THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, TV shows and movies like “The Jetsons,” “Smart House” and “Back to the Future Part II” have romanticized smart homes of the future. Some predictions, such as self-cleaning floor absorbers, may not have come to fruition, but others did – from video calling to robot vacuums.

Smart home technology continues to evolve, and many of those advancements are best seen at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which showcases the latest consumer technologies each year in Las Vegas. By staying aware of such technology and prevalent smart home trends, Realtors® increase their value proposition to clients and may even prevent transaction complications.

PRODUCTS AND TRENDS

The “gateway” to smart home technology for most people was the Nest thermostat, according to Matthew Rathbun, executive vice president of Coldwell Banker Elite in Fredericksburg, who is also a smart home expert and has attended CES for the past two years. Today, Rathbun said some of the biggest-selling products are voice assistants like Alexa and Google Home.

"65 percent of homeowners will pay more for a smart home property, and by 2022 the number of homes that will have smart technology will reach 65 million, compared to 17 million in 2017."

“If you’re really looking at a major trend at CES, Alexa’s game is strong. They are absolutely destroying,” Rathbun said. “If you say smart home, the first thing you think of is Alexa.”

Consumers crave connectivity and want to control every feature of their home from one app, including surveillance cameras, motion sensors, alarms, lighting, kitchen appliances and temperature.

“Back in the day, you had a security system and then if you wanted to do something like lighting control, that would be a different system. Now people want it all in one,” said Liam Armstrong, business development manager at Trinity Wiring & Security Solutions.

Video doorbells are the most popular product Armstrong’s clients want installed. People like the ability to see who is at the door, receive a phone notification, and be able to talk to the person remotely. Other common security features include flood sensing and electronic door locks, he added.

While video doorbells have been around for some time, a few companies demonstrated a new spin on the product at CES 2019, which took place from Jan. 8 to 11. The Ring Door View Cam installs over a peephole instead of the side of the door, and the Netatmo Smart Video Doorbell became the first doorbell to be compatible with Apple HomeKit.

Also at CES was a host of kitchen appliances that speed up and digitize the cooking experience. The GE Kitchen Hub is a 27-inch touch screen and ventilation combo that fits above the range and allows users to video call, look up recipes, stream television shows, organize their calendar and more. The smaller, 10-inch KitchenAid Smart Display offers similar functions but stands alone and is water resistant.

Whirlpool, which owns the KitchenAid brand, also announced an in-wall oven concept that uses Augmented Reality through a 27-inch transparent display where the oven door would normally  be. Whirpool’s products are integrated with the Yummly app, which uses image recognition to recommend recipes, provides video tutorials and step-by-step recipes, and helps users complete tasks such as shopping for groceries and meal prepping.

“I love to cook. I like those devices. But at some point, it’s like buying an expensive car with all the bells and whistles. It takes more energy to maintain it, and you’re not going to use all the features,” Rathbun said.

While certain devices may serve a more practical purpose than others, there were many novel gadgets at CES 2019 that show just how far smart home technology has come, such as smart mirrors and toilets, rollaway TVs, home beer brews and even a 10-second-cleaning toothbrush.

WHAT REALTORS® NEED TO KNOW

According to Armstrong, 65 percent of homeowners will pay more for a smart home property, and by 2022 the number of homes that will have smart technology will reach 65 million, compared to 17 million in 2017. With more smart homes in the market each year, staying up-to-date on new smart home technology is particularly important for Realtors®.

Rathbun said installing smart home technology in a listing could set that property apart and elevate its desirability to consumers. While it may not increase the home’s value, it does serve as a great differentiator, he added.

“We have Realtors® do that all the time,” Armstrong said. “They’ll buy a package and we’ll go out there and install it. They sell it as a smart home and then we’ll meet with the new homeowners to enhance their package or see what else they want to have.”

Understanding smart home technology also gives Realtors® the ability to tailor to a client’s specific needs. For example, nearly 90 percent of seniors are aging in place and want to stay in their own homes, according to AARP. Being able to recommend technology to help seniors with limited mobility or help family members monitor their loved ones will add value to a Realtor’s® service.

According to Sanjay Joshi, a Realtor® with IKON Realty, many homes already have cameras installed. It is important for Realtors® to understand that if sellers are monitoring their surveillance cameras while buyers visit their property, it could be a violation of the law (learn more at NVAR.com/camera).

“When we go to see a house with a buyer, we always assume there are cameras and that these cameras can see and listen to your conversation,” Joshi said.

Joshi tells his clients before entering a house that they should wait until after the visit to discuss the property. Rathbun places notices at each of the home’s entrances about the presence of smart devices and also discloses that information in the listing, he explained in his blog about the topic. In addition, knowing how the technology will convey with the property is essential for agents and their clients (learn more at NVAR.com/smart).

For Realtors®, the implications of increased connectivity can impact the privacy and process of real estate transactions, as well as what consumers look for in their dream home – and those possibilities are endless. From the Jetson’s robot vacuum to Marty McFly’s video calling TV, time has proven that almost anything consumers imagine can become a reality in the world of smart home technology.