A few months ago we are The Reeves Team wrote about the potential that exists in the blockchain space. At the time of writing many people were declaring bitcoin and cryptocurrencies dead. Unfortunately we live in a media age where a majority of what you read online and hear from “news” outlets is either clickbait or at worse fake news. Since the time of publication the price of Bitcoin has more than doubled and people are starting to come to the realization that cryptocurrencies are not going anywhere.
Like any revolutionary technology it seems like something that is nothing more than a curiosity to the casual observer. If you need a reminder of how people viewed the internet in the 90’s here is a clip of Katie Couric asking “What is the internet, Anyway?
It is safe to say that 20 years later you can replace internet with blockchain and that will let you know where we are with the adoption of the new technology. It is safe to say that the internet has changed our lives on a daily basis but will blockchain and cryptocurrency do the same thing?
In the previous article we discussed how blockchain will revolutionize the title company industry and also a different ownership model. Now that Bitcoin is back in the mainstream news we would like to present a few more ways that blockchain technology will revolutionize real estate as we know it.
Property Managment
Property management can be a pretty hectic process. Often times there are multiple applicants that want to rent a particular property. A management company will typically ask for an application fee upfront as well as extensive information from an applicant including personal information such as address and social security number. More times than not this private information is sent to companies with varying levels of security and the applicant will not successfully sign a lease. Blockchain technology offers transparency that is not typically associated with the property management world. What if you could see a persons rental history right on the blockchain? What if the tenants could see if a lease was already signed directly on the blockchain instead of waiting weeks for the property management company to respond? What if you could share your credit history with someone without giving them your social security number? These are just a few of the efficiencies that will be provided when the blockchain revolution comes for the real estate market.
Real Estate Investment Trusts
We recently discussed REITs as a potential real estate investment vehicle. In this article we will dive into the implications that blockchain can provide for REITs. To give a bit of a background a REIT is a company that owns, operates or finances income-producing real estate. These REITs allow anyone to invest in real estate in the same way they would invest in an ETF or a mutual fund. The downside of REITs is there is typically high management fees. With smart contracts blockchain technology could all but eliminate these hefty fees and will also allow for more transparency when investing. There will also be more liquidity in the market as people will be able to buy and sell smaller increments of the property.
These are just a few ways in which the real estate industry will be disrupted by blockchain technology. Do you agree with us here at The Reeves Team or are you still a blockchain and cryptocurrency skeptic? Let us know in the comment section below.
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