What is beneath

PropTech
Key Stakeholders, Solutions 

and Market Trends

ascendixtech.com
 Content
Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
1.1. The world’s wealthiest and least technologically

advanced Industry

1.2. Four verticals of real estate

1.3. Real estate roles

Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword

2.1. What is Proptech?

2.2. How does Proptech innovate real estate

2.3. The driving force of proptech

2.4. The evolution of Proptech over the years

Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map

3.1. Proptech solutions and what problems they address

Buying / Renting / Selling Evaluation and Financing

Property Management and Utilization Construction

Chapter 4. Proptech Market Trends

4.1. Where the world’s biggest industry is heading in 2023

4.2. Technology trends in real estate

ascendixtech.com
 Executive

Summary
The word “proptech,” or “property technology” as some call it,
seems to be everywhere these days. It grew from something we
called, if anything at all, real estate technology with less than

$1 billion of investments in 2013 to a whole new industry
welcoming as much as $32 billion in 2022.

The purpose behind proptech as a whole is to bring technology-

enabled innovation to real estate – the world’s most significant
and yet least technologically served industry, which has been
sitting on the sidelines for two decades worth of innovation. And
considering the numbers above, the industry-wide shift into
digital has already started.

It's exciting to think that Ascendix has been a part of this

exponential growth and propelled it forward with both our real
estate automation practice and raising awareness of the
massive opportunity in proptech.

In this report we reflect on the state of real estate and illustrate

the evolution of proptech over time, across markets and
company categories to highlight critical relationships. To better
understand the market dynamics, we classify all proptech
solutions into four business categories based on how they
address real estate stakeholders’ needs.

Wes Snow is the CEO and Co-founder of Ascendix Technologies — 


a Texas-based technology enablement company bringing
innovation to inherently undertechnologized industries since 1996.
We redefine how real estate firms sell, rent, and manage the
property with proptech.
Unlock the Power of Proptech with Ascendix »
 Chapter 1
Understanding

Real Estate
1.1. The world’s wealthiest

and least technologically

advanced Industry
The birthplace of property technology – real estate – is the most asset-heavy
industry sitting at the very heart of the world’s economy and accounting for
approximately $326.5 trillion (2020) globally, with 79% in the residential sector
alone. Just to compare, the value of all gold ever mined stands at $12.1 trillion – just
4% of the value of global property (source).

Apart from gold, real estate is more valuable than all global equities and debt
securities combined, and almost four times that of global GDP.

Global Assets Value in Comparison

Gold Comercial real estate
$12.1tn $32.6tn
Global GDP Agricultural land
$84.8tn $35.4tn

Debt securities
$123.5tn
Residential real estate
$258.5tn
Equities
$109.2tn

Source: Savills Research

ascendixtech.com 02
 Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
However, with size comes hesitation to change. Real estate is perhaps the
world’s most under-technologized industry that basically sat on the sidelines
for 2 decades worth of innovation, relying on hard copies, manual checks,
and unsophisticated tools like Excel and Outlook.

Just compare, in the year 2015 when commercial real estate tech was just
starting, proptech companies received only $2.21 billions of funding while
investments in financial technology totaled $46.7 billion (source).

The major reason for the industry-wide reluctancy to adopt technologies has
always been the assumption that tomorrow will be like today and today like
yesterday, meaning that, no matter what, people will be buying, selling, and
renting real estate, ensuring constant flow of monies in the industry. And in
most cases, prospective buyers, sellers and renters are not willing to adopt
unaccustomed methods for what is likely to be one of the biggest acquisitions
in their life. Add this up to the strict regulation and illiquidity of large
heterogeneous real estate assets, and you’ll get one of the most change-
resistant industries on the globe.

Why Has Real Estate Remained Loyal 


to the Old Way of Doing Things?

Profitability of the old Constant demand – in

commission-based all times people have
business model bought, sold, and
rented physical space

High real estate Customers being wary

market regulation of using unaccustomed
that barriered methods for what is
innovation and new likely to be the
approaches acquisition of their
most valuable asset

ascendixtech.com 03
 Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
1.2. Four verticals of

real estate
As a physical entity, real estate includes four different categories of property:
residential, commercial, industrial, and land.

Types of Property Management

Residential Commercial Industrial Land

Single-family 
 Shopping center Heavy and light Farm
home Hospital manufacturing Ranche
Condominium facilitie
College Warehouse Vacant Land
Townhouse Hotel
Duplexe Distribution
Office facilities
Vacation homes Apartment
buildings and
multi-family
homes are
considered
commercial (even
though they are
technically
residential)
because they
produce income 

for their owners

Please note that within our proptech research we consider the industrial and land
vectors of real estate as parts of the commercial sector because these two types of
properties produce income for their owners and stakeholders. Hence, in the next
chapter we talk exclusively about residential and commercial proptech.

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 Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
1.3. Real estate roles
Real estate is a very vibrant industry in terms of parties and roles involved in
real estate transactions. Let's review some of the most common real estate
roles.

Key Roles in Real Estate

Buyer Tenant Leaseholder Buyer

Real Estate
 Property

Agent Manager
residential COMMERCIAL

Real Estate

Agency

Seller Landlord Landlord Seller

Underwriter Appraiser

Lender

Advisor Developer
Investor

Supportive Roles

ascendixtech.com 05
 Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
In residential real estate, Buyers are individuals and families who purchase a
home with the intent of living in it personally. In commercial real estate,
buyers are individuals and companies who purchase a property with intent to
generate income.

Sellers are people who have a home or property to sell to another party,
Customers

whether it be a residential space or commercial.

Tenants are individuals and families that rent a dwelling place.

Leaseholders are usually businesses or individuals that rent a commercial

space with the intention of income generating.

Landlords are the people or businesses that own a residential or commercial

property and rent it out.

Real estate brokerages are firms that act as a middleman for buyers and
sellers / tenants (leaseholders in CRE) and landlords to get in touch with each
other and enable them to complete transactions safely and efficiently. There
are several key roles within real estate agencies
Real estate agents facilitate the communication between sellers and
buyers / tenants (leaseholders) and landlords. They’re responsible for
finding potential property, marketing it, negotiating prices, and
representing the interests of their clients
Property managers may act as real estate agents helping property owners
find, manage, and retain tenants, but they also oversee leases and
financing options, and coordinate property upkeep and marketability.

Lenders are usually banks that provide the mortgage so that the buyer
(borrower) can purchase a property.

Underwriters are financial experts that conduct research on a loan

application to determine how much risk a lender will take on if they issue a
loan to a borrower. In most cases, an underwriter is an individual who works
for a bank.

Deal facilitators

Appraisers provide an objective estimate of the value of a property for lease

negotiations, mortgage lending purposes, change of ownership, and more.

Developers in real estate are individuals or organizations that buy land,

finance real estate deals, build or have builders build projects.

Investors may be Investment firms (REITs), fund managers, and asset

managers that own portfolios of real estate assets and offer shares and utilize
their capital or the capital of others to buy real estate or its share with the
goal of receiving a return.

Advisors may be real estate agents or any third party who guides a person or
group along the renting / buying / selling of a property.

ascendixtech.com 06
 Chapter 1. Understanding Real Estate
As you can see from the scheme above, the mediator in the communication
between the landlord and the tenant, as well as the buyer and the seller, both
in the residential and commercial real estate sectors is the real estate
brokerage, represented by customer-facing roles like agents and property
managers. They also act as facilitators in the lending process, helping clients
meet their objections at the most desirable cost. Hence, these professionals
have to deal with vast amounts of data that is not always possible to get a grip
of with unsophisticated tools like Excel.

Speaking of real estate lending, the whole process is owned by three parties –
the lender who assumes financial risk by providing a loan, an underwriter
who determines the value of the risk, and the appraiser who evaluates the
property. These roles need to collaborate with each other throughout the
whole lending process, ensuring the accuracy and efficiency of the final
decision.

