There are several takeaways from the COVID-19 pandemic, especially for our industry. However, there is one key takeaway for the real estate industry, which can’t be ignored, and that’s how emerging tech rolled out faster than previously planned. Trends such as working from home, digitalization, big data and more were in the works, but at the onset of the pandemic, speed of the adoption and reliance on this tech only increased. 

So, here we are, emerging into a post-pandemic world, which begs the question: will this disruption actually change the industry long term? If you ask us forward-thinkers, we say absolutely. It’s time that leadership embraces disruption. 

1. Embracing disruption puts you on the offensive, not the defensive 

Reason number one why leadership must embrace disruption — it puts you on the offensive as opposed to the defensive. There are really two ways that you deal with disruption:

• Look for the disruption, and face the change head on. 
• Ignore it, and put effort into resisting the change.

By looking for the change, you’ve put a plan in place for how to deal with the challenge of a change. There are new opportunities coming your way, and your company is prepared for it. By opting for number two, your business is at risk. Not only are you expending energy to fight off the disruption, but you’re also expending energy fighting off a disruption when the entire industry is changing around you. In a Netflix/Blockbuster scenario — we won’t name any names — but only one of them came out on top. 

2. Traditional brokerages cannot be competitive without evolving 

Companies like eXp, OpenDoor and Compass are completely changing the way that brokerages do business in the industry. From flat fees to iBuyer trends, there is newfound competition for the traditional brokerage. Some of these new trends can operate completely online and ease the tedious transaction process, which is intriguing to home buyers and sellers. Traditional brokerage models need to be open to change in order to remain competitive to support their buyers, sellers and the transaction as a whole. With that said, many traditional brokerages are rolling out their own disruptive models expanding on their range of services.  

3. Innovation is all around us, making change inevitable 

In general, innovation is happening all around us. But if we zero in on real estate, innovation is just as widespread. Earlier in 2021, Forbes Real Estate Council reported 15 tech trends that were disrupting the industry. The report listed emerging trends in extremely widespread areas — we’re talking about climate change, AI, live video, iBuyer companies, and carbon-footprint reduction to name a few. Disruption is occurring in all facets of the industry, which makes remaining open to change just that much more important. 

4. Tech is changing the way that agents do business 

Just like everything else in the industry, the traditional split between agent and broker is under fire. New models created variety for buyers and sellers, but it also opened up options for real estate agents. For example, companies like eXp and Compass have capitalized on technology to give agents a larger cut and spend significant resources to recruit agents. A larger cut combined with more streamlined tech is always going to be attractive to agents, which makes it that much more tough to retain valuable agents as a traditional brokerage. This emphasizes the importance for traditional brokerages to adopt new technologies and offer more value to their agents. 

5. Disruptions mean you can do it faster and better 

A key mindset for businesses to operate with is that a disruptive technology means that there is a new,  faster and better way to do things. And that’s a good thing! If there is a substantially easier way to your job, then that’s a positive for you and your employees. In this day and age, people expect things immediately. Buyers and sellers have immediate access to real estate information, including their home’s value and the rental market. They expect that your business will offer them the same immediacy and speed making disruption a crucial part of the industry’s success.  

Zipi is the Real Estate Operating System (OS) that aims to make real estate simple from agents and deals to commissions and billings. Request a demo to get in contact with one of our expert team members.