Technology is consistently shaping the real estate business—from home buyers’ ability to take virtual tours to the simple fact that Realtors can upload pictures of a home for sale with the click of a smart phone. In fact, according to the National Association of Realtors, 95 percent of home shoppers are now searching for real estate online, while 51 percent find their homes via online searching. Among today’s technology that is changing the way people buy and sell homes is augmented reality. Augmented reality in the real estate business gives people the ability to view a home in any context, based on the home’s potential and not just its current reality.
What is augmented reality?
Augmented reality is a live, direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are supplemented by computer-generated input such as video, graphics, sound or other data. Put another way, augmented reality overlays artificial elements onto real-world environments that a user can view through a smart phone or tablet.
For augmented reality to work, you need a real-world triggering element, which can be two- or three-dimensional. The triggering element is what will prompt the augmented reality technology to launch into another form of media. You also need an associated augmented reality app that will allow the technology to work.
How can augmented reality be useful for the real estate business?
Imagine a Realtor having a listing that he or she wants to show off, but it is completely unfurnished. Using augmented reality, one could visually stage an entire space without having to move a single piece of furniture. That’s because augmented reality can overlay digital furnishings onto the physical, real space that a home buyer is considering. Realtors could save time, money and effort using augmented reality rather than physically staging an unfurnished space. Or, if an agent still plans to furnish a space, it can help them plan it out ahead of time.
Here’s another example. Say you are a home buyer looking at a home with an extremely outdated kitchen. You like the home, but you plan to do renovations, and you want to see what different design schemes would look like in the space. Augmented reality could allow you to scroll through and view a variety of potential looks as they would actually appear in that environment. That could give you an idea as to what your envisioned renovations would look like.
Is anyone using augmented reality in the real estate business currently?
Yes. In fact, just last month Sotheby’s launched its new augmented reality app, “Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty,” which uses Google’s new augmented reality software platform, ARCore to virtually stage a space for sale. It is the first of its kind to be released by a real estate company, but several other companies related to the real estate market have similar applications, including Ikea, Houzz, Overstock.com, Lowe’s and Pottery Barn.
The future of augmented reality in the real estate business has yet to be seen, but the technology is well on its way to defining the way that prospective home buyers shop for houses—and the way that real estate agents are able to showcase them to their prospects.
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