There are times in the business world when changes in market practices are experienced. Most of these times, the changes are caused by events and disasters such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Even though we might not want to admit it, some of these events bring about a lasting and positive change to the way businesses are conducted. With the outbreak of the COVID-19, many businesses including the real estate industry have been affected adversely.

However, the real estate industry has been quick to adapt to the changes especially because it is resilient and due to its investment in digital real estate. The industry is more of a necessity than a luxury. People will need to buy houses or even move, no matter the world’s financial situation.

Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has allowed developers to look for solutions to bridge the gap created in the business world by the pandemic. They are coming up with solutions and making the existing ones even better making sure that industries such as the real estate industry will thrive.

They are building applications and APIs that make it possible for an agent to transact with a client without even meeting physically. So, how is the real estate industry thriving through the COVID-19 pandemic?

Here are several ways through which technology is playing a major role in helping the Real Estate industry

Property Data APIs

The pandemic brought about major lockdowns all around the world, restricting the movement of people and business operations. However, real estate agents overcame this restriction by making their listings available on the web and providing their property data to help buyers in decision making.

They have implemented APIs such as the Realtor, Zillow, and other MLS APIs that make it possible for them to show all information related to their properties. For instance, they are able to show information about the neighborhood, weather, price trends, and much more about a particular property. This way, they can keep working even without meeting their clients physically.

Virtual Home Tours

Like mentioned earlier, the COVID-19 pandemic has given innovators a chance to come up with new solutions to make sure that business operations do not come to a halt. This is one of the areas that have seen a lot of innovation.

Of course, with the pandemic, the movement of people has been restricted. This means that buyers do not want to visit properties and property owners rarely want to have people visit their properties. This has led to agents using virtual home tours to show sellers every detail about the properties on sale.

This way, real estate agents have remained in business and can sell properties without having the buyer physically visit the property they are selling.

Use of Drones

Even though drones have existed for several years, real estate agents had never thought about them as an option for them when it comes to selling their properties.

However, drones have the capability of showing a property to a potential buyer in an even better way than visiting the property physically. Through the COVID-19 pandemic, real estate agents and property owners have invested in drones to minimize the movement of buyers into their properties. This way, a buyer is still able to view every corner of the property before making a decision.

Augmented Reality

Augmented reality refers to an interactive real-world environment experience where computed perceptual information is used to enhance objects residing in the real world.

But how do property owners use this? Well, it is easier to sell a fully furnished apartment since the buyer will be able to see how the property would look like when they occupy it.

Real estate agents know this and are therefore investing in augmented reality to enhance the appearance of their properties. This has led to increased sales for those using this technology.

Conclusion

COVID-19 has affected economies all over the world. The pandemic has limited the movement of people and affected how businesses operate. However, as we can see with the real estate industry, technology is playing a key role in making sure that businesses adapt to the new changes and life slowly goes back to normal.

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