MoveStreets, the property portal designed for the mobile generation, has become the first UK property portal to enter the metaverse, purchasing its very own digital land on The Sandbox metaverse, joining the likes of Atari, Adidas and OpenSea in a move that is set to change the way we search and view homes within the UK property market.
The metaverse is essentially a simulated embodied internet that can combine elements of blockchain, cryptocurrencies, social media, virtual and augmented reality to create a diverse digital world where users can interact with others and the surrounding environment.
As for the NFTs available for purchase, these non-fungible tokens are essentially a plot of land that can’t be replaced – a one of a kind trading card – which can be replicated digitally but only the owner maintains ownership of the original.
NFTs are quickly becoming a big business and Axie Infinity, Bored Ape Yacht Club and Crypto Punks are amongst the most successful with over 17.5m sales totalling a huge $7bn.
MoveStreets purchase comes via Sandbox, a metaverse that also ranks within the top five where total sales value is concerned, having seen almost 140,000 transactions to the estimated tune of $347m since launch
The Sandbox is an NFT collection of digital land plots stored on the Ethereum blockchain, described as ‘a community-driven UGC-voxel platform where users own their land and host their creative magic’. Brands are able to buy an NFT, or a number of them known as estates, which they can then develop to provide an immersive gaming style experience to users.
Much like the actual property market, depending on where you buy and who your neighbours are can dramatically impact the price you’ll pay. Some estates on The Sandbox have sold for upwards of $800,000 with big brand names like Atari, Adidas and OpenSea – the largest NFT marketplace – already snapping up land in The Sandbox metaverse.
MoveStreets has become the first UK property portal to join them in a move that could change the way we buy and sell homes as the industry continues to evolve to suit the habits of the modern-day homebuyer and seller.
Adam Kamani, CEO and co-founder property portal of MoveStreets, said: “We’ve seen how the digital disruption brought by the online property portal has dramatically improved the buying and selling process, allowing prospective buyers to search anywhere in the nation in far greater detail from the comfort of their home.
We believe the metaverse will be the next step in this user journey and so we made the decision to set up shop in The Sandbox to plan for the future and further our consumer offering.
While it is still very early days, we’re very excited about the possibilities we’ll be able to provide The Sandbox users.
This experience is set to be far more immersive compared to anything currently available and should take the concept of virtual viewings to a whole new level.
Of course, physical viewings will always play a role but there’s no reason that searching for a home online can’t be fun.”
