Covid-19 has shaken the confidence of an endless list of businesses around the world. But when it comes to PropTech, Founders and Investors aren’t worried. Are we about to witness a bull-run on PropTech and if so, how can real estate companies, startup founders, and investors, position themselves to seize the gains that lie ahead?
With capital investment appetite in real estate tech healthier than ever, PropTech is positively soaring. Predictions about the future of the PropTech space are unanimously bullish. Recent findings by The Times reveal that a massive 94% of investors believe Covid-19 will accelerate the adoption of PropTech by real estate companies.
This optimistic theme for the future is upheld by PwC who predict that over the next 5 years, there will be a 39% increase in Proptech Investment and Usage rates.
Source: PwC
Pack your suitcase, we’re going for a ride.
PropTech is a suitcase word, in that so many definitions can be packed into it. It defies specificity, and can mean many things to many people, while meaning nothing to others. To chart a course through that ambiguity, we have to break down what PropTech is, by first looking at what problems it solves, and who it solves problems for.
Where better to start, than with the soldiers in the front line? In a study conducted by KPMG, real estate professionals identified the painpoints they suffer, that they believe technology can help them with.
More and more RE businesses are changing their strategies and looking for a new and diverse workforce that fits. They search for talent with technical skills, and the ability to work efficiently and innovatively. Late-adopters, dinosaurs and pen-pushers are no longer welcome. To successfully navigate the post-Covid landscape, companies are not only increasing their digital engagement, most now have recruited a C-level individual tasked with leading their technological transformation.
Using this bottom-up approach to understanding the problem areas that real estate companies suffer, Founders can focus their energies, and Investors can inform their capital allocation strategies.
With approximately US$ 2bn spent on over 500 PropTech deals in 2020 alone, investors have caught the scent and are ready to charge like raging bulls. Nearly 76% of them are expecting to see more real-estate tech deals over the next 12 months, and 60% are poised to make more investment than they did last year. Good news for PropTech CEO’s, with 32% believing it will be easier to raise venture capital in 2021 than ever before.
Let the good times roll.
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