Investors, developers, and advisors act as enablers of the industry,

channeling investible funds into real estate, developing it, and advising
property stakeholders about the next steps to take.

Altogether, each of the above-mentioned parties have been suffering from

inefficient, opaque systems and processes, making a physical space a
frustratingly illiquid asset in terms of speed of sale, probability of sale, and
costs associated with that sale.

However, this diversity of roles and their workflows being seriously

underserved by technology for decades actually creates a whole array of
low-hanging opportunities for tech-driven innovators and disruptors,
collectively referred to as proptech.

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 Chapter 2
Proptech – Beneath

the Buzzword
2.1. What is proptech?

Proptech is one small part of the wider digital transformation of the property
industry. It describes a movement driving a mentality change within the real estate
industry and its consumers regarding technology-driven innovation in data
assembly, transactions, and the design of buildings and cities.
Andrew Baum and James Dearsley, reported in Davenport, 2019

This definition gives us two verticals of understanding proptech. As a part of the

wider digital transformation, the newly coined industry sprawls at the
intersection of several dimensions: Fintech, Shared Economy, Contech, and
Smart Real Estate.

SMART

REAL ESTATE

CONTECH
REAL

PROPTECH ESTATE
 FINTECH
fintech

shared

economy
Source: Freshcode

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 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
- Smart Buildings describes technology-based platforms which facilitate the
operation and management of real estate assets. The assets can be single
property units or entire cities. The platforms may simply provide information
about building or urban center performance, or they may directly facilitate or
control building services through internet-connected devices and appliances,
which are collectively known as the Internet of Things (IoT). Some of the
obvious examples of smart real estate solutions in the residential subsector
include smart kitchen appliances developed by Siemens or intelligent lighting
systems by Philips.

- The Shared Economy describes platforms that offer shared and/or joint use
of a property. AirBnB and WeWork are the most famous proptech companies
driving the shared economy.

- Contech (construction technology) – the use of modern materials and

sustainable approaches in the building process. For example, green
technologies aimed at the decorbanization of real estate or construction
management platforms simplifying real estate development workflows and
pulling together all stakeholders.

- Fintech – the elder brother of proptech that brings technology into the
financial sector to make customers and businesses access financial services
with ease. The two industries meet at Real Estate Fintech focused on
facilitating financial processes in real estate.

At the same time, because all the above-mentioned technologies were not
available until recently and are just starting to appear in the real estate
professionals’ toolsets, proptech also represents a mentality change.

If traditional commercial real estate firms oftentimes failed to

recognize the importance of the consumer, thinking that their job
was just to provide a roof over someone’s head, real estate
professionals utilizing proptech tools recognize that the product they
have is actually more about building a relationship between a tenant
and a physical space.

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 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
Proptech is a Shift in Real Estate Mentality

OLD Thinking
Selling / renting / building real estate is

just providing a roof over one's head

NEW Thinking
It's not just that; it's also about providing
spaces that are dynamic, personalized,
efficient, modular, and sensitive to how
tenants are using the space.

If you conceptualize proptech in that way, real estate professionals have to do

much more: not just provide a clean space and make sure that electricity
works, but provide spaces that are dynamic, personalized, efficient, modular,
and sensitive to how tenants are using the space.

So, proptech is 1) a physical move towards digitization; 2) the mentality

change that requires to best understand and apply the disruption and
move away from tried and tested traditional methods toward new
conceptualisation of real estate – people.

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 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
2.2. How does proptech

innovate real estate?
Innovations introduced by proptech are becoming tangible throughout
the whole real estate value chain, from investing and development to
marketing and property management. Below are some of the positive
disruptions brought by proptech, according to a KPMG report.

Track Real-time
 Install Smart


Insights Sensors
Monitor the building from your Optimize the (healthy)
back office through smart environment of tenants through
sensors keeping track of real smart sensors to guarantee air
time insights to allow for quality, automate lighting 

predictive maintenance, water utomate

A and room temperature.
leakages or meeting room Workflows
utilization.
Improve efficiency and save
business hours using rule-
based logic and advanced
task routing solutions. Imagine/

ustomize

C Duplicate Reality
Construction
Twin Digitalize the user experience
W ith 3D-prints ancient buildings of existing (ancient) buildings with
come with irregular shapes that advanced AI before starting the
require customization, 3D construction/renovation to
printed building parts allow
 Stay Safe &
 optimize user experiences, 

for this. Secure tenant safety or reduce
constructioncosts.
Manage facilities remotely in
terms of user rights, access
schedules and user groups.
Opening doors anytime,
onnect

C
anywhere.
Stakeholders Save Energy
Through online platforms you Insulating the single glass
can connect your stakeholders – historic windows through thermo
whether investors, tenants or foil or heating through carbon
owners – streamline processes based foil on the floors, walls or
and reduce management
 ceilings allows to keep the
costs. ancient architecture and
ambience, yet get the comfort
that you are used to.

ascendixtech.com 11
Need Help

Automating Your

Real Estate Processes?
We are real estate software development experts with 16+ years

of domain expertise in real estate.

You can hire us to:

automate your real estate business with new technologies
assess your current systems
build new products tailored to your needs and niche.

Get Technology Help

ascendixtech.com
 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
2.3. The driving force of proptech
Proptech seizes the opportunities which arise from the three forces that are
creating a new real estate era – climate change setting new business goals
toward sustainability, socio-economic crisis ripping the world’s economies
apart, and most of all the pandemic, which made it crystal clear that the real
estate was seriously lagging behind other brick-and-mortar industries in terms
of digitalization.

In the pre-pandemic times, real estate spending on technology was seriously

lower than that of other sectors. While IT financing in other industries grew at
an average annual rate of 3%, that of commercial real estate was always
below 1%.
2.8%

Change in IT

Operational Spending

in 2017-2018 1%
In the pre-pandemic times, real estate spending
on technology was seriously lower than that of
Other

other sectors.
Sectors CRE

Technology budgets had remained low because the whole industry hoped for a
slow and gentle digitalization (if anything at all), which in fact, compressed
down to one month in March 2020 when the pandemic hit with sweeping
lockdowns and business closures.

Just look at the notarization process. Something that has historically been face-
to-face interaction needed to be reinvented in a matter of a month into a digital
solution. It was no longer an option. And if your firm wasn’t quick enough to
adapt, the market would punish you.

That lesson has been well learned by all real estate sectors as shows one of the
Statista surveys among senior commercial real estate executives in finance,
operations, talent, and technology. Tech budgets of commercial real estate
companies throughout the industry are expected to have increased by over
10% and are going to keep this pace in the years to come.

So, what Covid-19 did for real estate is that it pulled technology out from the
distant “nice-to-have” drawer and put it in the “must-have” one.

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 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
2.4. The evolution of proptech

over the years
Covid-19 indeed accelerated the proptech growth, but it didn’t really start
anything that wasn’t already on foot. In fact, the digital transformation of
commercial real estate took off long ago with the introduction of the very first
personal portable computers.

Brendan Wallace

Proptech has witnessed 4 major waves of innovation, each introducing new

enhancements to the real estate industry.

History of Proptech

1980s 2000s 2007 Now

Proptech 1.0 Proptech 2.0 Proptech 3.0 Proptech 4.0

Closed form Online brokerage and User experience Digitization and
technology for data aggregation portfolios 
 focused SaaS business automation (VTS)
and market analytics (Zillow, Trulia) tools; and mobile- Frontier tech: VR,
(Autodesk, CoStar, responsive apps blockchain, IoT, AI,
ARGUS) (Enertiv, Built, GreenTech, etc.
Common, Airbnb)

Proptech 1.0: PC-Based Software

The first wave of proptech took off in the 1980s when Apple and IBM
introduced the first personal computers. Proptech 1.0 is usually associated
with wide adoption of Excel, which soon became a standard for the
organization and analysis of data, and for many it is such now, too. The key
proptech companies of this period were Autodesk and Argus. The former
revolutionized the construction technology world while the latter brought
innovation to investment management. CoStar, a leading provider of
information and analytics to the commercial real estate industry, was also set
up during this period.

