The Rise of Contactless Rentals in the COVID 19 Era

 

The education sector, stock markets, retail markets, and entire economies at large are some of the sectors that have encountered unprecedented disruptions as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. The real estate and the realty sector are not any different and just like other sectors have felt the disruptive effect of the virus. Businesses have had to adopt measures in line with government directives to curb the spread of the virus and also to keep abreast. This has seen the rise of contactless rentals and this article focuses on the real estate sector and how key players in the industry have embraced the concept of contactless business management in the Covid19 era, case in point Rentberry.

Recent reports have it that the real estate market is slowly re-emerging from the recent downfall as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. Prices are slowly rising and inventory is slowly rebounding as the sector looks to make its comeback before the last quarter of the year. According to a housing trends report released by realtor.com in May, home prices are at a period high regaining the momentum that was there prior to the pandemic. Going forward into a post-Covid-19 pandemic world, things may be different.

The virus has altered the way many industries conduct business and many of these changes are here to stay. Personal safety is at the forefront of these changes, hygiene, and reducing face to face interactions are now a prerequisite for many forms of business. Real Estate is another industry where a shift is taking place. Contactless interactions are more important than ever as people will not want to attend packed open houses or shuffle papers around. They want specific actions with minimal to no contact with landlords and other prospective tenants.

Remote Rentals

Rentberry, a key player and shaper of the real estate sector in the US, has been at the forefront of contactless transactions in keeping with the social distancing measures enforced by the government to curb the spread of the virus. Based in Silicon Valley, Rentberry developed a transparent and secure home rental platform that adopted a contactless rental system through which landlords and tenants interact without having to meet. The platform beside a fully digital rental experience also offers the ability to submit custom offers thus allowing tenants to save money upfront and landlords to minimize vacancy rate. At the same time, it provides a set of tools that allows efficient and secure contactless interactions between apartment owners and potential clients.

To date, Rentberry has signed more than 30 partnerships and it is available in more than 40 countries. The widely partnered Silicon-based remote rental service has over the years raised more than $13 million from VC funds and a number of high-profile CEOs who are key players in the real estate industry?

Limited Physical Interactions

One of the key proposed measures to curb the spread of the Coronavirus is to limit physical contact and maintain a social distance of at least 1.5 meters. In keeping with this directive, businesses are having to embrace contactless models that limit physical interaction. Thanks to platforms such as Rentberry, landlords can find clients for their apartments and tenants are able to rent places without physically attending sometimes crowded open houses. The platform’s competitive bidding process allows landlords to choose tenants that fulfill and even surpass certain criteria hence streamlining the rental experience. Applications, credit reports, and custom offers can be submitted through the platform and rental agreements and payments can also be made with the touch of a button without either party coming into contact with the other.

Convenience and Safety

Oleksiy Lubinsky, Rentberry CEO confirmed that remote renting through Rentberry is not only safe but also convenient. Real estate agents and brokers are an unnecessary burden to homeowners seeking to rent out their property. They charge hefty fees, in some cases can be as high as 15% of yearly rent, for services that nowadays can be done digitally via Rentberry. Moreover, agents used to control negotiations and more often than not set the final price and this is usually financially burdening to a homeowner. Platforms such as Rentberry render real estate agents and brokers redundant and give both landlords and tenants control of the rental experience and a much-needed break from brokers, it also ensures that the government’s directive on social distancing is enforced.

Adequate Market Assessment

Appropriate and adequate market assessment, especially in the Covid19 era, has been lacking among a host of real estate listing services. Most listing services provide an inadequate assessment of the real estate market and this reportedly creates an insufficient market picture for renters and landlords.

“The countless the frustration that arises as a result of inadequate market assessment drove us to provide a possible remedy to the limitations in the real estate industry,” remarked CEO Oleksiy Lubinsky in a podcast at home business. “Rentberry creates a sufficient and effective rental ecosystem that addresses the frustrations of homeowners and tenants alike,” he added.

Automated Standard Rental Tasks

The automation of standard rental tasks has been an added advantage for rental service providers during this Covid19 era. Not only does it make service provision easier, but also contactless. Rental service provider Rentberry is said to be designed as a closed-loop system that automates standard rental tasks. “Our platform enables users to do all rental tasks from A to Z and provides an opportunity for renters to negotiate rent, sign lease agreements, and submit maintenance requests,” confirmed Oleksiy Lubinsky. Landlords can also run background and credit checks on potential renters. All these operations are seemingly performed without any physical contact and this eliminates the risk of spreading the coronavirus.

The Future of Real Estate

The future of real estate lies in contactless service provision. Rentberry leading the automation in the home rental sector - minimizes physical interactions and eliminates the need for redundant agents and brokers. The need for services that ensure social distancing and minimal physical interactions couldn’t be more elaborate especially in the face of a crisis that requires no or minimal physical contact.