As the real estate industry bids goodbye to another calendar year, it’s the natural time for reflection. Needless to say, 2022 gave everyone much to reflect on. The pandemic’s waning influence kickstarted markets with electrifying force; sight-unseen sales skyrocketed to unprecedented heights; real estate trends and technology continued to enact significant change on a once-inveterate industry; and, to cap it off, rounds of rate hikes brought (mostly everyone) back down to earth.
Real estate trends to look out for in 2023
Based on the dominant, emerging trends in 2022, we can generate educated guesses on what to expect in the coming year. In this article, let’s list a few real estate trends to look out for in 2023.
Consumer Centricity: The Rise of the Real Estate Digital Marketplace
One of the breakout successes of 2022 was Nobul. The company was gaining serious steam before this year, but 2022 seems like the year everything fell into place: Nobul topped the Deloitte Fast 50 list as the fastest-growing tech company and announced a milestone of $5 billion in sales. If you’re a betting person, the safe money is on Nobul’s upward trend in 2023.
Essentially, the company offers an “end-to-end real estate digital marketplace” defined by its consumer-centricity. Nobul “enables buyers, and sellers to openly see the transaction histories, pricing, reviews and services of real estate agents,” according to owner Regan McGee, and “agents can then actively compete for the prospective buyers’ business.” It’s a role reversal of the old model of lead generation favored by the industry – one that places power back in the consumer’s corner.
As consumers increasingly look online for self-empowerment, you can expect this digital marketplace trend to maintain its upward course.
The Robot Invasion: Drones, AI and VR
The real estate industry could only hold out for so long before it (finally) embraced automating tech. We’re starting to see the shift now, but you can expect it to ramp up further in 2022.
Specifically, watch for increased penetration of drone tours, AI-supported pre-qualification, and virtual/augmented reality marketing. These immersive and emerging technologies crashed onto the real estate scene during the pandemic (when digitization and remote buying became a significant part of the consumer ethos). They don’t seem to be going anywhere.
In With the New: The Continuing Influence of Millennial Buyers
In March 2022, the National Association of Realtors released a landmark report showing that – for the first time – millennials now comprise the largest share of homebuyers. In some ways, the report represented the usual “passing of the torch” from one generation to the next. But in other, more profound ways, it was a wake-up call to the industry.
Millennials are the first generation of “digital natives,” preferring online shopping to in-person meetings, and innovative solutions to old industry habits. What does that mean for the industry? Everything. It means that (once again) you can expect companies like Nobul to continue exerting influence, and emerging technologies to dominate the real estate conversation.
It also means that tech solutions like e-signing, realtor communication hubs, and online listing services will likely become the norm. If that doesn’t happen outright in 2023, it’s going to happen eventually.
Final words
Eagle-eyed readers might notice a few threads running through the above trends: technology, disruptive innovation, and convenience. As the industry mounts a fresh calendar, you can expect real estate to move into a new era of tech-enablement and consumer-first practices.