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 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
Proptech 2.0: The Internet Revolution

The second wave of proptech was marked by the launch of online marketing

platforms like Trulia (started in 2005), Zillow (2006), and Zoopla (2007), which

reinvented how tenants searched for the property. These proptech platforms,

besides helping tenants find the right product, attracted plenty of property

developers and real estate agents showing off their property and generating

huge business turnover. Today such customer-oriented solutions are industry

standard.

Proptech 3.0: Mobile & SaaS

In 2007, when the iPhone was launched, real estate technology settled into

the dawn of the new mobile computing era when innovations introduced by

Proptech 1.0 and 2.0 suddenly became accessible in our pockets. Proptech 3.0

also made it clear that the user experience played just as important a role as

the technology itself, so the interfaces became smarter, more collaborative

and social. Meanwhile, CRE tech startups and investors shifted focus from

traditional on-premises software to the emerging Software as a Service (SaaS)

business models, in which a cloud provider hosts applications and makes

them available to end users over the Internet.

In fact, SaaS, or the Cloud, is the new normal in how software is delivered. As

Better Cloud states, the percentage of SaaS out of total company software use

is up to 70% in 2022 and is projected to hit 85% by 2025. The reasons for such

popularity among users are varied

Scalability

Lower costs (as compared to enterprise software)

Reduced time to benefit (SaaS solutions are ready to use, so 


adopters don’t need to configure them from scratch)

Upgrades (providers keep their SaaS offerings up to date automatically)

Easy to use (SaaS solutions are built on baked-in best practices, meaning

that users won’t spend ages learning endless tutorials).

Proptech 4.0: AI, VR, Blockchain, & GreenTech

While mobile-responsive applications for the end-user and cloud-based solutions

for real estate businesses are still a priority in real estate software development,

industry thought leaders like Deloitte and McKinsey envision that more and

more investments will be poured into “new” real estate technology like

VR that replicates physical viewing of properties with computer-generated

reality. WeWork, one of the first companies that built a bridge between


ascendixtech.com 14
 Chapter 2. Proptech – Beneath the Buzzword
technology and commercial real estate, has already implemented 

360-degree technology in its office-leasing business model
Blockchain that simplifies transactions in commercial real estate, eliminating
the “middleman” and making them more secure
AI, or artificial intelligence for short, that can create tailor-made listings of
properties based on a client’s preferences and previous activity, thus
dramatically reducing manual work
GreenTech that refers to all innovative solutions designed to tackle climate
change primarily by decarbonization of the world’s biggest emission
generator – commercial real estate. As neither proptech 2.0 nor 3.0 put much
emphasis on climate protection, GreenTech has been seriously underinvested
in for decades: a mere $100 million has been invested in green proptech
technology over the past 10 years – a cost of several buildings in New York.
However, as people become more conscientious about the environment they
live and work in, we will see numerous equity opportunities in Proptech 4.0,
alongside tangible assets such as property and renewable energy
developments, predict investing experts like Pitchbook and Brendan Wallace.

Today, we're at the intersection of Proptech 3.0 and Proptech 4.0, as SaaS, going
cloud, and mobile is still a priority for most real estate companies wanting to
innovate their existing processes.

However, considering the fact that climate change has been on top of the world's
environmental agendas with the goal to limit global warming to well below 2,
preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, I envision that many of Green Technologies will
become the industry standard in the following years.

VR, Blockchain, and AI are already being actively implemented by the most
forward-looking real estate software providers but are still barely adopted by
real estate agencies and other traditional stakeholders. However, this is set to
change as well.

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 Chapter 3
Proptech Market

Map
3.1. Proptech solutions and

what problems they address
The whole concept of Proptech is about innovating real estate and helping its
key players work more efficiently. If we conceptualize proptech this way, then
logically it must follow that any classification of the proptech landscape must
link back to the property industry.

So, to draw a precise map of the proptech landscape and what opportunities
for innovation are out there, let’s have a closer look at what real estate
processes proptech aims to address.

Real estate processes can be divided into 4 large buckets:

Rent/Sell/Buy a Property Evaluate & Finance 


a Property
Listings and Marketplace
Mortgage
iBuyer
Underwritin
Brokerage Enablement
Appraisal
CRE Investment

Construction lendin
Manage & Utilize 

a Property Crowdfunding
RE Asset Tokenization
Co-working and Office Spac
Co-living and Home Sharin
Event Spac
Industrial Spac Build a Property
Building Automation and
Internet of Things Planning and Construction

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Renting / Buying / Selling
Three major milestones of our life, renting / selling / buying involve much
research and back and forth communication between the main actors in these
processes, tenants (leaseholders in CRE), landlords, buyers, sellers and real
estate agents (brokers), eventually creating loads of data that one person – an
agent – wouldn’t be able to get a grip of.

These activities may be further complicated by the absence of any means of

automation within a real estate brokerage, e.g., deal stage visualization tools,
email scheduling, smart reminders about the required actions, etc.
Customers, on the other hand, often struggle to maintain face-to-face and
over-the-phone communication and see the availability of digital
communication channels the industry standard. These needs apply in both
residential and commercial real estate sectors.

The Needs of Main Stakeholder in the


Buying / Renting / Selling Process

Wants to
Look for properties online & in one plac
Have customizable search with filter
Tenant/buyer Have more digital experience and less face-to-
face interaction

Wants to
Keep all communication with tenants/buyers and
landlords in one plac
Generate quality marketing material
Automate prospecting & visualize deal cycl Broker
Automate workflows and collaborate with the
team in a single system

Wants to
Make sure that the asking price isn't too lo
Make the renting / selling process transparen
Landlord Run accurate and reliable tenant background
checks

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Real Estate Marketplaces
Partnering with agents and owners, online real estate marketplaces
transformed the consumer real estate research experience by creating a
standardized place for various firms to display their sale or lease listings and
for renters and buyers to search for a desired property. There are two types
of such solutions

Single family home (SFH) marketplaces like Zillow and Trulia, late so-called
PropTech 1.0 firms that came to dominate the US market in the 2000s,
offering a simpler and more convenient alternative to a traditional home
search experience with greater peace of mind
Commercial real estate fintech platforms like LoopNet and Crexi
simplifying the search for multifamily and office properties.

Rental marketplaces should have the following key features

A user-friendly and visually appealing interface



Advanced search and filtering options to help users find the 

desired rental property or item easily


Detailed listing of properties or items with high-quality images 

and videos
Secure payment gateway for online transactions
Reviews and ratings system for properties/items and landlords/sellers
A 
 messaging system for communication between renters and landlords/
sellers
A calendar for booking availability and management
A mobile-friendly platform for easy access on the go
Option for landlords/sellers to manage their listings and reservations
Option for renters to save their favorite properties/items and searches
Option for both parties to receive notifications for new listings, booking,
and status changes.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
iBuyers
For the prospective homebuyer and seller wanting to upsize or downsize,
looking for properties is just as troublesome. The concerns are doubled due
to the tremendous uncertainty throughout the valuation process: sellers,
when they take an offer, are often hesitant about whether they have asked for
the best price, whereas buyers always want to make sure they’re not paying
too much.

The fog around the sensitive price question is easily cleared by iBuyers, or
“instant buyers” – proptech companies that use algorithms and technology to
buy and resell homes quickly.

By leveraging big data and AI to fuel automated valuation models (AVMs)

which take hundreds of different factors into account, iBuyers like Opendoor
and Offerpad can make a quick and well-informed offer on a house in a
matter of seconds.

