siliconindia | | December 20209In FOCUSPROPTECH COMPANIES ARE USHERING IN APARADIGM SHIFT IN THE REAL ESTATESBY si TEAMThe real-estate sector has adopted technology faster than any other industry. The most visible shifts can be seen in the residential segment, where companies have built platforms to ease up the home buying process and related transactions. On the commercial side of things, Co-working spaces and the hospitality segment have disrupted the market. Yet, it's the entrant of a new type of company ­ the Proptech's, that has disrupted the real estate industry more than any other segment.Proptech companies aim to bring about transformative changes in the real estate sector and trigger a digital revolution of sorts, with the aid of the latest cutting-edge technologies. Emerging technologies such as Drones, AI, Blockchain, and AR & VR are at the forefront of this transition. THE PANDEMIC HAS FAST-FORWARDED THE ADOPTION OF TECHNOLOGY.Real Estate had always been a possessive asset-owning class, and prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the sector had raised $7.8 billion in investment between 2013 and 2017. Indian Proptech startups received approximately $243 million between the FY2016 to FY2018.With the Covid-19 Pandemic turning into a full-blown global crisis and the subsequent lockdowns imposed worldwide, a paradigm shift was witnessed with the way people lived and worked. This also proved to be the much-needed catalyst to rise to the occasion for the Protech companies.The first and foremost trend that has taken the real estate sector by storm is introducing video walkthrough of properties. And, even if the Pandemic is over, the trend is likely to stay put as it saves massively on time, money, and effort for both the seller and the buyer.The second trend is the emergence of online platforms that offer digital payments from housing loans, rent and maintenance charges, and any transactions conceivable. Another noticeable trend is the advent of interior designing services capitalizing on the power of emerging technologies such as AR & VR, where designers can sit down with their clients and explain the vision they are working towards.Then there are society apps, which provides a feature called touchless entry by facial recognition of the residents whereby people who are entering the society do not have to use Biometric information.All these emerging trends will become more and more prevalent, even if the Pandemic fizzles out. This is an irreversible change we are witnessing in the real estate industry. The Pandemic has fast-forwarded the deployment of emerging technologies such as AI and AR & VR in the Real Estate sector by at least five years. Proptech companies have brought in a paradigm shift in all the real estate segments, be it residential or commercial. WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC TURNING INTO A FULL-BLOWN GLOBAL CRISIS AND THE SUBSEQUENT LOCKDOWNS IMPOSED WORLDWIDE, A PARADIGM SHIFT WAS WITNESSED WITH THE WAY PEOPLE LIVED AND WORKED
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