Three Key Proptech tools for greenfield developments
Greenfields land developments are booming across Australia, from Melbourne’s expanding North West corridor and South East, to Sydney’s West and all across South East Queensland, as interstate movers, downsizers, and young homebuyers are all vying for new estate opportunities.
For property developers these are exciting times and an opportunity to shape the evolution of communities and entire regions.
For your average developer, however, these large-scale developments come with big challenges and even bigger risks. From planning and regulatory approvals to funding, community development, project marketing and staged release management – each phase is not only complex and costly but incredibly time-consuming too.
Regardless of your property development maturity, overseeing new greenfield land developments is a tricky business. However, if you want to develop smarter, not harder you need the right tools to help you get there.
Enter Proptech.
If you haven’t heard of Proptech our only guess is that you’ve been hiding in a cave for the last few years.
Proptech, a portmanteau from Property Technology, is a sector comprised of a vast array of innovations and technology that apply to the Property or Real Estate sector.
Protpech’s cache has evolved over the years, in part due to the rise in popularity in Europe and the USA, as well as increased necessity and demand brought about during the pandemic, and so the evolution from sub-sector to certified sector naturally occurred. Much like Fintech.
In Australia alone there are over 650 incorporated Proptech businesses, many launching first-of-a-kind innovations and addressing an array of inefficiencies & gaps that plague both commercial and residential real estate value chains.
We digress, let’s get back to what we came here for….
Here are our top 3 Proptech tools to make your residential property developments more informed, efficient, profitable, and ultimately deliver better & brighter communities.
- Artificial Intelligence
Traditionally, when considering where and what to build, property developers have been forced to rely on market & land data collected from Government departments and other agencies which can be dated upon collection and fiddly to work with.
Today, we live in an age where Property Developers no longer need to source, decipher, compare and decode the data that will inform where, how and what to build.
Rather, thanks to Artificial Intelligence (AI), Greenfields development are now being better planned based on aggregated data, that is visually represented and compared in a single platform with a few clicks of a button.
From zoning and feasibility, topography, flood risks, and even ideal sub-division, lot distribution, and asset types, platforms that leverage AI can provide property developers foresight to make decisions faster and smarter & save a lot of capital down the track.
- Virtual Displays
“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at.”
— Leo Burnett
Now you’ve decided on where and what to develop, you’ve got a masterplan in place, and you’re ready to show the world the community you plan to bring to life.
A solid marketing campaign is key to any successful Greenfields project. While many regions are currently in the midst of a hot market, the popular expression “if you build it, they will come” is not always the case.
Most property developers generally will reserve a decent slice of the budget pie for marketing, which is good, but your typical website, brochure, and EDM combo don’t always provide the full picture, and seldom create a great customer experience.
Virtual and interactive displays, whether delivered via touch screens at the sales office or an online interactive masterplan, can illuminate marketing efforts, expand available buyer markets, and generate greater interest in projects.
Think 3D renders and modeling, interactive walk-throughs, pinned features and information, and incorporated sales and marketing information.
With the recent restrictions hampering the in-person sales office and interest from interstate movers, investors, and even overseas buyers in off the plan real estate –virtual displays are a sales & marketing game-changer.
- Online Release Management
“Play fair, be prepared for others to play dirty, and don’t let them drag you into the mud.”
– Richard Branson
We now have a master planned community, which has been expertly marketed and there are a long list of eager customers checking their emails and calling every other day to hear the good news of an upcoming release.
The problem?
Off the plan stock is traditionally allocated on a first come first served basis and many buyers miss out or have a poor customer experience waiting in cues in person or online. Frankly, it’s unfair as it excludes or disadvantages many eager homebuyers.
Property developers feel the pinch too, with peaked costs and a constrained buyer market.
Thankfully Proptech saves the day again. Incoming… online release management.
We may have some bias here, but we are really the only kids on this block, so please read on.
The real estate industry has struggled to find a fair and equitable way to release off the plan stock to the market, which is where Release.Me come in.
Release.Me enables property developers and agents to hold land releases entirely online, taking care of the process from the time the release goes live until contract signing, handling the peak in workload & reducing the cost usually associated with a release.
The platform gives every buyer the same opportunity to secure a property, from the comfort of their own homes – and uses an algorithm to allocate property fairly and equitably.
Problem solved.
Now, what do these Proptechs have in common?
Many things, including digitising processes, creating efficiencies, optimising expenditure, opening up buyer markets, and more.
One standout commonality between these platforms though is that they collect and collate valuable data for property developers.
In the case of Release.Me, the platform enables comprehensive and all-inclusive buyer data – because more buyers can participate in a release from any location in the world, and buyers can select as many preferences as there are lots that fit their needs.
In a first-come, first-served model, Sellers would have a restricted buyer market, and limited buyer preference data to inform products and pricing in future releases.
As we said earlier, Property Development is a tricky and complex business that relies on a series of stages over a long period of time to create a successful outcome.
Informed decision-making is key. After all…
“Who has the data – has the power.”
– Tim O’Reilly
We’re here to help.
Reach out to us to make your next off the plan release better and fairer. Click me.