Incorporating Legaltech such as smart contracts, these outlets eliminate

middlemen from the arduous transaction chain, thus dramatically reducing
fees for buyers and sellers alike. Considering the tremendous potential of
AVM in the home valuation process, the fintech proptech model of iBuyers can
be just as helpful for appraisers as they are for home buyers and sellers.

Key features of iBuyers include

A user-friendly and visually appealing interface

Detailed property information, including photos, videos, and floor plans
A property evaluation tool to provide instant home valuations
A secure payment gateway for online transactions
A streamlined process for selling a property quickly, with minimal hassle
A mobile-friendly platform for easy access on the go
Option for sellers to connect with local real estate agents
Option for sellers to schedule home inspections and viewings
Option for sellers to receive notifications for status changes on their property
Option for sellers to have flexibility with closing date and move-out timeline
Option for Sellers to have transparency on the offered price, closing cost, and
service fee.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
What is an iBuyer

and How Does It Work? Revenue StrEams

Seller Fees
(Seller fees ranging

Home Profits anywhere between

(Opendoor buys the 6 and 14%.)
home and sells it directly
via the platform) Loan Interests
(Opendoor also
provides financing,
thus making money
Mission va lu e propositions on the interests
Empower everyone with the freedom to move Sellers: Easily list and sell the home 
 generated by the
via the Opendoor platform. Or get it
home loans)
evaluated and bought by Opendoor.

vision
Buyers: Frictionless platform to find

Reinvent life's most important transaction with
 homes quickly, and also potentially 

a new, radically simple way to buy and sell your home get financing

Value

Model

Digital two-sided platform

Seller fees matching buying and


selling orders

Financial/

Profits from
 Technological

Revenue
Advanced algorithms to

home sales Model
Model pricing homes for
purchase by Opendoor. 

And algorithms to
Loan Interests enabling search and
discover of Homes for
buyers
Distribution

Model

Partnerships with leading

Agreements with resale
Multichannel approach

industry brands broker agents (Earned Media and Paid)

Source: fourweekmba.com

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Brokerage Enablement Tools

Brokers are the luckiest stakeholders in the marriage of real estate and

technology, as they can leverage both the above-mentioned solutions

(marketspaces for listing marketing and iBuyers for property valuation) and

numerous other brokerage enablement tools like CRM systems (AscendixRE,

Salesforce, Dynamics 365), marketing collateral generation tools

(Composer, Buildout), and multiple productivity tools like for secure deal

collaboration (MarketSpace), seamless search across records (Ascendix

Search), and e-Signature capabilities.

However, with the recent real estate shift toward platformization (source), it

makes sense to have all these solutions interconnected in one ecosystem

rather than leveraging them one by one.

If a marketing tool like MarketSpace is connected to a Customer Relationship

Management system, it can benefit from form fill technology and e-Signature

capabilities to prepopulate forms and documents with the data already

existing in the form thus dramatically improving broker efficiency.

A CRM software should have the following key features


Contact management: ability to store and organize customer

information, such as contact details, demographic data, and

communication history


Sales management: tools to track leads, opportunities, and deals, as

well as forecasting and reporting capabilities

Marketing automation: features to create and execute marketing

campaigns, track their performance, and measure their ROI


Customer service and support: tools to manage customer inquiries,

track cases, and resolve issues


Collaboration and communication: ability for teams to share

information, delegate tasks, and communicate effectively

Analytics and reporting: tools to analyze customer data, track key

performance indicators, and create custom reports

Mobile accessibility: ability to access the CRM from mobile devices

Integration capabilities: ability to integrate with other business

systems, such as email, social media, and accounting software.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Proptech Solutions for

Buying / Renting / Selling Real Estate

CRE Marketplaces Brokerage CRM

A single-source hub for stakeholders Deal cycle trackin
to market, analyze, and trade
CRE-specific terminology and field
commercial propert
Prospecting and workflow
Online viewing powered by VR/A
automatio
Tenant/buyer porta
Stacking plan functionalit
Viewing schedulin
Advanced analytics and dashboards
Radius searc
Filtering and advanced search
Commercial

Marketing Tools Productivity Tools

Brochures, flyer and reports Integration and small apps that
generatio extend the functionality of existing
softwar
Integration with the core CR
Improve search, document
One-time entr
management, etc.
Capability to send the newly
generated materials to multiple
recipients in emalls

Single Family Home (SFH)

iBuyers
Marketplaces
Residential (Mortgage)

A user-facing online solution run by 


Online viewing powered by VR/A a real estate company that buys and
Tenant/buyer porta resells homes quickl

Viewing schedulin Home inspection schedulin

Radius searc
Filtering and advanced search
Automated Valuation Models to
come up with precise home value
Radius searc
Payment support and transaction
tracking

ascendixtech.com 22
Need a Technology Partner

to Develop a Custom

Proptech Solution?
You could hardly find a proptech development

company with more experience and completed

projects for real estate than Ascendix.

Hire Ascendix

ascendixtech.com
 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Evaluation and Financing
In residential real estate, evaluation and financing services revolve around
mortgages – loans issued by banks or other financial institutions to help a
borrower purchase a property. Traditionally, there are at least 3 distinct steps
in the mortgage loan process, each taking weeks if not months

Pre-qualification – an optional step in the lending process when an agent,

usually over the phone, provides an estimate of the home price the
borrower can afford
Application – the first application of the borrower when they are asked by
the agent to provide, usually as a hard copy, documentation showing their
income, savings, debts and any other information that may pertain to their
finances – this step takes about a week
Underwriting & Appraisal – the most tedious process when the
underwriter is assessing the financial risk of lending money to the
borrower and evaluating the property. The home is evaluated by the
appraiser – from a week to a few months if additional information is
required
Closing – the final step when the borrower receives a Closing Disclosure
discussing the final details of the loan, including the loan amount, interest
rate, estimated monthly payment, etc. – from 3 days to a week.

The Needs of Main Stakeholders


in Residential Evaluation & Financing

Wants
Less face-to-face interaction and more digital
experience = quicker and smothe
Borrower More transparency into how the offer is going

Wants
Needs a single source of truth for appraisers /
brokers / underwriters to speed up the process
and avoid back and forth communicatio
Task routin Underwriter /

Agent / Appraiser
Online document management

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Traditional Mortgage Process

Pre-qualification
1 summary
Optional step in the lending process when the agent gives an
estimate of the house price the borrower can afford.

Process can usually be

Agent
completed over phone

Application

2 summary
The borrower is asked by the agent to provide, usually as a hard
copy, documentation showing their income, savings, debts and

any other information.

Process can usually be

Agent
completed over phone

Underwriting & Appraisal

3 summary
The underwriter analyzes your credit finances underpayment
history to determine risks that may be involved. Appraiser
evaluates the home price.

Underwriter
 SSN so Lender can

Appraiser conduct credit check

Closing

4 summary
The borrower receives and signs a closing disclosure discussing
the final details of the loan.

