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When it comes to buying and renting property, a new report showed that Australians are now moving on from the traditional approach to a more hybrid model.
The latest data from virtual tour provider Little Hinges showed that more than 4 million digital property inspections had been conducted on its platform over the last 24 months.
These figures correlate with separate data from a Qualtrics research commissioned by Zoom, which revealed that 58 per cent of Australian buyers want a hybrid method of inspecting properties.
Upon analysing these figures, Little Hinges chief marketing Mike York said that the change in the purchase and renting behaviour among Aussies is clear.
“The 4 million prospective buyers and renters inspecting property virtually demonstrate that Australians want to move beyond the traditional open-home approach to a hybrid model,” he stated.
According to Mr York, the rise of this buying approach’s popularity is rooted in the convenience it offers over old-school inspection methods.
“Being able to inspect 24/7 from anywhere in the world is important to enable interstate or overseas who can’t get to a physical inspection, and for busy locals who can’t make the Saturday morning inspection,” he explained.
Aside from the advantages the model offers to buyers, Mr York also enumerated how the approach can level up their current marketing processes.
“Agents and PMs can use a hybrid inspection approach to enhance their existing processes, offering a great experience for buyers and tenants,” he stated.
And while he acknowledged that prospective buyers and renters would often want to see what they’re putting their money into in person, he raised that they also want to have the ability to inspect the property at a time that is convenient for them.
On top of eliminating time constraints, Mr York stated that virtual tours also give people the ability to revisit a property as often as they need.
Mr York stated that with the help of these features, potential buyers and renters could make their best offer at an earlier period.
“While photos and video are great tools, a hybrid approach to property inspection allows buyers to do things like measure a property down to the millimetre, helping them size up how furniture will fit into the new home, or allowing them to get renovation quotes before making their best offer,” he said.
As the demand among buyers and tenants for the ability to inspect property in “a way that works for them” grows, Mr York said that their platform is observing a strong increase in agents and PMs who want to combine virtual and physical inspections in a bid to market their properties to the widest potential buyer base.
“Agents and PMs who can demonstrate to vendors that they are doing this are the ones who will ultimately win more listings and grow their rent rolls,” he opined.
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