Threatened by the coronavirus crisis, real estate had to adapt urgently. With barrier gestures and social distancing complicating transactions, players in the sector had no choice but to generalize as much as possible the use of digital tools, through the development of virtual tours, but also of videoconferencing.

INTERVIEW

The coronavirus crisis, as well as the containment decreed in mid-March, have struck a blow to many sectors, including real estate. Very fit last year, he had to adapt urgently to new health requirements in order to limit physical contact while ensuring the sustainability of his activity. For this, it was necessary to generalize the use of digital tools. So far used marginally, they have emerged as the most effective solution for continuing transactions.

"We had to go digital [sic], even if we already had this sequencing before confinement", explains Jean-Marc Torrellion, president of the FNAIM, at the microphone of Europe 1. "The difference is that we have industrialized it using different tools made available to all our members. "

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Virtual and videoconference tours

This is how the virtual visit naturally imposed itself, confinement and social distancing oblige. "It shed light on our model," says Nicolas Guay, co-founder of the online real estate agency, Welmo. It must be said that his agency was already at the forefront before the Covid-19. "We already used a lot of pre-Covid digital tools with the virtual visit, which is essential because it is the first impression we have before visiting the property," he continues.

"We had a revival of activity and strong growth from April 6," says Nicolas Guay. "With as many sellers having a post-containment sale project as sellers who found themselves outside the door of a closed real estate agency, and who fell back on our model". So that in three weeks, Welmo identified more than 500 sales projects.

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"Solutions that will last"

"We had already turned to digital for more than a year," said Corinne Jolly, president of the PAP company, which offers real estate sales and rentals without intermediaries. 3D virtual tours were a real success during the confinement period and new visiting modes have also developed, mainly video calls. "Many individuals have started to do so," she continues, adding that three out of ten owners contacted their buyer via Whatsapp or Skype to present their accommodation to them. Unlike the virtual visit, videoconferencing allows the seller to meet potential buyers. Which, for Corinne Jolly, is a significant advantage that the virtual visit does not allow.

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According to her, if these remote solutions "are not intended to replace the actual visit", they nevertheless make it possible to meet as few people as possible. "We pre-filter the interest of the buyer and avoid unnecessary visits". An organization particularly suited to the current context, which requires limiting physical contact as much as possible, but which could just as easily continue thereafter. "These are solutions particularly suited to the context of Covid", abounds Corinne Jolly. But beyond that, "it's a time saver, it's super efficient, and these are solutions that will last".