How to buy a house during Coronavirus?

How do you buy a house during Coronavirus? And how will you buy once the epidemic is eradicated? According to the Therealestatecuracao Real Estate Observatory, one of the most accredited sources in the real estate sector, less than 50,000 house sales will be recorded in 2020 alone (compared to 2019) and the price of real estate will drop by 4-5% between 2020 and 2021.

The Coronavirus pandemic has hit the real estate sector hard. Home sales have collapsed and job losses have increased. This was the immediate fallout that the epidemic had.

The longer the crisis continues, the more Coronavirus can transform buyers' development patterns and preferences. Below, I have decided to show you what the consequences that the Coronavirus pandemic may have on the real estate sector.

1. Purchase choices will change

Urban growth has been a widespread phenomenon in recent years. Many people have moved from peripheral areas to the center of cities to be less isolated and to have all the most important services at hand.

However, with COVID-19 striking especially in crowded areas, population centers may lose some of their charm. This crisis is the right time for the world to reconsider the conventional wisdom that higher density cities are better.

People living in the city may wish to return to the suburbs. In fact, it is expected that there will be a great demand for properties that have gardens and outdoor spaces and less for apartments located in the streets of the town.

A move to telework would play into that trend. If workers continue to work hard from home, as they did during the pandemic, rather than going to the downtown offices, living in the suburbs would make more sense.

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2. The rising rents trend?

With wages declining and rising unemployment, Curacao may find that buying a house is beyond their reach.

A weak economy tends to lower home ownership rates as potential buyers choose to rent rather than take on the heavy financial commitment that accompanies the purchase of a home (if you want to know more you can read this article).

3. A bigger house?

Before Coronavirus, most Curacao slept at home and then went to school or work. We moved to go to the gym, to the cinema, to bars and restaurants. Now we spend most of the time in the house which seems cramped and small. Having the space for your home office is very important. So also the space to train and do some sport.

If today's desire for more personal space is transformed into tomorrow's trend, buyers will prefer larger houses, perhaps in low-cost cities and in more distant suburbs.

4. The second home: more than one option!

For those with financial means, having a second home seems to be a suddenly more attractive alternative. Owning a second home is not an economic option: taxes are generally higher, as are maintenance costs.

The Coronavirus crisis could concretely raise the trend of second homes. In fact, if in other times those who wanted to escape from the city could rent a holiday home, contact platforms such as Airbnb or stay in the Hotel. Today this alternative does not seem to be the best solution due to travel restrictions.

Therefore, the second home becomes a valid and attractive option for those with financial resources. It could be a choice to move permanently to take advantage of the free air and detach from the gray of the city apartments (if smart working should take hold definitively).

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5. Technology and real estate: which combination?

The real estate sector is recognized by everyone for being an "old" market. Anyone interested in buying a house organizes a meeting with the real estate agent, sees hundreds of houses and then decides to make his purchase. Technology is hardly integrated into this process.

Coronavirus has upset the real estate market as you have always known it. Nowadays, it is no longer possible to visit the properties and it is difficult to meet in person to sign a proposal. The sector is large but far behind from a technological point of view. For example, you need to physically go to the notary and make an inspection of the house to find out if it is the best choice. This epidemic could be the time to take a step forward and digitize many aspects.

Many agencies have adapted by showing the properties from the PC with virtual 3D that allow potential buyers to navigate inside the property and look around as if they were actually on site. This is not a new technology but it would seem to take hold in the real estate sector.

While no one expects virtual tours to replace physical walk-throughs, the transaction process, heavily influenced by the "card" factor, appears to be ready for an update. In recent years, some real estate agents have embraced an increasingly virtual process.

Industry experts say that digital transactions and electronic signatures can be the tools used as flywheel in a sector, the real estate sector, which has not always gone hand in hand with technology.

Conclusions

Coronavirus is a universally recognized tragedy, but could it be an opportunity to digitize some sectors? It is a phenomenon that we are seeing with the school which, necessarily, has had to adopt technology to guarantee students the continuation of teaching activities.

The real estate sector is certainly one of the markets most affected by this pandemic. The total freeze on the activities has certainly not benefited the hundreds of activities involved in real estate. However, not all misfortunes come to stay. This could be a real opportunity to review some factors, rethink them and make them more human-friendly.

Virtual visits to real estate in Curacao, meetings and consultations via Skype, digital transactions and electronic signatures are elements already widespread in other areas. The real estate sector must be able to grasp the change and intercept it without falling behind in this technological revolution that, willingly or unwillingly, is already taking place.