Technological Developments Transform the Dynamics of Real Estate

The real estate market is a constantly changing industry that has been effected greatly by technological developments in the past decade. Ten years ago, someone interested in buying or selling real estate would have likely browsed properties through print sources such as magazines or flyers. Thanks to new technology, agents can throw together a property advertisement in a matter of minutes. This not only saves the agent time, but it assists potential buyers as well. With the development of real estate websites and even phone applications, today customers have the ability to virtually explore homes with a few short clicks. Instead of traveling to tour houses every weekend, buyers can explore properties virtually anywhere in the world from the comfort of their own home. Some realty teams have even introduced the use of social networking in order to reach a large population of potential clients, free of charge!




Thanks to the internet, buyers can perform much of the house hunting process independently. 
Local agents assign each property an MLS number when posting the listing online, so that homes can be found on both a local level through their company site, and at a national level on the Multiple Listing Service Listings database, or MLS for short. By having access to virtually any city in the United States, potential buyers can decide on the best area based on their independent research and comparisons through the MLS site. Real Estate agent Annette Bergmann explains, "Buyers are much more involved in the process. They go online and start searching for their homes." Online listings are extremely helpful for buyers who may be debating moving between different regions of the country, and would like to compare home prices or values in the different areas. Bergmann further states, "Sellers like to go on and see what other houses like theirs have sold for, so they know what to price their house at." Online listings allow both buyers and sellers to perform extensive research on properties independently. Further, many real estate sites conveniently embed mortgage calculators on the online listings, so that buyers can explore what homes are in their budget adequately. Bergmann reveals, "Buyers can also go online to see how much they can qualify, and use a mortgage calculator tool to figure out what their payments are going to be, and even select a mortgage company." Potential buyers can simply punch in a few numbers into a calculator or mortgage application, rather than hire a financial expert to do so.

Not only can buyers compare properties online, but they can actually take virtual tours and view hundreds of photos as well.
The home buying process was traditionally seen as a time-consuming headache, with weeks and sometimes months dedicated to finding the perfect home. Buyers and agents would spend hours on end traveling and touring potential properties in search of the perfect match. However, thanks to to digital photos and videos, potential buyers can browse properties anytime, anywhere with internet access. By having the ability to view homes online, buyers can preview properties and choose to tour only the ones that they are most interested in. Bergmann recalls recently learning that "...about ninety percent of people will do that [preview online] before they actually go to see the house, especially people that are in the younger age range." By choosing to tour only the properties that they are truly interested in, buyers save their, as well as the agents, valuable time.

As well as a time-saving technique, technological developments have encouraged agents to use social media as a form of self-promotion.
In addition to the long list of benefits that agents reap from technological developments, the most recent revolution seems to be in the integration of social media into the real estate field. Along with many other forms of businesses, many real estate companies have decided to set up social networking sites in order to promote their services in a free, fast, and relatively easy way. Realty companies have started setting up Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, and LinkedIn profiles in hopes of expanding their clientele. Bergmann reveals, "You can also do YouTube videos of the house, or even of yourself to do some self-promotional videos." Instead of traditional forms of paid advertising like signs, agents have the ability to self-promote for free through endless networking sites.

In addition to social networking, agents use many other forms of technology to develop and maintain relationships with their clients.
Busy agents are often challenged by the need to effectively manage their many buyer and seller relationships simultaneously. Catering to the needs of all clients can become overwhelming, but technological resources can really help facilitate effective communications between agents and their clientele. In the past, many agents were forced to keep a hand-written address book with the contact information for all of their clients. When trying to contact a buyer or seller, the agent would have to look up their phone number, call the person, and engage in a sometimes unnecessarily long conversation. Additionally, as buyers and sellers would constantly come and go, this method was not extremely practical for keeping contacts up-to-date. As the use of e-mail has dramatically increased over the past decade, many realty teams have adopted the practice of email for both marketing and a method of contact with clients. E-mail recipients can be added, edited, or removed in a matter of seconds, which is ideal for agents with a quick client turnover rate. Bergmann concludes, "Most everything we do now is internet based. We can do electronic signatures on the internet."With these practical advancements, e-mails can be quickly composed in order to communicate with potential buyers and sellers about new listings, open houses, even property offers and sales. By using e-mail, realty teams can manage organized relationships with each and every one of their clients in fast and free manner.

Despite the many benefits, some fear the effects of technology on the future of real estate careers.
Although the technological developments previously mentioned have seemingly eased the responsibilities of real estate agents, some are fearful of what the future holds. Will the use of online resources eventually eliminate the need for a real estate agent? Look at the history of travel agencies. Jumping back a decade or so, travel agents played a huge role in the vacation planning process. Some modern-day real estate agents such as Annette Bergmann make a worrisome connection between past travel agents and today's real estate agents. While travel agents used to be nearly necessary for vacation planning, the use of the internet has enabled people to take their vacation planning process into their own hands and essentially eliminated the need for a travel agent. Likewise, the use of new technology and internet listings in the real estate field could potentially lead to a dramatic decrease in the use of real estate agents in the housing market. The use of technology in the real estate industry proves to be a double-edged sword; providing convenience, while threatening the future of careers in the field.