps

The number of customers who use smartphones is increasing, and will continue to do so in today’s era. Due to this, agencies have been creating their own smartphone apps to connect with customers. Smartphone apps:

• Allow customers to access information regarding properties at any time
• Have eased collaboration between the customer and the real estate agency
• Have eased operations, saved time, and saved usage of resources

New Venture Escrow is paving the way and setting a trend for escrow with innovative technology, and we’re keeping up with how innovation in real estate has evolved. 

Our VentureTrac 4.0 mobile app wields cutting-edge technology to make the escrow process faster and more convenient than ever before. It can help facilitate the real estate process by:

• Offers information about your escrow at your fingertips
• Gives real time updates
• Has a secure messaging system
• Includes seller net sheets

Whether you’re a buyer, seller or real estate agent, VentureTrac has your back. When you open an escrow account with New Venture Escrow, you have free and automatic access to the VentureTrac digital escrow app.

2. Smart Homes

In the last couple of years, the internet of things (IoT) has changed how homes function, with some of the most prominent tech giants investing in smart home technology. 

A recent survey by the National Multifamily Housing Council found that 43% of respondents said they were interested in or wouldn’t rent without voice-activated virtual assistants like Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home. 

More than a third said they already owned such devices. Smart home features have quickly evolved from a wish-list amenity to a must-have. 

A smart home entails products that have the ability to connect to the internet to be controlled by mobile devices and voice commands via virtual assistants. 

However, though modern smart homes offer more features that’ll undoubtedly benefit homeowners, one of the biggest challenges of this innovation trend is transferring to new occupants. In the past, you only needed to give the new owners the keys. 

With smart homes, real estate agents need to ensure that the former occupants’ information, such as passwords and search histories, is deleted.

3. 3D Printing

3D printing of buildings, whether it’s for residential or commercial use, is one of the most prominent examples of how innovation in real estate has evolved. 

This innovation trend makes it possible for real estate developers to build an entire house without expensive materials and steep labor costs, saving sellers a lot of money. 

However, although 3D printing of buildings may seem a big trend, these current 3D printed structures are still far from having traditional buildings’ quality. That’s why it’ll take some time before this innovation trend will significantly impact the real estate industry.

A more concrete and available innovation is modular construction, a process in which a building is constructed off-site, under controlled plant conditions, using the same materials and designing to the same codes and standards as conventionally built facilities. 

Buildings are produced in “modules” that are put together on site to reflect the identical design intent. The pro of this is it’s completed in about half the time. 

4. Virtual Reality

One of the biggest and most exciting real estate technology innovations is virtual reality (VR). VR refers to a computer-generated simulation. Within the simulation, users can explore and interact in an artificial 3D environment. 

The pandemic helped speed up the popularity of VR, acting as a substitute for in-person home tours, which were not allowed due to social distancing. 

Ever since, the convenience and ease of using VR in real estate has made it more popular and its use will continue to increase in the future. As VR technology improves, this innovation can become a decisive advantage for real estate agents, especially in their marketing campaigns.

Here are a few benefits for using VR in the housing market:

• It’s a way for real estate agents to market properties with little investment
• It allows sellers and agents to create amazing 3D home tours
• It allows buyers to partake in multiple tours in a short time without physically visiting them
• It can be used by agents, brokers, and builders to show different ideas for certain spaces that customers can self-decorate

Let New Venture Escrow Innovate Your Real Estate

New Venture Escrow is always looking into how innovation in real estate has evolved and what it means for the future of the industry. Have your finger on the pulse of the latest real estate trends and news by staying up to date with our blog. 

If you’re ready to partner with a forward-thinking company, contact us and discover a faster, easier way to close escrow.