Technology is becoming an increasingly important part of real estate transactions. RESAAS, a tech company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, may be part of the next wave of transformation for the industry. The company has developed business-to-business platforms where commercial and residential real estate professionals can connect, discuss deals and learn about new properties for sale.
The company states that more than 500,000 real estate brokers, agents and other professionals are part of their network. While most of these people are in the U.S., RESAAS is expanding globally and is offering its platforms in more than 20 languages. This past January, RESAAS executive Tom Rossiter spoke with Scotsman Guide about the trends he is seeing across the commercial real estate sector in 2022.
What is the largest advance you’ve seen in the real estate sector over the past few years?
I think the largest change we’ve witnessed is simply the rise of technology, which is a necessity. And frankly, good agents, brokers and lenders knew this pre-pandemic. They embraced it and used it to their advantage.
But there was a large part of the industry, certainly on the commercial real estate side, that was very reluctant to engage in developing technology. With all the various stages we’ve gone through with COVID-19, it has forced all of us to find ways to stay connected and that has included using digital platforms.
What is the next major trend for commercial real estate?
There are many things that are brewing, but one surprising trend that I’ve seen on the commercial side is the trend of large technology companies planning to return to the office. We’ve had all this debate about whether offices will open up and whether there will be hybrid models, etc.
The pace at which the real estate industry is moving has consistently quickened and is getting faster all the time.
And now Google has announced that they are going to spend $1 billion on property in downtown London that can house 10,000 employees. So, one of the largest technology companies in the world is committed to creating an environment that encourages staff to come back to a central office location. I look at that as a really strong indicator for the commercial real estate sector.
What other trends are you seeing today?
There is clearly an abundance of capital out there looking to be deployed in the real estate sector, but it is hard for some companies to find the right places to deploy that capital. There are supply issues and market problems that they are working through.
We are entering the commercial real estate market and creating a platform for commercial companies to connect, helping the demand side connect with the supply side, and play cupid. We think that is a major trend.
How do you see the role of mortgage originators and bankers changing?
At the macro level, I see the pace at which the real estate industry is moving has consistently quickened and is getting faster all the time. There’s inherently a supply issue. When supply does become available, it goes immediately, assuming it is high quality.
So, I think technology will play a larger part in how the links in the real estate chain, from the supply side to the closing side, fit together. The reason for that is people must move as quickly as the market is demanding us to. There needs to be a better ecosystem for all the participants, a fair platform for all licensed real estate professionals. They can use the right technology to act quickly, safely and securely on the markets’ signals.
What is the major problem that the real estate industry needs to solve?
About everyone we’ve talked to agrees that probably the main issue facing real estate is the lack of supply. There is just not enough supply coming onto the market.
Part of the puzzle that we all need to solve is, how do we do a better job of bringing more supply onto the market and making sure that the right people are aware of the new supply at the right time? You don’t need to be an economics graduate to understand the basics of supply and demand. If supply is low, the market should remain strong. ●
