Using VR to sell to investors over seas?

Question

what are ur thoughts on using  virtual reality head sets to show cases house to investors not in ur country? Do you feel this trend might be the next big thing?

Mark Costa · Answer

In the interest of full honesty, I will say that I am a co-founder of a business that does 3D scanning for RE. I also do research in the applications of xR.

If you are trying to impress investors and the deal is worth a significant amount of money, I would suggest springing for a Matterport scan. You can search for providers in your area. What I like about the MP scan is it retains some sense of depth and it auto-generates dollhouses and floorplans so the viewer can get a view the layout of the property.  I can't say how much the scan will cost as it is up to the service provider, but it shouldn't be that much more than professional photos.

In my experience, 360 videos and panoramic shots do not retain the sense of depth that an expensive 3D 360 shot would. You also have to stitch the shots together or create a walkthrough. I think it's harder to do well.

One last suggestion, for the final touch you could order a few custom branded Google Cardboard goggles to send with the investor package - your prospective investors can immerse themselves in the Matterport scan and have a memento that is way better than a calling card.

Sean Walton · Answer

We are starting to use them in our architectural practice at in person client meetings and it is extremely helpful.

There is also a high end condo development near me not from the office I work at that put them in their website. Not full VR but fun to move around with your phone acceleraometer http://thepacificheights.com/penthouse-collection/

Hersh M. · Answer

@Sean Boivin The way drones got popular in real estate few years ago, now more and more brokerages are already starting to use VR. Useful for even local buyers.

If you want to see how camera looks like - https://techcrunch.com/2017/05/31/matterport-launc...

Are you selling to the British? - https://www.thememo.com/2017/06/08/britains-in-lov...

Sean Boivin · Answer

Oh my god that is so freaking cool haha I never seen something like this wow haha I'm literally cheesing right now. @Luc Boiron

Luc Boiron · Answer

If anyone wants to see a 3D scan of a property by Matterport, here is one of my flips that sold a couple months ago. The dollhouse view (click on the little house icon) is great, and a part of why I did a scan of this property, as it is a 3 storey plus basement townhouse and the dollhouse view shows all the different floors:

http://gallery.vrlisting.com/3d-model/23-four-wind...

Mark Costa · Answer

One more thing to consider - you can tag hotspots in Matterport. If you really wanted to add that extra polish, you can pay a translator to add descriptions in your target audience's native language. That may be tough if you are targeting investors that speak different languages, but doable if you are looking at one or two options.

Mark Costa · Answer

@Sean Boivin I haven't bought any homes out of my geographic area yet and I tend to target lower-mid end of my local market where the REA still take photos with their phones, so I have not bought any houses with scans. However, my business is doing enough scanning volume on mid- to high- end houses to keep a full-time person busy.

Dan Rosenberger · Answer

These are all great comments. The Ricoh Theta is quick and does not require a storage plan. You simply email the files.

If you are selling a home, look at what Matterport has to offer.  It is a good product. If you want spherical 360 photos of a prospective purchase or job progress, Ricoh Theta is something to consider.

There are other products. Samsung has a spherical camera, but I have not used it yet.

If you are an out of area investor it would be good if your boots on the ground person has a spherical camera or similar product.

Marshall Martinez · Answer

@Sean Boivin I was working for a company that did Matterport 3D scans. IMO it is the future of showcasing properties. You can get a much better sense for the properties dimensions compared to 360 photos or photos in general. Great for buyers that can't view the property in person. As mentioned by @Mark Costa, the scan also produces a floor plan at the same time.

Consumers are all about convenience, and nothing says convenience like viewing 20 properties within an hour.

Dan Rosenberger · Answer

Ricoh Theta cameras are pretty reasonable.  Not ultra high resolution, but good enough to get a good idea about the house.  I can use a phone app and set the camera on a noodle tripod.  You end up with a spherical 360 panorama of the entire room.