Virtual Reality (VR)  is an interactive 3D environment that is accessed using special electronic devices such as goggles or a helmet. 80% of consumers are familiar with VR and 81% of consumers who try VR say they would tell their friends about it, and as we know in real estate: word of mouth is very valuable.

VR is becoming more mainstream in the gaming industry, in real estate it’s still only really practical for luxury brokers. As technology continues to develop, VR will become more accessible. Some companies are already offering 3D VR scans of properties at lower prices, although it’s not the same as immersive VR video experience.

VR is an incredibly powerful tool, and when applied to the real estate industry, it gives the consumer greater confidence – especially when investing in properties that are still being built. The only way to sell a multi-million dollar home is to have the potential buyer walk through it, this can be physically or virtually. We continue to see foreign buyers investing in the most expensive of properties.

As the number of international buyers increases, these buyers bring new trends to the market and brokers are becoming more creative in order to capture this elusive group. The real estate industry has already embraced high-end drone footage of homes and VR is the next logical step. Utilizing VR allows clients to “walk-through” numerous properties in your office, saving everyone a lot of time. Clients are able to decide which properties they really want to take the time to see in person, so they are more likely to sign on the dotted line when they do finally walk-through a property in person.  

As of today, VR is an effective tool to get buyers excited and is not an actual replacement for seeing a house in person. Many believe we’ll see a transition to VR from video as we saw with the transition to video from photos. It is a little too early to tell at this point, but we here at Union Street Media will be keeping an eye out and letting you know as the market changes.