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The pandemic accelerated the shift to digital for industries everywhere - at the same time, however, it exposed significant gaps in digital capabilities that currently exist in certain sectors. Real estate is among the industries that traditionally relied on physical interaction and was thus forced to rapidly innovate when the lockdown hit. What we are witnessing right now is a transformation of sorts, as digitisation changes the face of how real estate has always been in India.

According to estimates, the real estate sector in India will be worth $650 billion by 2025, contributing to 13% of Indias GDP. Despite the setback to demand after the lockdown, homeowners are once again exploring prospective flats and houses, with home sale units doubling between October and December 2020. With lockdowns getting consistently extended, relaxed and then imposed again, planning for in-person appointments to tour houses is extremely difficult. Real estate firms and developers are thus switching to online options to win customers over and close home deals. This, in fact, marks a big step forward in a trend that had already begun over the last few years - systematic, hassle-free online search for homes. A mix of time-tested technologies and new real estate-specific innovations are being brought in to achieve this. Here are some trends we can expect to see growing over the next few years.

*Multiple listing services - These are portals that act as demand-supply aggregators by displaying all relevant properties sorted by popularity, price and location and thus enable a quick comparative view of whatever is available. This is a first-level filter that helps homeowners choose better and is now a must-have everywhere. These portals are also equipped with data mining capabilities that assess buying and selling trends and can thus proactively anticipate demand.

*utomated operations - In the post-Covid world, real estate agents who do not use technology in their daily lives will fall behind. We will thus witness the use of more digital lead management tools to qualify and generate leads. Paperless documents, ERP systems, online approvals and automatic dashboards are all becoming the norm.

*Customer connections - Forming strong customer relationships will continue to be top priority, even if physical meetings take a backseat. Agents who stay in regular touch with their clients through messaging and social media platforms will see more lead closures, as those customers are likely to remember the agents and to reach out to them when needed.

*Virtual reality - Todays homeowners are no longer interested in just viewing static property images. They expect to be able to tour each property virtually from the comfort of their homes before they even consider paying an actual visit. Companies are responding to this by investing in virtual reality that offers 360-degree virtual tours, immersive experiences for each home. Supplemented by video calls and consistent customer support, this is quickly becoming a popular way for homeowners to close deals without venturing forth unnecessarily. While still in its infancy, this technology is likely to flourish, even after lockdown restrictions have been lifted.

*Cloud-based offices - Real estate agents have to spend a considerable amount of time out in the field. At the same time, renting or leasing a commercial office space is an expense that the current lockdown situation cannot justify. Real estate firms like exp India, Anarock, Squareyards etc. are thus shifting the office experience to the cloud, starting with anytime-anywhere access to entire virtual office setups where employees can log in and experience the sense of community and collaboration that they would in a real-world setup. These virtual solutions can reduce Zoom fatigue and the pressure to always be online, break departmental silos and foster a shared culture to help agents feel less isolated. Simultaneously, firms are investing in the digital education of their agents through online tutorials and universities that focus on real-estate skills as well as soft skills. This equips agents to be more confident and also boosts their lead closure rate, as they deliver the kind of top-notch online experience that customers deserve.

The digital revolution in Indian real estate may have been born out of necessity, but its leading to changes that will benefit the industry in the long-run. Companies are taking serious steps to go digital and adopt cloud-based brokerage solutions without delay, while also empowering the brokers who may not traditionally be comfortable with digital methods. Technology will be at the fore of most real estate decisions from now on, and we can expect positive changes and accelerated industry growth as a result.

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Digitally enabled brokers - The future of Indian real estate - Construction Week Online India