Drones in Real Estate: How Aerial Technology is Shaping the Industry

Drones are everywhere. Well, will be soon. Also known as UAVs or UASs, they are doing everything, from delivering medical supplies to racing around really fast. They’re going to be as invaluable as a mobile phone and just another tool in everyone’s arsenal.

Drones have also filming houses for Real Estate for several years. It makes any house look like some kind of movie set. This improves the perception of the property as well as give a bird’s-eye tour. It adds a sense of production-value to any listing.

However, there are also many other uses for Drones in Real Estate than just an aerial view of a property. It’s best to think of a Drone as a mobile sensor platform and not just a floating camera. Currently, drones are being used for gas sensing, thermal mapping, property management, and traffic observation and there will be even more sensor capabilities in the future as the cost of hardware goes down. Both Virtual and Augmented Reality are currently in active use in Real Estate and only expanding. The potential to add the same cameras to a Drone is also a possibility.

There are also more Drone Pilots than ever before. Since August 29th, FAA Part 107 Certification bestows a Commercial License after a single 2 hour test. It’s effectively like getting a HAM Radio License. Before this, regulation required approval for each case.

The price of Drones has also gone down as much as the ease of use has gone up. Drones are more stable than ever and you can get on equipped with 4K video for less-than $700.

Just like any new market, there are many useful resources to find the Drone Pilot you need. Droners.io or Skyward.io are both companies aimed at being online tools for finding the Drone Pilot you need for the job.

Those 3 factors mean that it’s easier than ever (and will keep getting easier) to find a drone pilot near you for hire.

As for the future, there is a lot to be done. Regulation just allowed Commercial Drone pilots. 3D Scanning and sensor technology is getting more widespread, as well as the potential for more autonomous drones, allowing one pilot to possibly control more than one at a time in order to run a few different scans at the same time. Eventually, a fleet of drones will be able to fly over a property and get a full 3D Scan. Coupled with an interior sweep, you can upload a full house online which could allow potential buyers to see their own things in a property.

Expect a lot of change in the coming years around Drones and other robotics and their usage in property evaluation.