There was once a time when only a hardcopy of sales particulars were available to home movers when visiting estate agents to give a flavour of their dream home and to help compare against others.
This was before the advent of Rightmove that pulled together agents’ stock of property on one easily accessible portal for all to see. Fast-forward to now and accelerated by the pandemic, the adoption by agents and rise in popularity of virtual tours among home buyers and tenants is likely to remain.
According to research by TwentyCi (a home-mover and behavioural data agency), guided virtual viewing on properties resulted in 19.4% higher conversion rate than those listings without one and homes sold for an average 5.62% more than listings without. The same research revealed benefits for landlords and tenants with nearly 70% of lets taking place after at least one guided virtual tour; 66% of these tenants let without a physical viewing. Listings with guided tours had let rates which were 8.5% better than those without.
James Sawyer of Whatley Lane says: “Virtual tours give buyers and tenants the opportunity to view a home from the comfort of their own living room via a mobile, tablet or desktop and to view for as long as they wish! Consequently, buyers and tenants are coming far better prepared before they physically view and with greater confidence if they live much further afield.
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There are two ways we can deliver this option to our customers, one is by one of our agents providing a tour in real-time to a viewer and the other, most popular, means is by using our appointed 3D technology Matterporte operator. The doll’s house view is a particular fun feature immediately showing off the scale and uniqueness of a property and we find clients love to share this feature with their family and friends. Similarly the ability to measure spaces via the software can avoid potential crises when fitting furniture.
Of course not all houses are suited to this medium and use of only photography might be a better option. Your appointed agent can help you decide. The only caveats are that your house needs to be immaculately presented in advance of our 3D operator arriving and any valuables are securing stowed away”.
Some example sales and rental properties to peruse via virtual tour are curated here:
