With Drones, CRE Property Tours Join the 'Entertainment Age'

Commercial real estate property tours have joined the “entertainment age” as more and more companies are shooting breath-taking drone videos to create a “wow” factor when promoting their space.

“We don’t live in the information age any more, we live in the entertainment age,” Brad Smith, Associate Director, Investment Sales, Walker & Dunlop, tells GlobeSt.

“There’s so much information out there that it’s overwhelming. The information that is most entertaining, is the information that gets consumed.”

Smith said that these videos, created by media company Indoor Drone Tour (IDT), “instantly capture the attention of buyers because the shots are unlike anything they’ve ever seen. It could be scaling a high rise, flying through gym equipment or a chandelier.

“In today’s world of short attention spans, IDT videos entertain clients and tell the story much more effectively than any alternative. Especially during times when the market is flooded with listings, it’s a very effective way to pique buyers’ interest and tell the deal highlights in less than 2 minutes.”

Walker & Dunlop is IDT’s largest commercial real estate client, having commissioned 10 tours for its multifamily listings.

No Arrow-Clicking Required

IDT launched in March 2020 under CEO Zach Dulla.

“We saw that there wasn’t a great way to virtually tour a 200,000 square foot building through video,” Dulla tells GlobeSt. “So, we created a seamless virtual tour – with no arrow clicking or click-and-drags needed.”

About two-thirds of IDT’s clients are office and industrial and one-third is residential. IDT, based in Chicago, can shoot a full apartment community or do individual videos based on apartment floorplans. For the development side, it can produce a digital portfolio. For the sales side, it can shoot most any property for owners who want to showcase it for potential buyers.

Shoots can vary based on what clients are looking for to differentiate themselves.

“We can include people in the videos by getting creative, such as shooting down to show a break on the billiards table; or a person diving off of the diving board; or a person walking through the lobby,” Dulla said.

Great, Non-Intrusive Footage Takes Minutes

Smith said the production is minimally invasive for residents.

“Typically, we will shoot a model unit and do amenities during the day and at a time when no one is there,” he said. “In two minutes, you can capture the clients’ attention and really tell the story of the asset. There’s no click-through process (as is found with other video touring platforms), which is annoying and slow for a lot of clients, especially the older, less tech savvy buyers.”

Angelina DeWitt, marketing coordinator, The Habitat Company, commissioned drone video for several properties and has plans to do so at more.

“The drone videos vary in cost and scope depending on what we want filmed and how we want the imagery stitched together, but we felt the cost was lower than some other options while simultaneously providing a newer and more unique benefit than alternative options,” DeWitt tells GlobeSt.

Elm Street Plaza, a 394-unit community on Chicago’s Gold Coast, was the first property where DeWitt used drones, “and when we rolled out those videos in October 2020, we had not yet seen other buildings take the same approach. Habitat’s marketing team, in tandem with our on-site teams, felt the drone video for Elm Street Plaza was pretty cool and soon several other properties expressed interest in scheduling their own drone videos.”

Hubbard Place was shot in July. It’s a newly renovated, 43-story, 450-unit community in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. IDT was also used for Twin Towers in Hyde Park and 1333 S Wabash in the South Loop. This spring she will also be filming at Kingsbury Plaza, as well as an updated version for 1333 S Wabash to capture its outdoor amenity deck.

DeWitt said that her onsite teams shared “that while prospects have not directly referenced the video, they believe some sight-unseen leases could be attributed to the drone videos, especially at The Hubbard Place.”

A Better Feel for the Floor Plan

Thompson Thrift Residential (Watermark) has shot 10 apartment drone videos and plans to shoot more for properties now under construction.

“The ability the small drone has to capture a smooth shot throughout the entire community is unmatched, and a much cooler experience for the viewer than more pieced-together, panned views that many videos use,” Thompson Thrift Marketing Manager Sophie Ferraro tells GlobeSt.

“A typical interior video tour of an apartment home consists of shots pieced together that scan the various rooms. For the drone to be able to fly through the apartment in one shot gives prospects a much better feel for the flow of the floor plan.”

Turnaround Time about 48 Hours

Dulla also offers residential drone tours for Realtors (homes & condos) and commercial drone tours for brokers, investment sales teams, and developers (office, multifamily, industrial and retail).

For commercial drone tours, time needed for a production shoot ranges two to four hours. Flying individual vacancies or common areas (such as a gym or lobby) will take as little as 2-3 minutes per flight with 15 minutes of preparation before each flight. 

Average production turnaround for commercial drone tours is three days. Commercial drone tour costs range from $500 for individual spaces and approximately $2,000 to $5,000 for full-building tours.

For residential apartments and homes, production for the average drone tour shoot is one hour. The pilot will fly two “takes” during a residential shoot that last 2 to 3 minutes a piece with 15 minutes of prep before each flight. 

The average production turnaround is 48 hours. Costs for residential drone tours vary by square footage, starting at $275.

Doola said other current top commercial clients include CBRE, JLL and Cushman & Wakefield. Apartment clients include The Lincoln Property Company.