Short for Property Technology, the term now refers to the myriad of startups and new technologies cropping up in response to decades of inefficiencies and antiquated processes in the real estate industry. Its meaning describes technology and real estate coming together to propel the industry forward. PropTech is also referred to as CREtech (Commercial Real Estate Technology) or REtech (Real Estate Technology) in the United States.
Within the umbrella term of PropTech, there are 3 defined verticals. They are:
- Smart Real Estate
- Share Economy
- Real Estate Fintech.
The below diagram illustrates how they relate to one another.
1) Smart Real Estate– This segment describes technology that facilitates the operation and management of real estate asset. On a commercial level, you would leverage Smart Real Estate technology in Asset Management, for example. On a residential level, you would use Smart Real Estate to monitor your home. Additionally, the growing interest in Internet of Things would fall under this category as well.
- Example: NestNest, Digital Realty, Juniper SquareJuniper Square
2) The Shared Economy– This segment describes technology that facilitates the use of real estate assets and specifically supports the occupier markets. Put differently, this segment is the “Gig Economy” manifested in the real estate sector.
3) Real Estate Fintech– This segment describes tech that facilitates the trading of real estate asset ownership. Whether it be tangible assets, real estate shares, or real estate debt, this vertical is geared towards those transfers.
- Example: ZillowZillow, LendInvestLendInvest, Opendoor, Fundrise*
*Note- There is also another subset called ConTech, which is the fusion of new tech start ups focused on the construction industry. Here is a great article discussing this subsetHere is a great article discussing this subset.
If you are interested in learning more about sub segments within these 3 verticals, here is a pretty good article.
CRE Tech & Trends 
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