New keys because you

Agent
just bought a house

The whole process may take 60-90 days

Throughout the lending process agents, underwriters, and appraisers working

on the same deal need to constantly cooperate and share information in real
time, which, unfortunately, doesn’t seem feasible without technology support.
As a result, from when the lender receives a mortgage application to the time
the loan is disbursed may well pass 52 days, according to Ellie Mae.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
However, with the infinite potential of proptech, a traditional outdated
procedure where people still have to fill in hard copy forms and are being
asked to provide physical copies of their bank statements can be easily flipped
to a completely digital experience where lenders can check your information
digitally and approve you for a home loan in less than an hour:

The Digital Mortgage Journey

Customer starts application Info from banking

Customers can upload
Documents are managed and

through web portal or 
 statements and tax returns

other supporting documents checked digitally; algorithms
mobile app is gathered digitally, electronically, often through and software can help verify
aggregated directly from mobile image capture and flag missing data
verified third parties

Some or all required closing Property value estimates

Borrower info is compared

documents are executed are automated, often using

against a variety of

digitally advanced algorithms,

databases and records:

facilitating conditional
underwriting is largely

underwriting decisions automated

Application Underwriting Closing

Source: Business Insider Intelligence, Oliver Wyman, Federal Reserve Bank of New York

This becomes possible with the following customer-facing solution:

Mortgage Customer Portal

To avoid a few runs to the lender’s office, borrowers can leverage mortgage
customer portals – secure online personal rooms, usually on the lender’s
website, where borrowers can track the mortgage journey. Users can get up-
to-date information on the progress and next steps of their case or contact
their case handler directly to check how the deal is moving.

The service also makes submitting documents quick and easy. The user can
take a photograph or scan the documents and then upload these to the portal.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
The only document they'll need to send in the post is the original Mortgage Deed.

Such borrower portals are often provided by lending banks, e.g., Barclays, or
can be produced by third-party companies, e.g., OneHub.

The data collected through mortgage custom portals should be then fed into
lender-faced systems, like loan generation systems, underwriting software,
and credit report tools.

A Mortgage Customer Portal should have the following key features

Secure access: Ability for customers to log in and access their mortgage
information securely
Account management: Ability for customers to view their account details,
including loan balance, payment history, and escrow information
Online payments: A feature that allows customers to make payments online,
view payment history, and set up automatic payments
Document management: A feature that allows customers to upload,
download, and view important mortgage documents, such as loan
disclosures, closing documents, and statements
Communication: A feature that enables customers to communicate with
their mortgage servicer, such as through email or secure messaging
Loan status: A feature that allows customers to view the status of their loan
application and any outstanding conditions that need to be met before the
loan can be approved
Online application: A feature that enables customers to submit a loan
application online and track the status of their application
Mobile accessibility: Ability to access the portal from mobile devices
Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems, such as
credit bureaus and appraisal companies
Data security and compliance with regulations
Multi-language support for a diverse customer base.

Note: 

features may vary depending on the institution and the specific requirements they have.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Commercial
Commercial real estate financing and evaluation revolve around funding new
property development and acquiring existing assets by investors – real estate
investment trusts (REIT) and individuals.

Individuals may act as buy-to-let or buy-to-hold investors. However, regardless

of the investing intend, they need to manage their real estate portfolio, ideally,
from a single source of truth and manage the finances of their properties
effectively.

Real estate investment trusts and other organizations build / acquire a set of
buildings, often apartments, then allow investors to buy them through the
company, thus joining the group.

REITs may also act as lenders, financing the acquisition, development, and
construction of these properties through commercial real estate loans. Like in
residential mortgages, commercial loans are facilitated by underwriters,
appraisers, and sometimes brokers. There are different levels of risk and
terms associated with each deal.

As a result, such institutions need much more advanced tools than those for
individual investors that allow for seamless communication with stakeholders,
automated risk assessment, and robust data management and analysis.

REITs
A real estate investment trust (REIT) is created when a corporation (or trust) is
formed to use investors’ money to purchase, operate, and sell income-producing
properties.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
The Needs of Main Stakeholder

in Commercial Evaluation & Financing
Wants to
Have visibility into every stage of the buying/
financing proces
Have a point of touch online, preferably from 

a client porta
Borrower
So speed up the process

Wants to
Have a single source of truth for appraisers /
brokers / underwriters to speed up the process
and avoid back and forth communicatio
Automate task routin Underwriter /

Manage documents online Broker / Appraiser

Wants to
Manage real estate investment portfolio from one
plac
Have transparency of the investment proces
Investor Automate risk assessmen
Easily communicate with stakeholders

Loan Origination Systems (LOS)

Developed either for quick loans for retail customers, mortgage origination
processes, or complex business loans for SMEs or corporations, these
comprehensive real estate tools will run all stages of the lending process
starting from data collection all the way to deal closing – automating all the
steps in between.

The main benefit of such proptech platforms is not just collecting applications
but automating processes that are normally done by office staff. For example,
loan origination tools like a US-based startup Cloudvirga can perform complex
calculations at the point of sale to create underwriter-ready loans, while others
like Lender Price provide real-time analytics to manage pricing for conforming,
non-conforming, qualified and non-qualified mortgages, portfolio, and specialty
loans. Thereby these real estate fintech platforms allow to significantly reduce
the time to close loans and provide a better customer experience.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Loan origination system
systems(LOS)
(LOS)should
shouldhave
havethe
thefollowing
followingkey
keyfeatures
features

Online application: A feature that enables borrowers to submit loan

applications online and track the status of their application

Automated decision-making: A feature that allows the system to

automatically evaluate and approve or deny loan applications based on

predefined criteria

Credit and income verification: A feature that allows the system to

connect with credit bureaus and other data sources to verify a borrower's

credit and income information

Document management: A feature that allows borrowers and lenders to

upload, download, and view important loan documents, such as pay stubs,

tax returns, and ID

Compliance management: A feature that helps lenders stay compliant

with regulations such as Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money

Laundering (AML) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

Electronic signature: A feature that allows borrowers to sign loan

documents electronically

Workflow management: A feature that allows lenders to manage the loan

origination process and track the status of each loan application

Reporting and analytics: A feature that allows lenders to track key

performance indicators and generate reports on loan origination activity

Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as

underwriting and servicing platforms

Data security and compliance with regulations

User-friendly interface and easy navigation.

Note: 


features may vary depending on the institution and the specific requirements they have.

Considering the emerging proptech trends around SaaS and data accessibility,

it is also vital that the loan origination system is connected to the cloud and

integrated with other disparate systems existing within the organization, thus

allowing lenders, appraisers, and underwriters to collaboratively work on a

loan and access needed data from anywhere anytime.

This is what Ascendix did for a few lending companies on our portfolio who

used to struggle with chaotic systems and databases not having a single view of

the customer, right until we designed and implemented custom loan origination

platforms for them, leveraging cutting-edge cloud and analytics technologies.


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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Automated Underwriting Systems (AUS)
Unlike loan generation systems automating all steps in the loan processing
cycle, these platforms focus exclusively on underwriting. They utilize machine
learning and AI, as well as business rules manually defined by the
underwriter, to analyze a client’s financials (such as credit score and income)
in addition to the overall value of the property they are looking to purchase
(usually determined by an appraiser). From there, the system decides
whether to approve a loan application or refer it to a manual underwriter.



Automated Underwriting Systems (AUS) should have the following 


key features

Credit and income verification: A feature that allows the system to

connect with credit bureaus and other data sources to verify a borrower's
credit and income information
Income and asset verification: A feature that allows the system to connect
to bank and other financial institutions to verify the borrower's income and
asset informatio
information
Asset and liability analysis: A feature that allows the system to analyze the
borrower's assets and liabilities and determine their ability to repay the
loan
Compliance management: A feature that helps lenders stay compliant
with regulations such as Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money
Laundering (AML) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
Fraud detection: A feature that helps the system detect and flag any
suspicious or fraudulent activity
Decision rules: A feature that allows lenders to create and edit decision
rules based on their own underwriting guidelines and policies
Reporting and analytics: A feature that allows lenders to track key
performance indicators and generate reports on loan origination activity


Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as
loan origination, servicing, and compliance systems
Data security and compliance with regulations.

Note: 

features may vary depending on the institution and the specific requirements they have.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Credit Report Tools

Credit score apps bring instant access to everything real estate lenders or

brokers need to know about the client before completing the transaction.

Usually, these are simple third-party apps or APIs that link with the agency’s

internal system, providing details about the client’s credit card account

activity, outstanding debt, and the effects of their credit card activity on the

score.


