Property has traditionally been one of the most popular sectors for investment. Whether you are putting your money into residential properties to rent them out, or you’re simply investing in a home for yourself – there are many different options and possibilities. Given that the property market is typically very buoyant, this can be a very forgiving sector to invest in.
However, it is interesting to note that there has been a great deal of change in property investment in recent years that has been created by emerging technologies. Tech is having a profound impact on the way properties are bought and sold across Australia – and this can be a big positive for investors.
Here we take a look at the way that tech is revolutionising property investments in Australia.
The rise of ‘proptech’
Whenever a subset of technological changes gets its own portmanteau, it’s time to start paying attention. ‘Property’ and ‘technology’ have been combined to create proptech – and it has become a significant destabilising force in the real estate market.
Technology specialists recognised that many business practices relating to the buying and selling and property have not changed for a great deal of time. They then designed software and applications that can be put to use to change up the process entirely.
Many issues that we have thought of as a constant and unchangeable feature of buying property have now been swept away.
3D virtual tours
It was often the case that investors were somewhat limited in their investment in that they needed to be relatively close to the property in order to be able to view it. Thankfully, technology is finding solutions that allow buyers to view properties remotely. One of the most effective ways to do this is with a 3D virtual tour.
“Usually they are used to help market and sell a residential or commercial property but increasingly they are used across an array of industries as a way for their customers or potential customers to view their premise online,” says Tim Brickle, Managing Director of 3D Walkabout, one of Australia’s leading providers in virtual tour technology. “3D virtual tours usually run in any browser and work across all devices. They are essentially a series of 360° equirectangular panoramic images inter-connected through the use of ‘hotspots’ that allow the viewer the ability to virtually ‘move’ through the space and look in any direction.
Online negotiation
There has been a shift in the kind platforms that are being used by investors to buy properties. Indeed, there are a number of platforms that enable online auctions and other ways of bidding for property. Now an investor doesn’t need to be in a physical location to make an offer – it can all be negotiated online.
“Instead of agents needing to ring every person interested in a property, these platforms let everybody see where they rank in terms of their offer,” says Kylie Davis, President of Proptech Association Australia. “So, if a property is for sale for offers over $600,000, you can make your best offer and can then see immediately if someone has offered more than you, although you may not know what their bid is.”
As more people look to move away from the traditional model of buying and selling property, technology can fill a gap that can make it far easier and more convenient to bid.
Changing the game with research
No matter what kind of technology exists or is developed in the property sector, it will always be the case that carrying out research is vital. Understanding how markets in particular areas are performing, and what they are forecast to do over the coming years, is a big part of understanding where the value of your investment is likely to go.
Increasingly businesses are offering advancing mapping tools and even artificial intelligence analytical software. These make it much easier to research and understand how locations are changing and developing.
Final thoughts
As technology evolves further, we can expect even more sweeping changes to the Australian property market and how investments are made. Remember that whether you are thinking of investing in property for the first time, or if you already have a portfolio of buildings – it always pays to use the best possible tools available to you.
