Proptech, short for property technology, is a new buzzword referring to the wave of companies that are using technology to refine, improve and reinvent the various services in the property industry including those that involve the act of buying, renting, selling, building or managing residential and commercial properties.

Proptech emerged as a solution to the urging need for greater efficiency within the property industry. It seeks to refresh a sector that has been deeply rooted in traditional values and antiquated processes.

“The real estate industry is a very rich one – it’s the largest and most valuable asset class in the world, but has been the slowest to disrupt and change,” Dominic Wilson, co-founder and managing partner at Pi Labs, an accelerator which invests in such startups at a very early stage, told the Telegraph.

Thanks to venture capital, community efforts, and an increasing realization that the sector truly needed innovation, the proptech ecosystem has been flourishing.

In the first three quarters of 2016, US$2.1 billion have been invested in the sector globally, compared to US$1.7 billion in 2015.

And this is just the beginning. A report by the Future Laboratory released last year suggests that by 2025, we will be taking full advantage of Big Data, new technologies such as gloves that simulate touch, and drones, in order to buy a house.

“This ‘Uber’ moment is fast approaching, a newly emerging prop-tech sector is driving innovation at an astounding rate in a market that has been, until now, slow to innovate,” Rob Ellice from easyProperty said, as quoted by the Telegraph.

According to Douglas McCabe of Enders Analysis:

“Whereas today an online property system might filter by budget and number of bedrooms, consumers in the 2020s will expect it to plug in to their personal data and know that they want a house with a south-facing garden, close to a railway station that serves their office, a school specializing in music for their daughter, and a jazz bar that serves great craft beer.”

Startups in the sector are set out to improve consumer experience of a range of services in the property industry that goes from data analysis, lending, investment, to software, property management, conveyancing and online agents.

In Switzerland, the trend is taking off, too, with several startups offering very innovative solutions to serve a clientele that is demanding greater efficiency, convenience, and lesser fees. In 2016, an organization was formed to represent this booming industry. Called SwissPropTech, the initiative aims to bridge the established real estate industry with innovative startups in and around Switzerland.

Among the key proptech players in Switzerland, Spectando is proposing a novel way for potential buyers to visit a property. The company’s solution allows property owners to create virtual property tours easily and quickly with just a smartphone.

Another startup, called Propmatch, is merging the much-hyped robo-advisor with real estate. Propmatch analyzes and evaluates locations, real estate properties and the Swiss real estate market as whole. The solution lets users discover all the information about a location and allows them to gain advanced details.

PriceHubble leverages Big Data technology to make valuations and predictions, allowing customers to make better-informed real estate decisions.

Other players in Switzerland include eSmart, which provides a complete Smart Home management system, Flatfox, an app that lets you search homes for rents and post rental listings, as well as Reamis, an asset and portfolio management solution.

Featured image via Pixabay.