Time to smarten up – how PropTech can boost your ROI

Whether you are an accidental landlord or witty property investor; you are likely to agree that a wave of new regulations and tax burdens has created much tougher market conditions in order to make your property profitable.

Most recently, the industry is under pressure to improve EPC ratings and create smarter homes. An incentive that might sound challenging to implement but, nevertheless, is a very welcome and important step in order to reach the government’s net-zero goals.

One such change is the recently announced amendment to the Building Regulations which requires a 30% cut on carbon emissions from new homes and a 27% cut on other buildings. Known as Part L of the Building Regulations, the new rules come into force in June 2022 and can almost be considered a soundbite of the Future Homes Standard and Future Buildings Standard which come into force in 2025.

Here, at Virtual Viewing, many of our clients are already taking steps to better their buildings’ energy efficiency. A key solution for them? The implementation of BIM (Building Information Modelling).

What are the benefits of BIM for your portfolio?

1. Monitor and improve EPC levels

BIM allows you to monitor and analyse your property’s energy performance at the click of a button. The cause of disruptions or suspiciously high energy usage can easily be determined and fixed, allowing you to maintain your property’s EPC rating at an optimum level.

2. Overview

No matter if you are managing a small or large property portfolio, it can be extremely challenging to keep track of all of your properties’ key information and technical data. With well-designed BIM, all property information will be stored in one place. This is making it easy to find important documentation as well as details on specific items such as the type of cladding, insulation material or window frames that have been installed.

3. ROI and value appreciation

Implementing BIM can drastically improve the resale value of your property. Future buyers are more likely to seek properties with tech solutions that not only improve EPC ratings but make it overall easier to manage all aspects of the property with a Digital Home User Guide. At the same time, should you require to seek additional financing from a lender, a portfolio that boasts forward-thinking tech solutions may work favourably to secure additional funding?

What are the benefits for your tenants / future buyers?

1. Improved DIY

Building Information Modelling and the introduction of Digital Home User Guides takes managing a home to a new level; particularly for DIY reasons. You or your tenant will be able to build up a complete inventory of all of the property’s materials and items. At their fingertips, tenants can view which paint type and colours have been used across rooms, which carpet, tiles and wood has been installed, what wiring has been used in the living room or what plumbing has been installed in the bathroom! In case of any refurbishment work, such information has proven invaluable.

2. Less paperwork

Tenants can utilise a ‘tag it’ system, allowing them to add their own items to the property’s digital inventory. Upon the purchase of a new sofa, for example, the item can be added to the system whilst all related paperwork such as the invoice and delivery confirmation can be digitalised and stored within the Home User Guide.

3. Community aspects

BIM allows your tenants to connect with external data sources such as community news, announcements, bus & train time tables and local weather, giving them an improved lifestyle experience.

It’s fair to say that BIM has become an essential tool for well-managed buildings, helping construction companies, landlords, investors as well as management teams to make their portfolio of homes safer and more efficient.

Recent statistics by Statista* reveal that 73% of UK construction professionals have implemented BIM into their project in 2020. That’s a 4% increase from 2019 and a staggering 60% uplift since 2011 when only 13% of respondents confirmed using BIM.

The UK’s use of BIM hasn’t gone unnoticed as it was recently announced that the US intends to adapt the UK’s national BIM development programme in order to comply with the international standard for BIM- ISO19650.

One of Virtual Viewing’s latest brainchild is MiHub - a revolution in how data is stored, accessed and utilised. The MiHub software platform places the BIM model as a single point of truth, collating all data points about all aspects of the building into one central database.

*Stewart Bailey is the Director of Virtual Viewing

Discover more benefits of Virtual Viewing's BIM below: