By: Nicole Kleinsteuber
The path to buying and selling a home is virtually limitless, hassle free and environmentally friendly, thanks to innovative technology that allows you to step inside your potentially new oasis without leaving the comfort of your own couch.
iGuideQuinte provides real estate agents and potential home buyers with a complete package of high-quality still photography, measurements and floor layouts combined in an interactive property tour, all at the click of a button.
Having sold local real estate for five years, with a keen eye for marketing, design and photography, iGuideQuinte owner Adam Burr knew there had to be an easier way to showcase his listings, saving time and money for his clients and himself.
In February 2016, that dream became a reality for the 38-year-old Trenton man when he signed on with parent company Planitar to become the sole iGuide operator for the Quinte and surrounding area.
“It’s definitely a game changer when it comes to the way we view real estate,” Burr beamed as he moved from room to room with as little as a camera and cellphone in his hand mapping a listed ranch-style home on Prince Edward County’s countryside. “We provide an interior mapping system. We use a camera, hard drive, battery, and a laser that is powered by WIFI. It works through an app on my phone using lasers to map the property.”
This allows home buyers to view a home from anywhere in the world Burr smiled. “I have had a property sold in Frankford in three days, cash sight unseen from Vancouver,” he offered.
The camera moves at 185 degree angle as Burr takes a measurement inside the spacious master suite. He places his camera inside the large walk-in-closet because he knows it will be pleasing to the potential buyer’s eye. He has the ability to map a space and disable the optics so the owners don’t have to worry about hiding personal belongings.
“I want to create a very interactive feel within the property,” Burr admitted. “There is no carbon footprint other than me coming out here. The tour offers a nice marketing package for the agents in our area to view real estate differently and allows them to concentrate on what they are good at, which is selling the property and marketing. I’m providing all the tools that they need market the property properly. It is emailed to the agent the next day. All of the communication between me and the agent and in turn between the agent and the buyer is done online.”
Burr explained the technology saves the agent the time of having to drive hours to show a property that the buyer may not be interested in and it equally saves the buyer having to travel and view a home that doesn’t fit their needs. He said with the tour the buyer is already immersed in the property and knows if they are interested before they arrive.
“When they come here they already have a feel for it,” Burr said. “They know what they are getting into. They know how things are laid out. It is very difficult to see a property in two-dimensional photos and understand where that two-piece bathroom is or how the master bedroom lays out in coordination to the kitchen.”
He added the buyer is more likely to put an offer on the home given the crisp and clean photography iGuide captures.
Completing 550 iGuide tours last year, roughly five to six properties a day, Burr prides himself in the ability to offer home buyers with a technology that allows them to interactively get back within the property even after the sale has closed.
“Agents often to have to come back even after closing,” Burr said. “Everything is time consuming especially in a competitive market. This allows buyers to have another look around and get back in and take a measurement for their couch or bedroom suite.”
“Real estate agents have so many different jobs that they have to do in order to list and sell a house,” said Sarah Dean, marketing coordinator and sales representative with Team Tim McKinney Re/Max Quinte Ltd. “You don’t always have time to take professional photographs. It’s so nice to have someone come in and do that. It’s not expensive. It’s so quick. You have the photos, floor plan, measurements and virtual tour. Time is money and iGuide makes that whole process so much easier.”
To learn more about iGuide visit www.iguidequinte.com