Technology is a bit behind the trend in the housing industry, but this could all begin to change soon.

Nominations for HousingWire’s Tech100 Award opened at the beginning of this month, and now the early-bird pricing deadline is quickly approaching.

One of the biggest changes to this year’s award is the addition of our editorial advisory committee. This year, for the first time ever, nominees will be reviewed by an advisory committee, made up of some of the best minds in the housing industry. This committee will then advise HousingWire’s internal award review board of potential finalists before the winners are selected. Click here to see who is on this committee.

But now, members of that committee have come together to inform HW readers on some of the biggest issues in tech today. HousingWire interviewed SparkTank Media Founder and CEO Jeff Lobb, who talked about some of housing’s biggest issues – including where housing tech will be five years into the future.

Here is the second part, with more questions and answers to follow from other experts in the weeks leading up to the end of the Tech100 nomination period:

HousingWire: Where do you see real estate tech in five years?

Jeff Lobb:

• Technology will make appointments for you and open doors remotely. 
• The standard open house will be mainly virtual in the initial shopping experience. 
• Geo location will get more value ads with beacon tech and there will no longer be the need for a QR code or text code at any home.
• An interested passerby will have access to that data on demand due to its location.
• Listings will notify buyers instead of agents having to send it to them.
• Artificial intelligence and predictive date will begin to really get smarter and advanced with more accurate leads being generated and already along the conversion and qualifying process with AI and predictive working together.
• We will finally see the CRM evolve to a more valuable tool than it has been. The CRM which agents, brokers and loan officers fight to adopt will become smart and intuitive.  They will tell you who to call and when with better accuracy and more readily available data. As a matter of fact, they will contact clients for you with an if this, then that approach. Conversation being started without you doing the work.
• AVM’s will get better with tracking of consumer shopping & financial data.

For consumers – More companies fighting for my business online. Consolidation of sites toward consumer behavior versus search. Behavior and life events drive real estate traffic. These won’t be a secret with the big data companies mining their info and habits. This will provide more convenience to the consumer giving them what they want, when they want it or maybe just before they realize they even need it (with predictive and AI technology).

HW: Will machines eventually replace humans?

JL: Of course machines will replace humans in some aspects of the real estate realm. We have computers, iPads, apps and algorithms, Google, self-driving cars…But will it replace the real estate agent, the mortgage professional or the title agent? It might thin the crowd, but it won’t completely replace the need for human interaction during an emotional process like buying a home. Not in our lifetime.

There is still too much emotion and uncertainty involved in the home buying or selling process. We raise families in homes, our lives are centered around homes. There is emotion tied with dozens upon dozens of moving parts during the buying and selling process that a human with experience in the field is absolutely a valuable asset.

Will this group of professionals need to adapt to new tech and pivot with their value proposition? Yes indeed, those who can adapt and pivot will be the ones who will win at the tech game and the shift of the machine takeover.

Here’s everything you need to know about the HW Tech100 Award, and click here to nominate your company. While the nomination period is open until January 25, 2019, early-bird pricing ends on December 31, 2018.