Data and operational efficiency remain the primary drivers of technology investment, according to a survey of senior leaders from UK-based real estate investment firms undertaken by Yardi and the Association of Real Estate Funds (AREF).
More than 60% of respondents to The Changing Role of Data & Technology in Real Estate Investment survey cited efficiency gains as the main motivation behind their technology strategies and more than 50% highlighted fragmented data and siloed systems as their biggest challenge.
The report is based on in-depth interviews with senior leaders from 10 UK-based real estate investment firms alongside a targeted survey of executive and senior management respondents from a further 14 fund and investment management firms.
Matt Glenny, commercial and investment management director at Yardi, said: “The report gives us a real insight into the perception of the real estate industry compared to a lot of the hype that we hear. Just 45% of respondents see AI as the biggest tech disruptor of the next three to five years, which shows the industry is not as confident of the potential of AI based on this survey.
“Although, 88% of respondents are trialling AI in some form to automate or enhance performance of manual tasks such as reading and summarising documents and automating meeting minutes. Predictive analytics and the adoption of AI agents are viewed as future aspirations rather than a current consideration.”
Alongside the report, Yardi and AREF hosted a webinar with industry leaders from Savills Investment Management, Aberdeen, L&G Real Assets Equity and the UK Proptech Association to explore the growing divide in digital maturity across the sector.