Credit Report Tools should have the following key features

Credit report retrieval: A feature that allows users to retrieve credit

reports from one or more of the major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian,

and TransUnion)

Credit score calculation: A feature that allows users to calculate their

credit score based on the information in their credit report

Credit report analysis: A feature that allows users to analyze their credit

report and identify any potential errors or areas for improvement

Credit monitoring: A feature that allows users to monitor their credit

reports for changes and alerts them of any suspicious activity

Dispute resolution: A feature that allows users to dispute any errors found

in their credit report and track the status of their dispute

Identity protection: A feature that provides users with identity theft

protection and alerts them of any suspicious activity

Customized alerts: A feature that allows users to set up alerts for specific

events, such as credit score changes, new accounts, and hard inquiries

Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as

loan origination, servicing, and compliance systems

Data security and compliance with regulations

User-friendly interface and easy navigation.

Note: 

features may vary depending on the institution and the specific requirements they have.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Real Estate Tokenization Platforms
Real estate tokenization has emerged as an unconventional investment vehicle
with advantages for both issuers and investors. In fact, about 40% of the digital
securities market accounting for approximately $200 million comes from real
estate, as reported by Canadian-based digital securities company, Atlas One.

Real estate tokenization converts the value of real estate into a token stored on
a blockchain, enabling digital ownership and transfer. These divisible tokens
each present a fractional share of ownership stake in that real estate. As a
result, real estate share owners can avoid high transaction fees, easily diversify
their portfolios, minimize risk and create liquidity in the real estate market.

Here is a sketch of how a real estate tokenization platform works


(Block Estates):

Asset 1 Asset 2 Asset 3

Tokenization of

ownership or

income rights

Tokens

Blockchain

User Dashboard
Token

Holders • Purchase Tokens

• Manage Portfolio

• Other Services

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Real Estate Tokenization Platforms should have the following feature set



Tokenization: A feature that allows the platform to convert ownership of a
real estate property into digital tokens that can be traded on a blockchain


Smart contracts: A feature that allows the platform to automate the

transfer of ownership of digital tokens, as well as handle other transactions
such as payments and compliance
Digital Wallet: A feature that allows users to store, trade and manage their
digital tokens on the platform.

Accessibility: A feature that allows a wide range of investors, including

retail investors, to participate in the ownership of a property
Transparency: A feature that allows all stakeholders to have access to real-
time information about the property, transactions, and ownership
Security: A feature that uses blockchain technology and smart contracts to
ensure the safety and integrity of the transactions and the ownership
records
Liquidity: A feature that allows token holders to trade their tokens on
secondary markets, providing more liquidity for the assets
Compliance: A feature that ensures the platform operates in compliance
with regulations and laws in the jurisdiction where the platform operates
Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as
property management, accounting, and title registry.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Crowdfunding Platforms
Real estate crowdfunding is a relatively new way to invest in commercial or
residential real estate which gave rise to real estate crowdfunding platforms
(aka crowdfunding websites like CrowdStreet and DiversyFund).

The whole beauty about these online real estate platforms is that they

expose everyday investors to assets traditionally reserved for the wealthy by
pairing individual investors with developers. This still requires investing
capital, although less than what’s required to purchase real estate outright
and without the hassles of owning, financing, and managing properties.

Since online crowdfunding platforms are mainly aimed at the individual

investor, they should have a user-friendly interface, easy navigation,
investment tracking, ID verification, Know-Your-Customer modules, as well as
machine-learning-powered chatbots and mobile applications. It is also important
to implement document management, reporting, and e-Signature modules.

Crowdfunding Platforms should have the following key features

Campaign creation: A feature that allows creators to create campaigns
and set funding goals and deadlines
Payment processing: A feature that allows supporters to make payments
using various methods such as credit cards, PayPal, and bank transfers.
Reward management: A feature that allows creators to offer rewards or
perks to supporters based on their level of funding
Social media integration: A feature that allows creators to share their
campaigns on social media and track their performance
Analytics and reporting: A feature that provides creators with data and
insights on their campaign's performance and supporter engagement
Communication: A feature that allows creators and supporters to
communicate with each other throughout the campaign
Security: A feature that uses encryption and secure payment processing to
protect user data and transactions
Compliance: A feature that ensures the platform operates in compliance
with regulations and laws in the jurisdiction where the platform operates
User-friendly interface and easy navigation
Multi-language support for a diverse user base.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Proptech Solutions for Evaluation and Financing

Crowdfunding Platforms
Investor-facing solution for multiple publicly-traded investment
User portal & investment trackin
ID verification and security measure
Document management, reporting, and e-Signature modules
Investing

Real Estate Asset Tokenization

Investor-facing solution for tokenized investments in real estat
Smart contract
Blockchain transaction
Compliance management

Loan Origination Systems

Commercial

End-to-end solution automating all steps in the lending proces

Automated task routing between lenders, appraisers, and underwriter
e-Signature & document managemen
3rd-party integration
Client portal

Automated Underwriting Systems (AUS)

Al & machine learning to compare borrower's info with credit
and employment database
3rd-party integrations for suitability check
e-Signature & document managemen
Al-powered risk quoting

Background Report Integrations

3-rd party integrations and APls giving access to credit, criminal,
and employment database
Enhanced data security

Mortgage Customer Portals

Residential

Borrower-facing online/mobile service to track mortgage activit

Easy mortgage status tracke
E-Signature and document managemen
Support chat

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Property Management and Utilization
The proper utilization of residential, commercial, or industrial real estate is
ensured by a property manager – a representor of a real estate agency or a
third-party contractor. They usually work for the owners of investment
properties such as apartment and condominium complexes, private home
communities, shopping centres, and industrial parks.

Residential
In residential real estate, property managers take responsibility for day-to-
day repairs and ongoing maintenance, security, and upkeep of properties.
They are also responsible for setting and collecting rent, tenant screening, and
communication with tenants, thus ensuring superior renting experience for
the tenant and total piece of mind for the landlord.

Needs of Main Stakeholders


in Property Management and Utilization

Tenant screening

Collecting
 Property

rent maintenance

Setting
Email & 

Rent follow-up

Property Operators

Wants to: Wants to:

Get not just a place to
stay for a short term but
an excellent renting
experienc
Tenant Have a quick access to
their tenancy and
property documents
Receive rent payments
on tim
Get notified about key
actions require
Landlord
Have key information at
fingertips (tenants
details, rent value, etc.)

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Applications for Setting and Collecting Rent
This software automates rent collection (even parking fees) and often comes
with a tenant portal. The latter functions like a personal hub where tenants
can access the accommodation data, make payments, manage their profile,
and leave feedback to a property manager.



Generally, Rent Setting and Collecting Apps have the following features

A tenant portal where tenants can view their account information,

including their current balance and payment history
A payment gateway that allows tenants to make rent payments using a
credit or debit card, e-check, or other forms of electronic payment
A calendar feature that reminds tenants when rent is due and sends
automatic payment reminders if rent is not received on time
A feature that allows property managers to set up automatic rent
payments, so tenants can choose to have their rent automatically
deducted from their account on the due date
A reporting feature that allows property managers to view rent collection
data, such as which tenants have paid and which have not, and to generate
reports to help them keep track of their cash flow
A feature that allows property managers to set up late fees for tenants
who pay rent after the due date
A feature that allows property managers to communicate with tenants
through the app, such as sending messages and notifications
A customer support chat or contact information available on the interface
in case the property manager or tenant needs help or has any question
regarding the rent collection process.

Screening Tools
Tenant screening tools are designed to provide property managers and
landlords with information that can be used to evaluate a potential tenant's
suitability for renting a property.

