On a consistent basis, we are steadily improving in virtually every phase of our life. These changes are not felt by the material things alone as ideologies are also being born, shaped and reshaped on a consistent basis.
People are beginning to accept changes in all spheres of life as some of the practices are no longer compatible with the realities of today. As a matter of fact, the only thing constant is death, taxes and changes.
Evidently, the real estate industry is not spared by this ever-present wind of change. Technological advancement has affected the real estate industry in multiple ways.
The very first changes the real estate industry experienced is in the gathering of data for planning and execution of projects. Gone are the days where an estate surveyor has to manually make the calculations and drawings in order to produce a graphic and legal description of a land. In today’s world, the best of estimations are done with the aid of software programs.
For instance, hardly can one find a competent real estate agency in Abuja that fully relies on the use of pencil, paper and a ruler to make model drawings for building. The architects have also adapted to using stat-of-the-art technology used in the developed countries. Estate surveyors and valuers in Abuja are also increasingly seeing the need to explore the better alternatives inspired by technology in other to have better feasibility and viability appraisals.
Much of the field work of an estate surveyor and valuer has been automated (thanks to technological advancement). For instance, the introduction of an EDM (Electronic Distance Meter) and some other land surveying digital tools has made the job of an estate surveyors and valuers easier and less prone to error. With the help of wide format scanners and printers, they are able to present their works in various dimensions (2-d and 3-D) to clients.
The development feasibility software programs have equally made it possible for better feasibility and viability appraisal to be carried out right with better accuracies. This is why a visit to an estate surveyor while on the field is all you need to see how far technological advancement has shaped the planning and execution of projects.
The second way in which the digital world has equally affected real estate agencies in Abuja and every other part of Nigeria is in the sourcing of clients. Gone are the days when clients need to visit the office of a real estate firm just to make enquiries rent an apartment or any other activities performed by real estate agents.
Though real estate agencies in Nigeria are yet to start acquiring individual mobile app, virtually all the top real estate agents have an online presence. With an official website, one can browse through the available properties for lease or sale, request for a free building quotation or even request for the services of an estate surveyor and valuer for Valuation study on a property of interest.
From all that is said, we could deduce that the real estate industry in Nigeria is equally influenced by the technological advancement the world is currently experiencing. To excel convincingly and stand out among the pool of real estate agents available, real estate firms must be willing to blend-in in order to fully optimize the benefit associated with being in the digital space.