New apps let real estate industry push boundaries.
SAN DIEGO — To close a sale in real estate, opportunity favors a charged phone.
Three years ago, real estate agent Jordan Clarke was driving on the interstate when he received a panicked call from clients in Washington, D.C., to say a San Diego-area home had just gone on sale.
The countdown had begun. There are few homes for sale in the affluent coastal area they were gunning for and, chances are, other agents had clients interested, too.
Clarke pulled off the freeway, called the listing agent, got into the home and pulled out his cellphone. Step-by-step, he marched through the remodeled home, showing live video to his East Coast clients of hardwood floors, two fireplaces, a designer kitchen and large windows.
Impressed by what they saw, they made an offer. In just a few hours, the home sold for $1.1 million — beating out a higher offer an hour later from another agent.
Many agents have used video streaming with buyers, primarily apps like Skype, FaceTime and Periscope. Now, real estate brokerage Redfin is taking it a step further. Since July, Redfin’s website and phone app has allowed users to select the “Live Video Tour” function to have an agent take them through the home with his or her phone.
It is the first time a real estate company has set up live streaming connected directly to a listing.
“You are able to direct (an agent) just like you’re there,” said Clarke, a Redfin agent.
The feature is available only in San Diego and Chicago, though the app is available in several Texas cities, including Houston. Redfin says it has been mostly local buyers who have had a long day at work and don’t have the time, or energy, to go to an in-person listing. The way it usually works is an interested buyer goes on the Redfin website, selects the time they want to see a video feed, and the agent goes to the property with a phone. Then, agents walk up to the property while talking about its features. Inside, the agent shows off different areas until the user asks for close-ups or to go back.
Mark Goldman, a finance and real estate lecturer at San Diego State University, said the industry is quick to adapt to new technologies and he is old enough to remember the excitement over the fax machine.
“It took about five minutes to transport one page,” he said. “You fast-forward to today where you can get real time video streaming on a property, people can negotiate from around the world, send documents in a service like DocuSign. It’s just another way technology increases efficiencies and transactions.”
Goldman said the lack of new home inventory would continue to push the industry to innovate and be aggressive.
Realtor Jason Cassity, who works with sellers and renters at City Consulting Group downtown, said he has been using video streaming, mainly Periscope, for three years but mostly for rentals.
“People aren’t as afraid to commit to a one-year lease at $2,000, compared to dropping $600,000,” he said of viewing places by phone.
For Cassity, video streaming may already be a thing of the past. He said he prefers 3-D modeling platform Matterport (also used on Redfin listings) that allows companies to take detailed 360 photos inside a property. Once posted online, potential buyers can scroll through a home similar to Google Maps on streets.
The cost for agents can add up. Cassity said a recent Matterport filming of a 1,100-square-foot condo cost $350. Add that to $150 for photos and $600 for video. However, he said the commission on a house sale is worth it.
“For what we do nowadays, you better be putting in ridiculous levels of service and marketing to get that thing sold,” he said.