Michael Montgomery and Willemina Montgomery recently opened Renzo Real Estate, a Calgary-based boutique real estate brokerage that is making extensive use of virtual reality.
“Virtual reality is a powerful new tool that allows buyers to feel like they are actually walking through the property and effectively permits the seller’s home to become a 24/7 open house,” says Montgomery, the company’s broker.
“It is all about leveraging technology tools to help consumers and agents,” says Montgomery, who is the office manager.
The couple has been selling real estate in Calgary for a number of years and say their approach to marketing motivated the team to open their own brokerage. “The real estate industry is on the brink of a huge shift and we need brokerages to be ahead of the game,” says Montgomery.
“In listing your home with Renzo Real Estate, your property is captured in 3D so buyers can explore your listing from the comfort of their own homes or across the world,” the company says in a statement. “Using high-tech 360 degree cameras, Renzo Real Estate agents are able to capture exactly what it is like to be immersed in the home.”
The brokerage will provide clients with a headset to experience the technology from their own homes. It says approximately two per cent of listings in Calgary can currently be accessed through virtual reality, “but this number is steadily rising”.