The main features of Tenant Screening Apps include

A search bar where property managers can enter the tenant's name,
address, or other identifying information to initiate the screening process.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
A dashboard that displays the results of the screening, which can include
credit scores, criminal background check, eviction history, employment and
income verification, and rental history
A report that summarizes all of the tenant's information in a clear and
concise format, making it easy for property managers to evaluate the
tenant's suitability for the rental property
A feature that allows property managers to download or print the
screening report for their records
A customer support chat or contact information available on the interface
in case the property manager needs help or has any question regarding
the screening process.

Property Maintenance Apps

Property maintenance apps are digital tools that allow property managers to
keep track of and manage maintenance tasks and repairs for their rental
properties. These apps typically have a variety of features that help with tasks
such as scheduling, tracking, and communication related to property
maintenance.

The main interface features of Property Maintenance Apps include

A task scheduler that allows property managers to create, assign, and

track maintenance tasks and repairs
A calendar view that shows upcoming and past maintenance tasks, making
it easy for property managers to stay on top of their schedule
A task list that displays the status of each task, such as "pending," "in
progress," or "completed.
A messaging system that allows property managers to communicate with
tenants and contractors regarding maintenance tasks and repairs
A document library where property managers can upload and store
important documents, such as contracts, invoices, and receipts related to
property maintenance
An inventory management feature that allows property managers to keep
track of items such as tools and equipment, and their current status,
location and maintenance history
A budgeting feature that allows property managers to track expenses and
see the cost of maintenance tasks and repairs, making it easy to stay within
budget
A feedback and review system that allows tenants to provide feedback on
the maintenance and repair services they receive.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Commercial
In the commercial real estate sector, property managers are often responsible
for running co-living (multi-family houses) and co-working spaces.

Managing these assets involves an even wider array of tasks and

workflows:

Property Management and Utilization

Co-working
 Co-living
& Office
Coffee & 
 Resident

Snacks
 tracking
refilling

Maintenance Maintenance

Incident

Management
Reporting
Office User
 Social life
tracking Property

Operations

Rentals &
 Wi-fi Desk
 Resident
 Wi-fi Rentals / Sales


Marketing Booking Notifications & Marketing

Invoicing
Event

Management
Door
 Door

Access Access

To stay on top of all the tasks and communications, property operators need
to make use of full-featured property management platforms tailored to the
specific needs of the real estate business they’re representing.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Co-working Management System
Coworking management tools are software that help manage and automate
the operations of a co-working space. Their interface features include:

Member management: A feature that allows administrators to manage

member information, track member usage and billing
Space management: A feature that allows administrators to manage the
layout and availability of the co-working space, including reserving
conference rooms, setting up meeting rooms and managing hot desks
Booking and scheduling: A feature that allows members to reserve and
schedule conference rooms, meeting rooms, and hot desks
Access control: A feature that controls the access of members and visitors
to the co-working space
Billing and payments: A feature that allows administrators to manage
billing, invoicing and payments for members
Communication: A feature that allows administrators to communicate with
members through email or in-app messaging
Analytics and reporting: A feature that provides administrators with data
and insights on the usage of the co-working space and member
engagement
Mobile accessibility: A feature that allows members and administrators to
access the platform from mobile devices
Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as
CRM, accounting, and access control
User-friendly interface and easy navigation
Multi-language support for a diverse user base.

Co-living Management System

Co-living management tools are software that help manage and automate the
operations of a co-living space. Their interface features include:

Unit management: A feature that allows administrators to manage the

layout, availability and occupancy of the co-living units, including room
allocation and lease management
Resident management: A feature that allows administrators to manage
resident information, track resident usage and billing.

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Maintenance management: A feature that allows administrators to

manage maintenance requests, schedule repairs and track the status of

maintenance tasks

Billing and payments: A feature that allows administrators to manage

billing, invoicing and payments for residents

Communication: A feature that allows administrators to communicate with

residents through email or in-app messaging

Access control: A feature that controls the access of residents and visitors

to the co-living space

Analytics and reporting: A feature that provides administrators with data

and insights on the usage of the co-living space and resident engagement

Mobile accessibility: A feature that allows residents and administrators to

access the platform from mobile devices

Integration capabilities: Ability to integrate with other systems such as

CRM, accounting, and access control

User-friendly interface and easy navigation

Multi-language support for a diverse user base.

Proptech Solutions for Property

Management and Utilization

Commercial

Simple Property 
 All-in-One


Management Tools Management Systems

Point tools for rent collection, Management of all maintenance

tenancy documentation storage etc jobs in one plac

Notifications about upcoming Maintenance alert

events, needed actions,

Integrated payment system for
maintenance checks, etc
automating rent collectio

Tenant details centralization

Mobile app for access on the g

Tenant portal

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 Chapter 3. Proptech Market Map
Construction
Construction technology marks the progress of the industry towards a smart
construction process. Planning and coordination tools like Structionsite
leverage AI to capture 360 images of construction and automatically organize
them according to the date of the floor plan. For example, BeamUp brings
automation into planning and designing, providing rapid updates with the
help of AI and digital-twin technology.

3D-planning tools like Esri provide a detailed virtual plan of the house before
purchase or renovation allowing customers to make an informed decision.
Meanwhile, various construction tools that make use of drones, sensor networks,
and robotic technologies make a contraction a much safer place to work.

An all-in-one solution proving an advanced overview of the construction is

Viewpoint – software to manage projects, people, and processes in one place.
Viewpoint makes it possible to comply with BIM standards and have control
over the whole project life cycle with complete information of plans and
drawings in one place.

Pro tecp h Solutions for Real Estate Construction

Residential & Commercial Real Estate

Financing and 

3D Planning Project Planning Investment

Management
3D visualizatio Task ticketing and routin Management of investment
source
Market research for data- Management of deliverable
driven choice of site selectio dates and overdue item Collaboration between
investors and developer
Geospatial data and design Collaboration tools
and construction Reporting
informatio
Project plannin
Interactive webmaps
buildout

All-in-One Construction Management Platform

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 Chapter 4

Proptech Market

Trends
4.1. Where the world’s biggest

industry is heading
Starting from 2019, the real estate economy has been pulled in all directions by
inflation, Covid-19, and now by the unfolding cost-of-living crisis and soaring
interest rates. And if a couple of years ago, the real estate industry weathered
the storm relatively well, and this is – at least partially – owing to proptech
advancements and tools that supported all stakeholders during these tough
times – the upcoming turmoil seems much more worrying.

Here’s what the world’s real estate thought leaders envision for the
industry:

1. High inflation and interest rates


will keep sapping real estate sales

It took some time for inflation (in the USA) to show up, and it could be argued that
the FED should have raised rates in smaller increments starting sooner, but the
increase of the FED funds rate and consequent 10-year treasury from 1.5% at the
beginning of 2022 to a high of just over 4.2% in Oct / Nov 2022 has had a major
impact on financial markets and transactional volume.

Nick Buchanan, 

President of Cape Point Development & Member of Tech Coast Angels Orange County

The most evident real estate trend is soaring interest rates that are going to
seriously sap real estate transactions.

Just look at the property market in the USA, where the increase of the FED
(The Federal Reserve System) funds rate and consequent 10-year treasury


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 Chapter 4. Proptech MARKET TRENDS
from 1.5% at the beginning of 2022 to a high of just over 4.2% in Oct / Nov
2022 has had a major impact on financial markets and transactional volume,
says Nick Buchanan, the President of Cape Point Development and a Member
of Tech Coast Angels Orange County.

The real estate market’s reaction was immediate, he says – as home sales,
commercial building sales, and construction starts have all slowed down
precipitously – which is exactly what the FED intended.

The impacts of this slowdown are tangible in different sectors

Mortgage originations have stopped (resulting in significant layoffs of
mortgage brokers
Home builders are trying to figure out how to move inventor
Apartment developers have walked away from development projects that
they were pursuin
Bankers and equity providers have decided to move onto the sideline for
the rest of the year to see how much further the FED wants to raise rates
and what effects those additional increases will have on the markets.

