5 ms·

I would be curious to know if this could be used (with a heavy dose of software and a rotating mount) to replace a Matterport scanner for real estate agents. Th

by bochoh 6y ago

I would be curious to know if this could be used (with a heavy dose of software and a rotating mount) to replace a Matterport scanner for real estate agents. That would be a $2495-$3995 cost for device, a fixed cost of $19-$29 per house walkthrough and a $49-$149/mo hosting fee. Seems like a boatload of cash could be made for a first-to-market product here.

Someone1234 6y ago
How common are those? I've looked at a lot of properties and am yet to run across a 3D scan, but it may be very location dependent/value of property.
- bane 6y ago
  Very common in my area. When we just put our previous home up for rent, the agent had somebody come in, scan and photo the house and it was up the next day with virtual 3d walkthroughs and everything. We kinda couldn't believe they would do that just for a rental.
  - abakker 6y ago
    Side effect - these become documents of record if you damage/modify a rental property.
    - _jal 6y ago
      After one ugly experience with a dirtbag landlord, I started taking my own photos and had the landlord sign/date them before moving in. Always have your own documentation.
    - untog 6y ago
      Given how absurdly touched up real estate photos can be I really don’t know if that would hold up in court.
- Zenst 6y ago
  Agreed, can't say I've seen them in use, though not deep into the housing market. However in the current climate and social adjustment afterwards - such services and uses will certainly see an increase in usage and virtual viewings may well be more the norm.
- xnx 6y ago
  If you haven't seen 3D scans yet, you will soon. Virtual walkthroughs surging due to COVID.
- NSAID 6y ago
  I live in a large midwestern city. They aren't common by any means but they definitely exist. I'm sure more expensive properties are more likely to have features like this but I've seen starter homes in the mid $100k with scans. They really helped me as a buyer and while I don't know what they cost, I think I'd spring a couple hundred dollars to have it whenever we sell our house. I think the biggest problem is that as a seller, I want qualified leads, but I get the feeling realtors just want leads because there's always another house. This mis-alignment of incentives means that in my experience listing agents don't always want to take steps that would limit foto traffic to a property, even if it would be excluding parties that probably wouldn't buy.
- tootie 6y ago
  I've seen some. They aren't actually that useful though. Unless your prospective buyer has a VR headset. Even then, a good floorplan has all the info I need.
Fission 6y ago
100%. You won't even need any extra hardware to accomplish that. However, I would encourage anyone going this route to think closely about the incentive structures behind the product they're building, and validate them with real estate agents, photographers, and sellers. It's a lot more complicated than what many of us may give it credit for.
- MrSandman 6y ago
  Aren’t you the founder of this company? Interesting you’re discouraging others from working in this. https://sendreality.com/ https://sendreality.com/
  - rodinia 6y ago
    It actually sounds like they're saying it's definitely feasible and encouraging people to build the right product. Their comment from 7 months ago indicates this is something that's obviously important to them. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20753553 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20753553
  - craftinator 6y ago
    It reads more as cautious encouragement to me, but if you are correct, a disclosure would be appropriate.
blululu 6y ago
Great question. In theory - yes I think it would be possible. But there is a lot of software involved in producing and distributing such scans. Matterport does a great job in packaging and distributing these scans in a way that is easy for real estate agents to produce & share, and for buyers to view. There is probably a great business out there, but it does require a lot of development work.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]

by bochoh 6y ago

Someone1234 6y ago

How common are those? I've looked at a lot of properties and am yet to run across a 3D scan, but it may be very location dependent/value of property.

bane 6y ago
Very common in my area. When we just put our previous home up for rent, the agent had somebody come in, scan and photo the house and it was up the next day with virtual 3d walkthroughs and everything. We kinda couldn't believe they would do that just for a rental.
- abakker 6y ago
  Side effect - these become documents of record if you damage/modify a rental property.
  - _jal 6y ago
    After one ugly experience with a dirtbag landlord, I started taking my own photos and had the landlord sign/date them before moving in. Always have your own documentation.
  - untog 6y ago
    Given how absurdly touched up real estate photos can be I really don’t know if that would hold up in court.
Zenst 6y ago
Agreed, can't say I've seen them in use, though not deep into the housing market. However in the current climate and social adjustment afterwards - such services and uses will certainly see an increase in usage and virtual viewings may well be more the norm.
xnx 6y ago
If you haven't seen 3D scans yet, you will soon. Virtual walkthroughs surging due to COVID.
NSAID 6y ago
I live in a large midwestern city. They aren't common by any means but they definitely exist. I'm sure more expensive properties are more likely to have features like this but I've seen starter homes in the mid $100k with scans. They really helped me as a buyer and while I don't know what they cost, I think I'd spring a couple hundred dollars to have it whenever we sell our house. I think the biggest problem is that as a seller, I want qualified leads, but I get the feeling realtors just want leads because there's always another house. This mis-alignment of incentives means that in my experience listing agents don't always want to take steps that would limit foto traffic to a property, even if it would be excluding parties that probably wouldn't buy.
tootie 6y ago
I've seen some. They aren't actually that useful though. Unless your prospective buyer has a VR headset. Even then, a good floorplan has all the info I need.

Fission 6y ago

100%. You won't even need any extra hardware to accomplish that. However, I would encourage anyone going this route to think closely about the incentive structures behind the product they're building, and validate them with real estate agents, photographers, and sellers. It's a lot more complicated than what many of us may give it credit for.

MrSandman 6y ago
Aren’t you the founder of this company? Interesting you’re discouraging others from working in this. https://sendreality.com/ https://sendreality.com/
- rodinia 6y ago
  It actually sounds like they're saying it's definitely feasible and encouraging people to build the right product. Their comment from 7 months ago indicates this is something that's obviously important to them. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20753553 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20753553
- craftinator 6y ago
  It reads more as cautious encouragement to me, but if you are correct, a disclosure would be appropriate.

blululu 6y ago

Great question. In theory - yes I think it would be possible. But there is a lot of software involved in producing and distributing such scans. Matterport does a great job in packaging and distributing these scans in a way that is easy for real estate agents to produce & share, and for buyers to view. There is probably a great business out there, but it does require a lot of development work.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]