Preview the Future of PropTech

March 11, 2016

The future of PropTech, will actually be the part of the future of FinTech. A number of high level technologies, have swiftly come about that will cause this transition in these opposing but similar technology industries.

Currently data and contracts are separate. Perhaps your property software merges data into pre-made templates, for example to produce a tenancy agreement, this is not what I mean.

Imagine a digital agreement that is not only binding like the real-life counterpart, but it is also its own enforcer of those terms.

For example a pre-sales agreement made between the Vendor and a Purchaser of a property. Within this agreement, it states both parties to pay a deposit to an Estate Agent, and on completion of the sale, the deposits returned.

Currently this type of agreement requires a manual enforcer and trust in the Estate Agent’s processes.

This will change with Blockchain technology, a decentralized verifiable ledger that can handle things like currencies, assets and rules. A good example is Ethereum, a basic blockchain level coding tool, that allows programmable contracts. Allowing logic and rules to tie into real-life finances and investments, in a reliable and trust-less manner.

Now back to the example, how does a contract become self enforceable.

If we built this sales contract on a blockchain, we could store value in the Cloud. Effectively connecting say a payment API to receive the funds and a payment API to pay out the deposits. We could then link the contract to the Land Registry API, as the trusted source of the approval, which could trigger the rule to pay back the deposits.

We could go further and add time limit clauses, that if a sale is not completed by such a date, then both deposits pay out to a certain party automatically.

Understanding this, you may see that the future of PropTech will be also the future of FinTech, as we merge Assets, Money into programmable agreements.

Do you agree?

What else do you think the future of PropTech will hold?

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

The First-Time Buyer Reality Shock

The First-Time Buyer Confidence Gap: 90% Feel Prepared, 71% Get an Unpleasant Surprise The First-Time Buyer Anxiety Index unveils a major ‘confidence gap’ which leaves first-time buyers unprepared for the realities of getting on the property ladder. Nine in 10 first-time buyers believe they are prepared and understand the home buying process before they begin…
Read More →
Breaking News

£50k hit when climbing the property ladder

The average homeowner in England faces an estimated £15,513 in associated costs when upsizing their home, according to the latest research by Yopa. However, in London this figure climbs as high as £47,704. The full-service estate agency analysed the estimated cost of upsizing across England, based on selling an average flat or terraced home and…
Read More →
Estate Agent Talk

Conveyancing causes more stress than property chains

The latest research by Lyons Bowe has found that 42% of recent homebuyers say conveyancing is the biggest barrier to a smooth property transaction, compared with just 19% who point to property chains. The survey of 1,000 recent homebuyers* examined which aspects of the transaction process had presented the biggest barriers to a smooth journey,…
Read More →
Rightmove logo
Breaking News

Britain’s most competitive summer rental hotspots

New analysis from the UK’s largest property platform Rightmove has revealed the areas where renters faced the strongest competition this summer, with several North West towns emerging as the toughest places to secure a home Wallasey and Birkenhead in Merseyside were Britain’s joint most competitive rental market during July and August, with an average of…
Read More →
AI in estate agency letting agency property
Letting Agent Talk

The 5 tasks lettings agents won’t trust to AI

AI must make lettings more human, not less, and that requires real rental intelligence. The latest research from Propoly has found that letting industry professionals see a clear role for AI in property management, but are reluctant to let it operate without human oversight, particularly when decisions involve people, complex circumstances or potentially significant consequences. Propoly…
Read More →
Breaking News

Foxtons Lettings Market Index – August 2026

The busiest weeks arrived earlier than usual, with activity spread more evenly across the summer due to implementation of the RRA • Renter registrations eased 3.0% in August. Along with July, it was still the peak of 2026, finishing off the summer rush just below July’s levels. • Competition for available property rose 22.4% in…
Read More →