The impact and influence of technology on the property sector is in its infancy but it’s only going to increase as time goes on, able to see construction work carried out quicker and more effectively, but also changing how jobs are carried out and how buildings are used.
A recent report from the British Property Federation (BPF) suggests that digital transformation of the construction industry and the real estate sector will be absolutely essential to drive the success of the economy.
But in order to transform the real estate sector in digital terms, initiatives must be more outcome focused and the right infrastructure and environment must also exist.
The most important indicators were found to be investment in tech startups, real estate market transparency and maturity, data infrastructure, tech infrastructure and education, and innovation.
Because buildings are usually around for decades, some even for centuries, real estate is becoming increasingly important to the development of a nation.
And it’s worth noting that 90 per cent of the world’s data has been created in the last two years, suggesting that technology will have an ever-increasing impact in all sorts of areas. Some 93 per cent of senior leaders surveyed by the BPF said that digital transformation would be essential for the future of the real estate sector.
Having previously ignored the real estate market thanks to its fragmentation and the sheer number of small businesses involved, many tech companies are now beginning to look to the built environment as routes to market have improved.
And now big names have directly entered the market, such as Google and its Sidewalk Labs, Facebook building housing and Amazon making waves in the smart home arena with its Amazon Alexa device.
The UK government has also just announced that it intends to release data held by local bodies to make sure that the country’s proptech (property technology) sector is able to thrive and deliver a digital revolution for the industry.
Measures to help achieve this include opening up compulsory purchase order data for the first time, which should help proptech firms obtain the likes of energy performance certificates and the square footage information of properties.
A national index of all brownfield data will also be brought in, to help simplify and improve the quality of registers so developers are better able to find brownfield land to build on.
Housing minister Esther McVey said: “The UK property sector is on the cusp of a digital revolution. It’s time to harness new technology to unlock land and unleash the potential of housebuilders in all parts of the country and to revolutionise the way in which we buy homes.”
The UK proptech sector is growing and potentially worth £6 billion, leading the world where property building and buying is concerned. It already receives ten per cent of global proptech investment.
