Realtor Renee Grubb, owner of Village Properties, Santa Barbara County’s largest independent real estate brokerage, was among four industry experts who served as a panelist at a recent discussion on the ways technology and innovation have transformed the real estate industry.
Hosted by the nonprofit MIT Enterprise Forum of the Central Coast, the event, titled How Technology is Transforming the Way Real Estate is Bought & Sold, was held Sept. 19 in Santa Barbara.
Panelists addressed questions such as whether technology would ultimately replace humans in real estate transactions. The industry experts discussed how technological advances are impacting everyone involved in real estate, from homeowners and investors to agents and brokers.
“I believe that technology is very important for agents in today’s real estate market,” Grubb said. “Village Properties ensures that our agents are equipped with cutting-edge technology to provide the best possible service to all our clients.
“However, we also believe technology will never replace the human factor in real estate transactions. Every transaction is different, and there will always be the need for well-educated and knowledgeable agents to lead their clients through all the varied aspects that are present in real estate sales.”
Grubb has enjoyed a successful real estate career on the Central Coast and is known as a local expert in the area real estate market. She served as president of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors in 1995.
Other panelists at the event included: Joe Zulli, co-founder and chief technology officer of HomeBay.com, an online real estate company start-up; Ben Widhelm, co-founder and chief technology officer of Commercial Real Estate Exchange, Inc.; and Stephen Bulfer, entrepreneur/real estate investor, CEO and co-founder of StreamLoan, a digital mortgage platform.
Moderator was Kathy Chill, founder and president of Chill Strategic Partners, a firm specializing in go-to-market services for technology companies worldwide.
Founded in 1996, Village Properties, with offices in Santa Barbara, Montecito and Santa Ynez, is headquartered at 1250 Coast Village Road, Montecito. Visit www.villagesite.com or call 805-969-8900.