NTRY debuts 3D real estate visualization tool in Toronto

Toronto-based startup NTRY has launched what its founders call a first-of-its-kind 3D real estate...

Residential Buying And Selling Toronto / GTA Apr. 21 2022

Steve McLeanBusiness Writer

IMAAGE: The founders of NTRY are, from left, James Borst, Pamela Ventresca and Julian Pucci. (Courtesy NTRY)

The founders of NTRY are, from left: James Borst, Pamela Ventresca and Julian Pucci. (Courtesy NTRY)

Toronto-based startup NTRY has launched what its founders call a first-of-its-kind 3D real estate visualization tool to showcase, market and sell properties online. The platform is now available for Toronto-area pre-construction properties and will roll out more extensively this summer.

NTRY’s creators believe brokers, agents, developers and buyers will find value in the interactive, cloud-based program accessible on any device because more and more purchases and leasing deals are happening in an online environment. What was a necessity during the height of the pandemic is now a process that seems to be here to stay.

NTRY founding partner and director James Borst is also the co-founder and chief executive officer of NTRY’s parent company, 3D CityScapes. That firm creates immersive interactive visualization platforms designed for developers, urban planners, cities and authorities.

It was a logical next step to partner with people with real estate backgrounds. NTRY was founded by Borst, PACE Developments managing director and P2 Realty founder and CEO Pamela Ventresca, and PACE sales director and P2 realtor Julian Pucci.

Ventresca is senior vice-president of operations and Pucci is sales and marketing VP.

It has taken a year-and-a-half for NTRY to reach this point and, combined with 3D CityScapes, it now employs about 30 people.

The firm has also brought in a well-known face in the industry, Jason Garland, as NTRY’s senior VP of business development. Garland is the owner and CEO of JAG Designs, a Royal LePage real estate specialist and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Toronto Realty partner and VP of new home sales.

What NTRY does

NTRY can provide up-to-date information on any property in its database via files which are provided from developers. It’s then modelled using a gaming software engine by a team of full stack developers at NTRY who create life-like 3D visual presentations.

Developers can customize packages that best fit their needs to highlight specific features related to the projects and place them within their physical environments to give users a glimpse of the area.

The platform is accessed through a website login.

“The consumer is going to be able to have a lot of information that is typically hard to find at their fingertips for pre-construction,” Ventresca told RENX. “We are looking to build-in that visualization tool, which absolutely does not exist yet, and make it a logistical tool for them to eventually be able to speak to an agent, speak to staff and really have all the information at their fingertips so they can make an educated decision prior to purchasing.”

Users anywhere in the world can look at a cityscape and its various developments and click on a building that interests them. They can then view floor plans, design packages, pricing and other details while taking a virtual tour of the building and individual suites.

“That information is typically very segregated,” Garland told RENX. “You’ve got to call various sales offices and you have to speak to various sales agents to see who has access to what information.

“It’s very fragmented. There’s no central system. So that’s where we are trying to fill those gaps for the consumer.”

Developers are signing on

Developers pay to have their buildings modelled and NTRY sells licenses to real estate agents so they can access the platform and show properties to their clients.

NTRY is initially focused on pre-construction condos and single-family homes. Mizrahi Developments, Tridel, Broccolini, Oxford Properties, Rockport Group, Arista Homes and PACE have signed on as early NTRY adopters.

Garland said developers can also use NTRY’s technology for modelling older buildings in their portfolios if they have the proper files. This capability would be especially useful if an owner or manager is looking to sell the property, make comparisons with other buildings, or simply showcase what they’ve done in the past.

There are also plans to enter the residential resale marketplace as well as commercial real estate, because the technology is easily adaptable and transferable. Garland said NTRY has commercial development clients, but said it is too early to reveal any further details.

NTRY is initially providing its services in the Greater Toronto Area because the company is headquartered in North York, and Toronto currently offers the biggest pre-construction condominium market in the world. It also has more construction cranes across the metro area than any other city in North America.

Toronto has also become a global technology hub, which Garland said is helping NTRY recruit highly skilled employees as it continues to grow.

There are future plans for NTRY to move into New York City, Miami and Washington, D.C. after it gets firmly established in Toronto.

3D cost-cutting platform revolutionizing real estate sales

by Neil Sharma on 13 Nov 2020

The cost of marketing a real estate development in a presentation centre alone easily breaks six figures, but a new cloud-based platform is not only revolutionizing the way people purchase real estate, it’s cutting some of the costs.

3D CityScapes is, as its name implies, a digital 3D visualization platform that shows what life inside preconstruction condo units will be like once they’re occupied. Impressively, the platform also shows potential purchasers what it’s like to walk around the surrounding neighbourhoods, and, according to the company’s president and CEO, all it takes is an internet connection.

“We’ve built the world’s first cities on the cloud,” said Raza Jafri, whose background is in urban planning, “Our goal is to help people visualize the urban environment they’ll be living in because people are thoroughly connected to them—everything from their reliance on transportation to their favourite restaurants and their jobs. It’s important for people to understand the look and feel of their neighbourhoods, not just their homes, before they move in."

Condo units purchased preconstruction are rarely delivered as promised. Imagine buying a corner unit expecting an unimpeded skyline view only to move in and discover a giant pillar obstructing that view. Jafri says the purchaser would know if that were the case upon exploring the 3D environment.

“Before they were looking at 2D drawings and renderings, but the problem is you can’t walk in or see that pillar,” said Jafri. “You can’t see how the sun will enter your loft or condo, but with 3D CityScapes’ technology, now you can see your unit from every angle and experience the area around it—everything that’s within five-, 10-, 20-minute walking distance, you’ll know what your life will be like before making that buying decision.”

According to Julian Pucci, a sales agent who specializes in preconstruction condos, his sales have tripled since he partnered with 3D CityScapes a year ago, and he says it’s changed his entire business model.

“The great thing about 3D CityScapes is they break it down floor by floor, suite by suite, and view by view,” he said. “I can take clients into a 29th floor suite and show them the views from their balcony and the views from inside their suite. If there’s a pillar or something in the way, they’re going to see it right away and we can nip that potential problem in the bud right away. My clients love seeing what the views will look like from the 20th floor balcony during the night or during the day. It helps tremendously from a sales aspect."

With the availability of this technology, arguably the biggest winners are the real estate developers, which are already burdened by escalating construction costs, but now they can shave marketing costs, especially in their sales centres. Those savings usually trickle down to the purchaser, too.

“The way a developer markets a project is very expensive, and who pays for that? The buyers,” said Jafri. “There are developers we’ve done projects for that have sold out faster because people got a better sense of what they were buying and felt more comfortable making buying decisions about those projects. Developers will also be able to sell a project to a worldwide audience using this cloud technology, whether they’re in Shanghai or Toronto, because now anybody can visit this virtual sales centre and it speeds up the sales process."