Page 48 - IBT October 2020

Real Estate Industry
Toward the
New Normal
Bproperty has been the harbinger of digitalisation
for the real estate sector in Bangladesh. In the
post-pandemic world, they are ready to lead the
sector to new heights
As the lockdown restrictions are preference. The pandemic has paved
being lifted across the country, the the way for massive digitalization of
worst fears about the implications of services and consumers are leaning
the pandemic are appearing to be towards the digital platform to make
fading away. Our economy is showing purchasing decisions. It has prompted
strong signs of recovery and every industry towards a digital
consumer confidence has been dimension, however, the adaptation
restored. However, the pandemic has has been asymmetrical.
made some tectonic shifts in our Concurrently, a few companies were
market dynamics which are well equipped for the transformation.
irreversible. COVID-19 has accelerated The biggest and only reliable real
By Asif Tarafdar the trends that were already estate solutions provider in
underway before we lock down and Bangladesh, Bproperty, has been the
every sector has to transform itself harbinger of digitalization of the
according to the new consumer sector since its inception. In the
post-COVID-19 world, they set a new
benchmark for the industry in
Bangladesh.
A Digital Disruption
The pandemic has reshaped the
priorities in the Bangladeshi real
estate sector. Health and safety
concerns are taking precedence in
consumer decision making. People are
more inclined to “Online and virtual
viewings” adhering to the new social
distancing regulations. The changing
dynamics have facilitated a surge in
Bproperty's website traffic. The
pre-pandemic or pre-lockdown period
had been one of the busiest periods
for Bproperty’s website when over
400,000 users on average visited it
each month. The months of April and
46
May saw hopefuls on the back foot campaign to cater to the growing
need for more rental properties. As a
about moving forward with their
result, the decrease that was seen in
property decisions but still showed
April began to recover in May with
some interest in researching their
future moves. Once the lockdown June being an important month for
was officially lifted and people once
regaining momentum. In
again felt comfortable with real
comparison to March, only 8% fewer
listings were added in June and
estate shopping, Bproperty’s
website saw a rapid rise in traffic
more than 14,000 rental properties
and user activity as the number of
were newly listed in the next two
people using the site far surpassed
the highs of the pre-lockdown consecutive months.
period – reaching about 950,000 Enhancing the
combined during June and July. The
following month saw even more Experience
increase in website traffic, which As the introducer of PropTech in
also coincided with August being Bangladesh, Bproperty has always
one of the best months for tried its utmost to make real estate
Bproperty in terms of property
more convenient and accessible to
transactions. September is also on people through the implementation
its way to producing a similar result of virtual property tours, video
if not better. property tours, and Facebook Live
sessions. The proliferation of the
Facilitating internet and smartphones has
expedited digitalization on a mass
Transformation scale. Bproperty is catering to
The initial stages of the pandemic demand by delivering virtual
created a lot of panic and property searches through various
confusion. Lack of economic mediums and these have echoed
activities and an uncertain future with the current consumer
triggered a mass exodus of people preference. Bproperty's Facebook
from Dhaka. The new economic Live sessions have had a
dynamics also prompted the resounding response since their
residents to shift to a new home. conception. The Live sessions
Bproperty was prepared for this and average high 20 thousand to mid-30
responded with a strong acquisition thousand in terms of their “reach”
on the social media platform with
some reaching over 50 thousand
Facebook users. However, when the
Bproperty Live sessions returned in
June, the response was
overwhelming with a reach that
hovered around 80 thousand and
even crossed the 1 lac mark. Such
response is not limited to social
media though. Video property tours
that accompany the listings on the
Bproperty website have also seen
more clicks during the lockdown
and the post-lockdown period.
Comparing March of this year to
June, when the lockdown was lifted,
the number of users who view these
videos have increased by a
staggering 555%! The number of
users who play videos rapidly rose
since March and continues to
steadily rise to date.
Bridging the Gap organization is always working
towards making real estate more
accessible and easier for everyone
Regardless of technological
involved. To that end, Bproperty has
incorporation, physical viewings and
evaluations will continue to be a vital already enabled users to search
properties using map views and use
part of real estate consumers for a
virtual tours to get in-depth
long time. Bproperty is constantly at
knowledge about any property in
work trying to reduce the gap, and to
question. These and other aspects of
their credit, much of the unnecessary
PropTech have been a core part of
counter peoples’ preconceptions and
processes have been eliminated. To Bproperty and work toward
developing, as well as incorporating,
notions about the reliability of the the next generation of property
virtual aspects of property search, technology is always ongoing. And
Bproperty utilizes detailed 360 virtual as a part of Emerging Markets
property tour mechanics that allow Property Group (EMPG), who have
users to zoom in and inspect every more than combined twenty years of
inch of those corresponding
properties. Furthermore, to bolster the experience in operating property
portals across sixteen nations,
VR tours, subsequent video tours of Bproperty knows, the skillset and
the property as well as HQ images the drive to take Bangladesh’s
allow users to verify the aspects and property market to that next level –
features of the property. The which is currently being done by
combination of these three website
features, along with a detailed using the power of “Big Data”.
description of the property, enables
real estate hopefuls to browse
multiple properties online and Paving the Future
shortlist the right ones, which can Thanks to Bproperty’s extensive
then be viewed physically, if required, market presence, operations, buyers,
with the guidance of Bproperty’s sellers, tenants and landlords, all
expert property advisors. real estate hopefuls will be able to
make data-driven, logical
Empowered by investment decisions. Furthermore,
October will also be the month of
Innovation the Bproperty Online Property Fair
where property buyers will get
Bproperty has been a staunch special features and opportunities
proponent of utilizing technology and that are unlike to what the
all it has to offer to enhance the real consumers of this country are
estate landscape. Additionally, the accustomed to. Alongside the online
fair, people should also be on the
lookout for Bproperty Interior - both
residential and commercial, which is
sure to revolutionise the still
fledging interior design landscape of
the country.
Bproperty is known to real estate
enthusiasts for its features and
services. The website is a
feature-rich domain catering to a
medley of needs and luxuries such
as map views, area guides, heat
maps, an EMI calculator, and so
much more. More features to aid
users are always being worked on
but one particular new product is
being unveiled to the public soon.