The pandemic has forced every industry to think on their feet. Adaptations to the lack of face-to-face contact has been thrust upon us by COVID. It is no different for the property sector. More landlords have had to pay more attention on how to prepare for rental property viewings in the new lockdown. Many firms have introduced remote property viewings and virtual inspections to overcome these unprecedented challenges. Fortunately, there are many benefits of remote viewings. We’ve spoken to the experts at InventoryBase to find out what these are.
Health and safety
Firstly, due to the reality of Covid, remote property viewings are the safest way to view a new home. With a virtual viewing or inspection, you do not need to visit the property in person to see its condition. There are great virtual tools which allow you to inspect a property remotely. These include: phones, cameras, augmented-reality and virtual reality technology.
Wider accessibility online
Secondly, remote viewings and inspections open up your property to a wider audience. For those with a disability, viewing properties in-person can be a physically taxing task. On the other hand, virtual viewings allow you to inspect a property for the comfort of your own home. This offers a more inclusive solution. Making property viewings more accessible has the opportunity to permanently improve the number of deals done from agents. In lockdown, virtual viewings allowed one agency to double completions. In light of this, If this is kept on after the end of the pandemic, this will result in bolstering deals, especially during slower periods.
Save time
If you’re actively searching for a new house, it can be extremely time-consuming to visit each property in-person. You may be considering properties in different areas, cities or even countries, all of which require planning and organisation to view. Thus the rise of virtual viewings. Virtual viewings can save you lots of time, as you can view several houses over a number of days.
Save money
In addition to saving time, inspectors and agents can save money with remote property inspections. Managing various properties yourself across the UK can be time stretching. This means that it often requires extensive travel time and costs for inspectors. With virtual inspections, agents can ensure the property is professionally inspected without the journey. This is useful for agents or landlords with spread-out properties. As Bunk is fully digitalised, we tenant-find all across the country at a fraction of the cost of a traditional lettings agency.
Greater convenience for buyers and sellers
On average, 60% of viewings are carried out on evenings and weekends. This is both inconvenient for prospective property buyers, who often return for a second viewing during the daylight. Furthermore for those selling their property, who have their normal routine disturbed and have strangers entering and leaving their homes at all times of the day.Last November, data suggests that a quarter of house viewings were virtual. With virtual tours, a pre-recorded video or animation can showcase the property so that buyers can view it at a time that’s convenient for them.
Find great tenants and prepare your rental property for viewings with help from Bunk, the digital lettings platform with a difference. With dedicated account managers, we can also help you stay compliant during this uncertain time. For more information about how we could help you, get in touch with one of our lettings experts today.
Guest Blog by Damon Culbert, on behalf of InventoryBase.
