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Dash, a home search startup aimed at improving how agents access content around new development projects, has released a beta test of its software in Miami that will allow greater access to pre- and new-construction properties.
Ranging from stick-built single-family homes to urban high rises, the content, which includes floor plans, photography, renderings, brochures and branding assets, is delivered unbranded to be repurposed for agent use and to reduce distraction when used as research, according to an announcement last week.
South Florida is an ideal place to run its beta test because of its rapid growth, said Dash Founder and CEO Len Dugow, who believes the discovery of accurate, market-ready information about new construction is crucial to advancing the industry, especially in light of the nation’s new home glut.
“The current system is ‘old fashioned,’ causing agents hours of wasted time chasing information that’s inaccurate, along with compromising professional reputations,” Dugow said. “With this innovative tool, sales teams can work more efficiently and effectively than ever before to communicate with developers and provide prospects with information they can count on to close deals.”
Search results come ready to be marketed, and Dash executives say what it shares with users is “developer-approved,” ensuring agents aren’t burdened by an approval process that slows the dissemination of information.
The browser and mobile search experiences function like a traditional search portal while also containing results for new and pending developments. This allows agents, primarily those who represent buyers, to more professionally integrate up and coming listings with existing home search results.
It’s not uncommon for agents to have to use separate, un-integrated materials when discussing new homes with clients, a simple byproduct of the demands put upon builders. Attention on completion often distracts from marketing, and agents charged with it become burdened by a lack of content provided by architects, designers or random builder staff. In short, there’s no consistency.
Agents can save properties of interest and subscribe to alerts and at the Pro account level, directly share content to clients.
New construction continues to be a pressing issue for the industry. Even in cycles of increased production and sales, there remains a massive shortage of homes nationwide, the result of a confluence of multiple economic factors spanning well over a decade.
“Homebuilders are fitting nicely into this spring housing season that is starved for new inventory,” Zillow Senior Economist Nicole Bachaud said in a statement. “Homebuyers are hungry for anything they can afford, and homebuilders are happy to meet them where they are.”
Inman reported that inventory of new single-family homes increased 0.2 percent during April and remained elevated at a 7.6-month supply at the current building rate, with any measure near a six-month supply considered balanced, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
The median new-home sale price fell to $420,800 in April — 8 percent lower than it was a year ago.
Dash is proceeded in new construction content category by a company called Livble, launched in spring of this year. The site’s audience is bifurcated, offering property insights for both consumers and the sales industry, according to an announcement sent to Inman. Its mission is to “[create] the best homebuying experience by offering the most innovative listing and digital solutions.”
A number of proptechs have emerged of late to address the slow growth and difficult buying experience associated with new construction. Welcome Homes is one, earning $29 million in Series A venture capital in January, 2023, led by Era Ventures.
Ownly provides homebuilders with a consumer-driven retail storefront from which aspiring buyers can shop for homes with a Netflix-inspired browsing experience, get pre-qualified for mortgages and sign an offer-to-purchase contract.
Dash states that its product’s launch is in part due to collaboration and feedback from a number of notable industry brands, including, Douglas Elliman, Compass, Corcoran, Related, BH3, One World Properties, BHS, ONE Sotheby’s Realty, Zeckendorf, Oak Capital and Swire Properties, among many others.
