The Capital in the Cyber World panel at RealShare Apartments.

LOS ANGELES—There is no stopping it: technology is integrating into the finance and investment markets, but that doesn't mean that the Internet is replacing human connection. “The last mile is human touch. The Internet has made a lot possible, but human touch is still important,” said Michael Sanchez, managing director of RealtyMogul.com, on the Capital in the Cyber World: Technology's Role in Investment at RealShare Apartments. On the panel, Sanchez discussed crowdfunding and technology in multifamily financing with panel moderator Ada'Pia d'Errico, CMO of Patch of Land; Jordan Fishfeld, co-founder and CEO of CFX Markets; Bryan Schultz, VP of commercial equity at RealtyShares; and Steve Wayne, owner of ProspectNow.com.

Schultz, another crowdfunder, agreed that communication is as important as the technology. “We are able to leverage the Internet to bring several sources together. It is all about communication facilitation rater than salesforce,” he said. Feedback is also important to the process, because it allows the team to develop loan products that fit borrowers needs.

Communication isn't limited to clients. Panelists also discussed collaboration with third-party providers. All of the panelists collaborate with third party companies to collect and manage data. “There is a lot of collaboration, but this is a massive market,” said Wayne, while Schultz added that they are “trying to be efficient in an inefficient space.” For Fishfeld, managing the immense amount of data that they collect is the biggest hurdle. They collaborated with Google Capital, which invested a large amount of money into the company, to develop a way to harness the data.