User Driven Revolution Transforming the Real Estate Industry

Mobile technology is transforming the way we date, holiday, travel, and, now, buy real estate.

In the last eight years, Airbnb, Uber, Spotify, and Tinder have made it easier than ever to date, travel, listen to music, and find accommodation. These companies are at the cutting edge of disruptive technology that’s changing how we do business and access services.

It’s a ‘user-driven’ revolution and it’s coming to real estate. Early in 2015, the biggest names in Australia’s real estate industry joined Sir Richard Branson to discuss the future of real estate. The topic of discussion? Real estate is a ‘ticking time bomb’ waiting to be decimated by an outside force.

Sir Richard’s perspectives on the impact of disruptive technology are compelling. This is a man who has enjoyed the heights of success with Virgin Megastores around the globe and now sells online and through a hand-full of stores in the Middle East. Sir Richard has had a front row seat on the impacts of disruptive technology and he believes real estate is next in the firing line. Next Address does too.

Forget Tradition

Traditionally, hunting for a property has been a hard slog of wasted weekends inspecting unsuitable or overpriced properties, searching websites, chasing agents for information or inspections and being swamped by email alerts about properties. For sellers the story is similar.

The agents have often made tens of thousands of dollars in commission for very little effort. Even the “new” models of online real estate selling, generally require the buyer to do all the searching and to deal with an agent.

The industry has also been made overly complicated by the use of jargon and industry buzz words. Sadly, it’s an industry that plays on the fears of the vendors that they won’t achieve a fair price unless they use an agent who has a “big book of buyers” and knows the tricks of the trade.

Next Address is here and it’s going to revolutionise the sale and purchase of property. The Founder, Julie O’Donohue believes that property owners are the best advocates for their own homes and that anyone can sell their own home at the right price using the online tools and accessing support from partner affiliates.

Next Address is like online dating, but for real estate. It matches buyers to properties. It works 24/7 to match the housing wish list of buyers with properties on the site. It connects buyers directly with the sellers rather than waiting for phone calls from agents. You can be anywhere and buy anywhere.

It is a peer to peer model for people who know there is a better, simpler and more cost effective way to buy and sell real estate.

In Control

Most people use the skills required to sell their own house on a regular basis. We negotiate, make deals, and meet new people constantly and yet when it comes to selling or buying real estate, people often hand control of the process to an agent.

Yet even John Cunningham, President of the Real Estate Institute of NSW recently warned that “the barista who makes your coffee has had more training than many real estate agents who are entrusted in selling your biggest asset.”

As the old saying goes, “knowledge is power” and that’s why Next Address is sharing the industry’s closely guarded secrets on buying and selling. The tools and professional support required to buy and sell real estate are available through the website’s blogs and magazines.

Point of Difference

According to Julie O’Donohue, the key to transforming the way real estate is bought and sold was not simply setting a low list price and abolishing commission fees. The point difference lies in the commitment to exceptional customer service, integrity and philanthropy.

She said, real estate agents are often regarded in a similar light to used car salesmen. It was important that Next Address was different in the way customers are treated and local communities are supported. Next Address has a strong commitment to partnering and supporting charities with a percentage of profits directed to partner charities each year.

Not only are the Next Address sellers saving time and money, they are contributing to key national and local charities.