Alejandro Artacho, CEO and founder of Spotahome explores the importance of the rental market embracing digital disruption
Every industry is facing the challenge of embracing a digital future, and the property industry is no exception. The fourth industrial revolution is continuing to blur the lines between the physical and digital world, as a result we are seeing a significant transformation in the property sector.
The property industry plays a major part in all our lives, from the moment we leave our family home up until old age. One area of the property market that has grown exponentially over the past few decades is the rental industry. The sector has ballooned over the past 20 years, and it is predicted that by 2025 nearly 10 million UK households will be occupied by private renters. In major UK cities such as London, where a growing number of people are unable to get on to the property ladder, renting is the only feasible accommodation option.
PropTech is revolutionising the property industry by making it intrinsically more accessible. Long gone are the days when landlords would place adverts in shop window, or would take time out to slog down to the high street to meet with an estate agent; instead, the advent of the digital age has created a whole new level of potential, where property owners and their clients can go online to view or list properties and communicate.
The Amazon effect has created a society of ‘always-on, always-connected’ individuals, who constantly seek quicker and easier methods to navigate their day-to-day lives. Today’s customers expect an instantaneous service, and an increasing number of industries are catering to their needs. Despite the marked advances in technology, there are still a number of processes that are yet to be modernised within the rental sector.
Whilst spare rooms are no longer listed in shop windows on in classified papers, the property sector remains archaic in many respects. Renters can look for accommodation online, but the viewing process is still extremely time consuming and often costly. Both landlords and tenants have to set aside time to schedule in and attend viewings, usually at the inconvenience of one party. The process also involves a seemingly never-ending stream of emails or phone calls. In addition, tenants who are travelling from afar have no choice but to spend money on costly transport in order to attend viewings or are often faced with having to fly over ahead of time.
In cities where people are time poor, looking for accommodation is a great inconvenience and so it is imperative that the rental industry embraces digital. The accommodation industry needs to stop resting on their laurels and start to embrace the opportunities available to them via technological advancements.
Technology has the capability to enable tenants to search for and view accommodation online without the inconvenience of travelling to view numerous properties. It can also enable landlords and property managers to showcase their property to vast number of tenants without having to organise and conduct viewings.
Spotahome takes this one step further by enabling potential tenants to reserve their desired property, and landlords the ability to accept the booking, all online. Meaning that the entire process is carried out via the platform. It turns a process that could typically takes weeks into a process that could take as little as a few hours.
As PropTech continues to foster innovative thinking, we will see the savviest of property professionals continue to diversify their facilities and adapt to the growing demand for digitalised property service. Businesses need to consider additional ways to overcome barriers that tenants face when looking to rent a property, by exploring the newest technologies.
Spotahome have managed to stay at the forefront of the rental industry by streamlining the rental process, saving landlords, property manager’s and tenants time and energy by using professional photos that offer a 360 degree view of the property, HD video tours conducted by independent ‘Home Checkers’ and extensive floor plans.
Property firms now find themselves having to keep up with new competitors, as well as with existing peers. We will see parts of the industry that were previously reluctant, begin to embrace PropTech as they wake up to the capabilities of technology such as improved payment processes, eradicating the need for viewings, simplifying the rental procedure or even the establishment of blockchain enabled smart contracts.
We predict that businesses will further digitise the rental process, which will simplify transactions, and lead to greater flexibility. Ultimately, establishing a digital platform will enable property management to be a less time consuming and more streamlined processes.
Alejandro Artacho