This week’s Tech Trends considers the latest developments on the digital side of the real estate industry.
Getting Ready for Redy. Redy, an online marketplace for home sellers looking to choose a real estate agent, has launched in five markets.
Home sellers in Atlanta, Dallas, Orlando, Phoenix and San Diego can now take advantage of the platform. According to the company, the home seller uses Redy to select the agent they want to interact with, enabling them to receive personalized agent proposals with a cash reward just for listing their home. Redy does not share home sellers’ personal, property or contact information until they have chosen an agent, the company added.
“For the first time, sellers get paid cash to pick an agent; as a result, agents are directly invested in the sale,” said Josh Altman, co-founder of Redy and a real estate agent who has gained prominence through his appearances on Bravo’s “Million Dollar Listing.”
“All agents have the opportunity to own local seller listings, which will in return help them own the local market they operate in and level the playing field for listings,” Altman added. “When you own local seller listings, you own your local market.”
Yardi’s New Resident Services Bundle. Yardi, a provider in AI-powered real estate software, announced a new resident services bundle designed to help property managers enhance the resident experience.
The Resident Services by ResidentShield bundle will enable residents to sign up for essential services directly through their RentCafe resident portal using a built-in checklist that guides renters through the move-in process. According to the company, residents will only have to use one app to activate essential services after moving in.
Among the resident services that can be accessed in this bundle are a simple security deposit alternative, renters’ insurance, flexible rent payments, high-speed Wi-Fi connection, fixed power plans and complimentary rent reporting.
Yardi has also announced plans to launch a resident rewards program that includes free rent reporting from a partnership with IDIQ. This initiative, which will being in the fourth quarter of this year, will help residents build credit from on-time payments and is at no additional cost to property managers and operators.
“Our mission has always been to help our clients provide exceptional resident experiences and the move-in process plays an important role in delivering that experience,” said Akshai Rao, president of residential at Yardi.
A View from Above. CAPE Analytics, a provider AI-powered property insights for insurance and real estate risk, and Vexcel, the provider of aerial imaging services, announced a new partnership that provides CAPE with aerial imagery to boost its property insights and expand its product footprint in the U.S., Canada and Australia.
According to the companies, CAPE’s use of Vexcel’s high-resolution orthomosaic imagery will provide its clients with a more comprehensive scope of property risk analytics. These insights can allow insurance carriers, financial institutions, and home and business owners to understand, manage, and mitigate property-level risk.
“CAPE Analytics’ long-term partnership with Vexcel marks a transformative step in enhancing our market-leading property intelligence solutions,” said Ryan Kottenstette, CEO of CAPE Analytics. “Powered by Vexcel’s extensive imagery coverage, CAPE will continue to deliver the most precise, reliable, and up-to-date property risk analytics available.”
New Tool for Multifamily Leasing. MRI Software, a provider of real estate solutions and services, has launched MRI Engage CRM, an integrated CRM and communications tool designed to help multifamily organizations achieve their leasing and occupancy goals.
According to the company, the new tool works together, separately, or alongside existing tech solutions. It combines a full communications suite with a CRM system that allows multifamily teams to track and interact with prospective renters, applicants, and residents through one application. Key features and capabilities include an end-to-end workflow with a 360-degree view of every interaction across the resident lifecycle, prospect and resident guest cards with configurable views and reporting, and integrated maintenance scheduling and streamlined service request management.
“Many multifamily organizations struggle with CRM systems that are overly complicated to use, time-consuming to implement, and lack the comprehensive functionality to manage leads and resident communications,” said John Ensign, president and executive managing director for North America at MRI Software. “These challenges create a steep learning curve for new staff and require more training to drive user adoption, and properties must often use additional, separate systems to achieve business goals. MRI Engage CRM delivers the unified prospect, resident and communications tools that property and leasing teams need, without sacrificing the features that help them deliver the right messages at the moments that matter.”
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