Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
According to news.com.au, a major Australian real estate platform has come to an agreement with DomaCom. This agreement will see the company’s real estate listings integrated into DomaCom’s crowdfunding platform.
As a result of the agreement, Domains market intelligence will also be integrated into the crowdfunding platform, providing analytics to investors. The aim of the arrangement is to help the platform directly target the consumer market, especially the Generation Y and the millennials market. Prices in Australia’s major cities are so high that the younger generation is effectively locked out of the property market, prompting many to turn to friends and family members for help. This is exactly what DomaCOm is banking on.
When a campaign starts, the crowdfunding platform will facilitate external independent due diligence for a property that has been selected that it can be more rigorously analyzed before any investment takes place. Domacom’s platform allows for fractional investment in property and its integration with the property listing website will help make property crowdfunding more of a mainstream endeavor. It will enable Generation Y and millennials to purchase property through crowdfunding a home of their choice with family or friends. When they see a property they like, they can start a campaign asking friends and family to help fund it through social media. Once the fund reaches 50% of the asking price then DomaCom will carry out an independent valuation and building inspection. When the full amount is reached then the company will purchase the property. Just like other managed funds, the company will represent the investors in the syndicate, appointing a manager once the sale is completed. If investors want to live in the house they part-purchased, then they will need to apply to a DomaCom property manager.
While the idea may seem like a good one, the article highlights the fact that when the scheme was launched it received a negative response. Many see it as simply a case of crowdfunding property, so a company can take ownership. It’s also been suggested that this type of scheme heralds the end of the Australian housing bubble. In response, DomaCom points out it is simply applying a technology platform that has been used for many years by the wealthy, rejecting the idea that the scheme is contributing towards an already overheated real estate market.
