Geospatial Commission Report: How Location Data Can Unlock Greater Value in the Property Sector

Research into how technology can improve and enrich the real estate profession is ever-ongoing. Now, a new report by the UK-based Geospatial Commission has identified a number of opportunities to unlock greater value across the property ecosystem through location data, technologies, and services.

The report, titled "Location Data in the Property Sector: Unlocking Value for All," was published in July 2023. It found that location data can be used to improve the efficiency of property transactions, make better investment decisions, and create new products and services for consumers. Here’s what the report uncovered.

Four Ways Location Data Can Be Harnessed By Real Estate Professionals

The new report identified four key areas where location data can be used to unlock greater value in the property sector. They include the following:

• Improving the efficiency of property transactions: Location data can be used to automate tasks such as property valuations and conveyancing. This can save time and money for businesses and consumers.
• Making better investment decisions: Location data can be used to assess the risk and potential returns of property investments. This can help investors make more informed decisions.
• Creating new products and services for consumers: Location data can be used to develop new products and services for consumers, such as property apps and online marketplaces.
• Enhancing public services: Location data can be used to improve public services, such as planning and emergency response.

The report also found that there are a number of challenges to the adoption of location data in the property sector. These challenges include:

• Data availability: There is a lack of high-quality, accessible location data.
• Data quality: The quality of location data can be variable.
• Data privacy: There are concerns about the privacy of location data.
• Cost: The cost of location data can be prohibitive for some businesses.

How to Address the Challenges to Location Data Adoption

The report recommended a number of actions to address these challenges, including investing in data infrastructure and promoting data sharing. The government should invest in data infrastructure to improve the availability and quality of location data. It should also work with industry to create data standards to ensure the quality and consistency of location data. This can help promote data sharing to make location data more accessible to businesses and consumers.

The report also recommended that the government put in place strong data privacy safeguards to protect the privacy of location data. Additionally, working with the industry to lower the cost of location data is another way that the government can help improve access to location data and increase the adoption rate in real estate and property sectors across the board, according to the new report.

The Potential Is High

According to the Geospatial Commission, location data has the potential to unlock significant value in the property sector. Still, the challenges faced by the industry to adopt location data could prevent this unless they’re addressed properly. It’s the role of the government in this case to help to make this potential a reality.While this report was primarily focused on the UK property sector, capitalizing on location data isn’t limited to just a single geographical location. These technological approaches can and should be used in global real estate markets as well, which could easily help strengthen the marketplace in the face of uncertainty and volatility.