QR Codes Invade The Housing Market

I recently had lunch with fellow REALTOR Don Pickett, a top-producing agent with Coldwell Banker here in town. He had just returned from his franchise's annual convention and we were discussing some of the hottest topics that were presented, and one of these was "QR Codes in real estate."

I shared with Don my questionable ability to properly assess new technology and its impact on our daily lives. For example, back in 1991, a buddy of mine asked me if I had an email account and I told him "why would I want to be able to send letters to people from my computer? I hardly send them at all now!" Needless to say, I do have an email account today :).

When I first wrote about QR Codes for real estate in December, I shared some ideas on how they would be used in real estate. Of course, I am still not so certain that these "bar code" displays are anything more than a passing trend, but based upon my record, I am keeping an open mind. So today, I will share a few ideas on where you are likely to see these pop-up in the Tallahassee real estate market.

Real Estate QR Codes On The Street

When scanned with a smart-phone, QR codes cause the phone to load data. If the data is a URL, that web page opens on the phone. With 50% of web users accessing the internet by smart-phone within the next two years, this technology is considered to be a critical method for directing traffic on the internet.

Real estate signs on homes are a great place for QR codes to provide instant information for curious home shoppers. A rider on a sign can help a passer-by gain instant information about the property.

For example, a rider on the sign can point to a link that shows a gallery of inside photos or a virtual tour of a property (example at left points a smart-phone to a virtual tour of a home for sale in Tallahassee).

I think sign riders will be the top use of QR codes by real estate agents, but just showing the inside of homes is not the only way that they can be utilized. For example, they can also be used to help promote the property via social networks. The rider on the sign could just as easily allow a viewer to "share" the property via Facebook or Twitter, and all the viewer has to do is scan and submit.

So keep your eyes open for QR codes used in real estate marketing, they will be popping up everywhere. Is this just a passing trend, or will QR codes dominate the real estate landscape for many years to come? Don't ask me, I'll probably get it wrong (again).