Touring a vacant property safely is not easy, especially given our current situation.
The requirements of social distancing get in the way of property buyers and investors, potentially holding them back from finding their dream investment(s). It also stifles potential tenants signing on the dotted line. This is where technology and new methods of apartment touring come into play.
Two of these options include self-guided property tours and virtual property tours.
If you are a prospective buyer exploring convenient property touring options, it’s a good idea to become acquainted with both of these. Self-guided tours deliver an immersive experience where potential tenants can avoid the high-
pressure sale and explore on their own, at their own pace.
Let’s review the merits of each of these options.
Virtual Tours vs Self-Guided Tours
Today, buyers & renters are presented with self-guided and virtual tours out of necessity. Oftentimes, the option that ends up working best is the one that best aligns with the viewer’s personal preference and availability. The primary purpose of both options is to address the buyer’s concern and deliver a convenient and comfortable property tour.
What Are Virtual Apartment Tours?
Virtual tours enable interested parties to “experience” a community that they are interested in without having to be present. Its collection of 360-degree images can be the magic bullet that convinces a prospective buyer or tenant that a rental community is the right fit. Virtual tours are also timely given the current realities of COVID-19.
How Do Virtual Tours Help Property Buyers?
Convenience
The biggest benefit virtual tours offer is the convenience of being able to be in the comfort of your home while also getting to tour a property. It enables you to avoid having to sit in traffic to get to a location and skip the hassle of meeting up with an agent. This frees up your time to tackle other important tasks.
Money Saved
You may need to visit many properties before finding the one that is best for you. All that commuting adds up to added expenses and virtual property tours help you to avoid these too.
What Else is There to Consider?
Virtual tours are great, but they do come with certain limitations.
For instance, there is only so much that a virtual tour can reveal. If you want to assess a multifamily property as a whole or explore nearby neighborhoods, there is no replacement for being there in person. Poor lighting can also obscure things within a unit that you would need brought to your attention. Luckily, self-guided apartment tours can step in to overcome all these concerns.
What Are Self-Guided Apartment Tours?
A market insights survey reports that 83% of home buyers prefer self-guided tours over virtual property tours. This suggests that the ease of online scheduling, digital access, and flexible tour durations are highly valued by today’s home buyers and renters.
These tours lend themselves to a comprehensiveness that cannot be achieved with the virtual option. Through self-guided tours, interested parties can literally picture themselves in their new property or home, simplifying the decision-making process.
How do Self-Guided Tours Help Buyers?
Convenience
Self-guided tours remove the element of having to wait for a leasing agent to either book or confirm a time for a tour with you. Instead, you can select a time that fits best with your own schedule, since you will have access to the unit via a smart programmable keypad. All the property manager needs to do is create a temporary access code that they would then email to you.
Privacy
It is completely normal to feel intimidated on an apartment or property tour, as someone is typically accompanying you and thus watching your every move. However, with self-guided tours, you can open cabinets, inspect power outlets and more without having someone looking over your shoulder.
Higher Conversion Rates
Studies show that people who book a self-guided tour are likely to convert to lease-signers at almost twice the rate; this is far better than any other property touring methods available today. Many property managers are tracking this trend and offering self-guided tours to get more leases in less time, and we can’t blame them.
What Else is There to Consider?
While taking a self-guided tour of a promising multifamily property and its units, be sure to write down your questions, as there will not be anyone available to give you an immediate answer.
This was all about virtual and self-guided property tours, we hope you found it useful. Stay tuned with Arize for more information on smart apartment technology.
Author Bio
David Liang a successful Co-Founder of an IoT startup venture, and Product Manager at Arize.
He currently manages the development of smart apartment technology products that focus on increasing efficiency, sustainability, and user experience.
Favorite quote: “Life is like driving a car, you use rear mirrors to reflect but wipe your windshield to continue to drive forward.”
