Tech Trends: New Tools for Real Estate Investors

This week’s edition of Tech Trends focuses on new offerings aimed at real estate investors.

Multifamily Mortgage Tracking. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released an interactive tool for tracking data on multifamily mortgages that offers details about loans and properties at both the state and national levels.

The tool, known as a data visualization dashboard, is derived from the Public Use Database (PUDB) of mortgage acquisitions by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The tool provides data snapshots of key statistics, time series charts, and state maps of multifamily housing characteristics including median loan amount, number of properties, average number of units per property, and unit affordability.

FHFA Director Sandra L. Thompson debuted the new tool by declaring, “This data release exemplifies our commitment to transparency and providing user-friendly access to data on the Enterprises’ multifamily mortgage acquisitions.”

Deal or No Deal? Red Bank, New Jersey-based LoanGeek, a platform in commercial real estate financing, has launched LiveDeal by LoanGeek as a new channel to provide lenders with direct access to exclusive financing opportunities.

According to the company, LiveDeal enables lenders to filter deals by location, loan type, loan-to-value (LTV), and other metrics. When lenders express interest in a deal, the LoanGeek team is immediately notified and will provide quick follow-up and detailed discussions about the transaction.

“Our goal is to maximize deal exposure for our clients while providing lenders with a seamless experience,” said Chris Pepe, CEO of LoanGeek. “Traditionally, we’ve worked directly with lending partners to source financing. With the launch of LiveDeal, we are inviting lenders to be part of the process from the start, increasing efficiency and ensuring they have access to the best deals.”

Intelligence on Display. Pleasanton, California-based Slate Technologies has unveiled its Real Estate Intelligence (REI) tool, which uses artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to help users navigate market volatility.

The platform analyzes data from over 100 sources and offers real-time insights and future projections for specific geographic areas, from cities and MSAs to individual ZIP codes. Users can personalize their forecasts by adjusting key economic indicators, such as interest rates, unemployment, and population growth, to create tailored “what if” scenarios and projections.

Slate added that it was engaging early adopters among national home builders, banking institutions, and financial companies to deploy REI in their investment strategies.

“Slate’s Real Estate Intelligence tool isn’t just another addition to your tech stack; it’s a strategic asset,” said Slate Technologies CEO Trevor Schick. “By integrating predictive analytics with our proprietary AI, we’re enabling our clients to create competitive advantage by making faster, data-driven investments.”

New Tools from Agora. The real estate investment management platform Agora has rolled out two new tools: Report Builder and Waterfall Automation Tool, designed to enhance efficiency for real estate professionals.

Report Builder allows users to create customized and professional reports, ranging from distribution notices to quarterly reports. The tool is designed to simplify complex tasks with drag-and-drop functionality and dynamic fields, similar to website-building platforms like Wix and Squarespace.

Waterfall Automation Tool is designed to automate and simplify the management of waterfall distributions — a critical component of capital allocation among investors. The tool is able to handle individual-based waterfalls, which include side letters for open-end funds and debt vehicles, and class-based waterfalls, treat LPs as combined groups with identical terms, and cover a wide range of LPAs. The Waterfall Automation Tool supports over 200 different use cases.

“At Agora, we’re dedicated to creating tools that truly impact our clients’ operations,” stated Lior Dolinski, co-founder and chief product officer of Agora. “Our Report Builder and the new Waterfall Automation Tool are prime examples of how we simplify complex tasks, helping real estate professionals save time, boost performance, and focus on growing their business. These tools are both the first of their kind, and they have an extensive number of unique use cases, far more than any other tool out there so far.”