2. Markets with limited housing supply 


will hold up throughout the crisis

Areas with strong job growth and or limited housing supply should hold up better
than markets where there is a lot of apartment supply coming on line. The better
markets will be ok and once the near-term supply is worked through we’ll be back
to having a limited supply with rents increasing again, but the same can’t be said
for markets that have a bigger supply demand imbalance.
Nick Buchanan, 

President of Cape Point Development & Member of Tech Coast Angels Orange County

Real estate expert and investor Nick Buchanan believes that areas with strong
job growth and limited housing supply should hold up better than markets
where there is a lot of apartment supply coming on line.

As an example, Phoenix, the US, has an average of 16,000 apartment units per
year coming on line for the next 3 to 5 years, which will impact vacancies and
rents in existing properties, while a coastal California market like Orange
County has only 3,200 units a year.

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 Chapter 4. Proptech MARKET TRENDS
The better markets will be ok, and once the near-term supply is worked
through, we will be back to having a limited supply with rents increasing again,
but the same can’t be said for markets that have a bigger supply-demand
imbalance.

3. Technology budgets will drop


in the near-term
One of the sweeping real estate trends according to Deloitte, is the industry-
wide reduction in real estate tech expenses amidst soaring inflation, growing
labor costs, and ongoing supply chain uncertainty.

Many in their real estate forecast envision some level of technology-cutting,

and around half don’t envision any budget movements at all, especially in
Europe.

More Companies Plan to Cut


Tech Spending
Expected changes in budgets allocated to technology

41%
48% Increase

22%
FLAT
27%

37%
25% DEcrease

North America Europe

Source: The Deloitte Center for Financial Services Real Estate Outlook Survey

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 Chapter 4. Proptech MARKET TRENDS
The lack of technology can, of course, put the whole industry back into the age
of “tech blindness and illiteracy,” but on the other hand, the reluctance to
adopt the technology of some may translate into a myriad of opportunities for
others. By others, we mean those eager to add value to their business with
the help of proptechs – usually software companies that offer technology
innovations for traditional property companies.

4. Green real estate moves up 


the corporate priority list
According to a report by JLL titled "Decarbonizing the Built Environment," 63%
of top investors are in strong agreement that implementing green initiatives
can result in higher occupancy rates, increased rental prices, better tenant
retention, and ultimately higher overall property values.

The New Language of Sustainability

Evolving from: To:

The value of green The return on sustainability

Design Design AND performance

Value creation Value creation AND value preservation

Optimal building 
 Optimal building performance AND optimal human


performance performance

Environmental Environmental AND social (no greenwashing


or rainbow washing)

Separated from 
 Integrated into the community

the community

Not connected Smart and connected

Green premium Brown discount

Source: JLL

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 Chapter 4. Proptech MARKET TRENDS
Green initiatives in the real estate industry are now driven by more than just
the potential for increased property value. Sustainability has become a top
corporate priority, and the focus has shifted towards preserving the value of
buildings to mitigate the risks associated with inaction.

The term "brown discount" has gained popularity in the commercial real
estate sector, referring to buildings that do not meet higher environmental
standards and are considered less valuable. Although the market has only
begun to see the effects of brown discounts, it is expected that their impact
will increase significantly in the coming years.

5. Vacant workspace is going to be 


converted into residential housing

At some point in the next three years, the office market will reach a tipping point…
the result will be a relative avalanche of conversions of various kinds... Offices will
start to compete directly with housing — by turning into apartments. This will be a
marginal issue in most markets, but in some cases, it might have a real impact on
the housing supply.
Dror Poleg, Real Estate Expert and Founder of Rethinking.RE

Back in early 2020, everyone thought that once the pandemic had ended, we’d
all collectively resume our pre-Covid patterns of office-based working. Yet
that’s not how things have turned out, and many offices remain vacant.

As Dror Poleg thinks, in the next three years, these workplaces will be
converted into residential buildings. Or at least there will be attempts to do
so, as the world is suffering from severe house shortages.

One of NYC’s most prominent office landlords announced a new $1.5 billion
fund for an “Office-to-Housing push, he says, and Silverstein Properties, the
developer behind the World Trade Center, is shifting its attention to
converting offices into apartments.

However, this is not going to happen globally because most office buildings
are too hard or too costly to convert. But a sizable minority of the current
supply can and will be converted.

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 Chapter 4. Proptech MARKET TRENDS
4.2. Technology trends in real estate
The above market tendencies may seem gloomy, and to some extent they definitely
are, but most of our respondents remain reasonably upbeat in their forecast on real
estate technology, i.e., proptech. More than that, some of the below technology trends
actually sprawl from the above real estate fluctuations.

For example, the demand for rental marketplaces links back to skyrocketing interest
rates that keep people wary of purchasing a property, whereas GreenTech and Smart
City Technologies stem from the need to tackle climate warming by optimizing energy
consumption in residential real estate and limiting emissions in heavy industries. Find
more on this in our dedicated article: Real Estate Forecast.

Rentals will overtake Applications will shift to Smart City technologies

homebuying, creating
new opportunities for
proptechs and investors
As mortgage rates keep growing
almost universally, more and
more people turn to long-term
rentals as opposite
homebuying. This real estate
trend has been manifested in
the Zillow real estate forecast
and by our respondents from
Plug and Play – a global platform
matching investors, startups,
and corporations.
the cloud
According to a Deloitte research,
migrating to the cloud is the top
real estate technology trend
implemented by 36% of real
estate respondents across the
to globe.
Within green and climate
The whole idea behind the cloud
is to let companies store their
data, say client or property
details, online without having to
manage onsite data centers or
organize paperwork. This means
you no longer need to worry
about data security and
accessibility, system maintenance,
and room for document storage.
will be on top of the
Real Estate agenda
Smart Cities, or Urban Tech, is an
umbrella term for energy, IoT,
construction, mobility, GreenTech,
and ClimateTech solutions.
technology space, the investment
is flowing more toward heavy
industries, mostly to assess and
reduce the production of
emissions. In the residential
space, these solutions are
focused on the optimization of
energy consumption in homes,
especially given the soaring gas
and electricity prices across
Europe.

Fractional ownership will democratize

the real estate space with real estate
tokenization
There isn’t and will not be a single real estate owner
anymore, says Elena Ruiz. Blockchain is helping to
democratize and spread the ownership of a single
property between multiple stakeholders through the
conversion of real estate assets into tokens, like
Bahnhofstrasse building in Zurich and Britain’s
Greenwich Peninsula project.
Property management technology will
be in the spotlight
Early in proptech we saw a lot of fintech businesses
around the home purchase transaction. However,
with rising rates, I think we can realistically expect to
see a retraction there. Instead, look for innovation in
and around property management for all real estate
asset classes to better manage the supply chain of
real estate.

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16
Who Are We?
Ascendix Tech is a Digital Transformation Consultancy & Proptech
Development firm from Dallas, USA. We bring innovative proptech
solutions to real estate firms and help them keep up with technology
trends since 1996.

The world’s biggest real estate service corporations like JLL, Hanna
CRE, and Colliers trust us because:
As product owners ourselves, we nurture an extensive solution
portfolio of as many as 17 real estate tech products and do know
all the nuances of bringing innovative ideas to life from scratch.
Anchored in Dallas, the US but having 4 more offices worldwide,
we combine our local, national and international experience to
deliver disruptive proptech solutions at reasonable rates and
around the clock.
We offer flexible engagement models to give you absolute
freedom of how close you want to be involved in the
development process.

Contact Us

+1 888 346 3276 Ext 2

Ascendix Corporate Office

+1 972 889 8090 12222 Merit Drive Suite 1760 Dallas, Texas 75251
sales@ascendix.com
ascendixtech.com