We first met homeAR in March. The solution for homebuilders and their clients creates virtual models of homes that are visible on-site or in a “dollhouse mode” from anywhere. So, what’s next? Entire AR communities? Actually, yes. Other recent updates to the platform include an “Always-On” feature and more compatibility with other applications.
HomeAR has been around for quite a while now, but it has only existed in its current iteration for the last few years after CEO Richard Penny was inspired by his own experience in having a house built.
The last time that we checked in with homeAR, prospective homeowners could see the AR model of their home on-site or wherever they happened to be. Either of these solutions made it easier for them to envision their future dwelling to better work with contractors to make sure that everything went according to plan (or change the plan).
“When a person is using this and expecting it to behave like a house, we want to make it usable so people aren’t just interacting with a 3D widget, they’re interacting with a house,” Penny told ARPost at the time.
The application was good for exactly that. People having a house built could view their house virtually before the ground was even broken on their property. But, not all houses are custom-built by a property owner working with a private contractor. What about people looking to move into a new housing complex or subdivision? That’s where some of the new features come in.
HomeAR has been rolling out a bunch of new features, but one of the most exciting is the Always-On feature. Builders can import their CAD models to the homeAR backend and then associate the model with a QR code on-site. Visitors to the site can then scan the QR code to launch the experience.
That experience consists of virtual houses pinned to their future locations in the physical world. Potentially replacing a single model home and an artist’s 2D rendering of the building site, this experience allows visitors to envision an entire unbuilt community in the physical environment around them.
“Being able to take buyers on a journey where they can experience not only an individual home, but a whole community, is hugely powerful for both parties,” Penny said in a release shared with ARPost. “This Always-On technology provides a glimpse of the future at the site of the build and is the perfect tool to help someone imagine what lies in store for them.”
This tool doesn’t only provide information to visitors, it also provides information to developers. Metrics gathered from users interacting with the virtual development help project managers understand how potential residents are exploring the site.
This isn’t the end of homeAR. Some of the features that Penny told us to expect in the future still aren’t here – like spatially anchored notes within the virtual model homes, and recording video within the app. We aren’t sure when to expect these features, but it’s nice to see that the company isn’t standing still.
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