A New York City realtor struck a deal with a Chinese buyer selling two properties in downtown Manhattan for $13 million - all on the messaging app WeChat!
The entire deal was done on WeChat. A Chinese buyer reportedly contacted Yue Emma Hao, a broker with Douglas Elliman on the app, inquiring about the Baccarat Hotel & Residences development, which is still under construction. Hao visited the project's sales center and sent the buyer pictures of the condominium. The next day, after she had a chat with the buyer on the phone, she managed to sell a three bedroom apartment for $10.25 million and a one-bedroom condo for $3 million, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Hao set up a group on the app and included assigned attorneys to help complete the deal. She told the Journal that this was the biggest deal she had ever done through the app. She has been an active user of the chat platform and frequently posts listings, pictures and leaves messages on her timeline for prospective buyers.
The Shanghaiist is calling the messaging app "the new way to connect and make millions of dollars."
Social media and virtual currencies seem to be taking over global property deals sooner than we could imagine. Just weeks back Realty Today reported how a Manhattan realtor accepted rent of about $18,000 in cold hard Bitcoins. In March, a villa in Bali also sold for 800 Bitcoins, the equivalent of $500,000, making it the most expensive property ever dealt in Bitcoins.
Other social media apps like Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter also help market a home effectively. With photos taking the center stage and listing websites like Zillow, Trulia and Redfin offering state-of-art applications, the whole home-hunt and buying affair has transformed into a full-fledged digital matter.
Virtual tours, augmented reality apps, online auctions, you name it- they have it.
According to the Commercial Observer, realtors are now fusing technology and traditional methods to get the best of both aspects.
"We are at a crossroads in real estate today. Some very big names in real estate are already making the shift to tech solutions and we're seeing innovation flourish," Riggs Kubiak, CEO and founder of Honest Buildings (HB Network), the world's leading Connection Engine for Real Estate Projects wrote for the publication.
"Think long and hard about where you see your business in ten, or even five years from now. If technology isn't a critical part of your business, then you are truly missing out," Kubiak added.
