Technology is changing the appraisal industry, for better or worse. We recently asked our community of real estate appraisers, “If you could adopt ONE new technology tool for your appraisal business, what would it be?” Here are some insights into which technology tools are in high demand among your fellow appraisers—and why these tools are worth leveraging.
If you could adopt ONE new technology tool, what would it be?
Here are a dozen technology tools appraisers said they’d like to adopt for on-the-job use. Tablets and iPads, drones, and laser measuring tools were among the most popular choices.
- Tablet or iPad
- Drones
- Disto laser measuring device
- Cloud storage software (e.g., Google Drive)
- Sketching software/3D drawing software
- Automatic adjustments tool
- Regression analysis tool
- Report streamlining tool
- Time tracking tool
- Form filing software
- Social media marketing
- Self-driving car
“I would like to move to a paperless office.”
“I would like to bring a tablet on inspections that I can draw on in order to sketch floor plans for properties where official floor plans are not available.”
“The laser measure with Bluetooth is great, but it still requires me to draw the lines on the tablet. If I could just point and shoot and have the line automatically drawn (because it knew the direction to draw it) it would save me a little time.”
“I want to take more frequent mini vacations and be able to leave the office as needed. I need the ability to open reports and make revisions in a timely manner, and being able to use a tablet or small laptop while away from the office, when absolutely necessary, would be a big help.”
“Would be nice to have access to all of my appraisal files, data and computer from remote locations.”
“Drone photography could better capture images of larger parcels such as factories or commercial centers as well as enable inspection of large vacant tracts during winter when access is restricted by snow.”
“I am not very technologically savvy, but if a drone could be used to take photographs, it would save a lot of time driving around in rural areas.”
“I need an easier way to support my adjustments than exporting to excel.”
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Why leverage new technology tools?
According to the 2019 Appraisal Income Guide, appraisers who excel at adopting new technologies earn over $44,000 more per year than appraisers who fail to leverage those tools.
Learning how to adopt—and adapt to—the new technologies can help you become more efficient and effective when it comes to:
- Managing your business expenses
- Managing your time
- Finding new clients
- Staying up-to-date on trends and best practices
Want more insights to help you maximize your income as an appraiser? Download the 2019 Appraisal Income Guide. For more suggestions on specific ways to use technology tools on the job, check out our post, 8 Ways Appraisers Can Use an iPad or Tablet.
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