Real estate is one of the most competitive markets in the world. No matter the prevailing economic condition boom or bust, feast or famine new buyers are still spending, and sellers are looking for ways to recoup their investment. According to Realtor.org, 2015 saw over 5.2 million home sales in the U.S. alone, and in 2016, the market should enjoy a modest increase. Tapping into this increased demand, however, requires a new market strategy driven by more than just personal experience and good instincts. Here’s a look at the rise of data-driven real estate marketing and the benefits for your bottom line.
Financial Futures
As noted by Realtor Mag, commercial real estate companies are adopting big data as a way to reduce financial risk. By analyzing multiple data points such as building age and structure, information on any recent renovations, and financial status of the current owner, it’s possible to get a better read on the property as a whole, and make accurate recommendations to clients.
This financial analysis also comes with big benefits for residential real estate agents. Consider the value of online mortgage calculators offered by many online realtor portals. By leveraging big data, companies can provide a more realistic view of potential mortgage payments and approval chances for clients, helping prospective buyers align wish lists and prospective budgets before beginning a property search and reducing the time spent by agents researching and showing properties that are out of financial reach.
Better Buyers
What do buyers really want? It seems like an easy question agents can simply ask for feedback on a property and refine their search from there. In practice, however, buyers may be unintentionally disingenuous; it’s often hard to put into words why a property doesn’t capture their interest or simply isn’t the right fit.
Helping solve this problem is a new crop of data-driven experts. According to Business Because, post-secondary institutions are now running analytics-track MBA programs to create a new generation of real estate experts trained in data analysis. By creating tools to accurately capture client sentiment and expectations, it’s possible to zero in on desired properties and improve targeted marketing by understanding the needs of your ideal buyer group.
Accurate Appraisals
One critical part of the buying and selling process is an appraisal. Sellers want to know what their house is worth and banks want to ensure they’re not financing loans for properties with far less value than advertised. The problem? Appraisal is a fluid process dependent on a host of factors including the age of the home, its condition, the neighborhood, specific neighbors, traffic volumes and proximity to services. As a result, values can quickly change and leave both buyers and sellers wondering what happened. By using a data-driven approach and collecting real-time information about the neighborhood, average selling price and historical shifts in value, companies can improve their marketing position by offering reliable, extremely accurate appraisals key to both buyer and seller confidence.
Want a strategic edge over the competition? Go big: Opt for data-driven finance, buyer profiling and appraisals to maximize market impact.
