Marketing agent Paul Liddy of Ray White East Brisbane has teamed up with a local 3D visualisation company to become one of the first Australian agents to use virtual reality in his listings. "It's a great option for a seller," says Liddy of presenting a property with a unique 3D floor plan and enabling viewers to virtually walk through a house.

Liddy has formed a partnership with Kal Daley of 3D Smart Scan, a new Brisbane-based company. After seeing the 3D capabilities of Melbourne-based company Scann3d, Liddy contacted the firm who put him in touch with the Queensland company. Daley, an importer whose business background includes supporting industry with 3D scanners and surveying instruments, said the fee for service depends mainly on the size of a home but generally falls within the range of $300 to $600. “Traditional marketing doesn’t correspond any more to what consumers are expecting. They want something new, fast and easy to use; buyers need to feel a connection to the home and we can now offer them this opportunity from the comfort of their lounge room,” said Daley.

The first property Liddy is marketing using the 3D technology is 1/15 Grosvenor St, Balmoral in Brisbane's east. The $849,000 unit is one of ten in the boutique ‘The Constellation’ development. “It’s been an eye opening experience for buyers who don’t have the time or are unable due to geography to inspect the properties; they’ve been able to experience the homes online from overseas and interstate as if they’re physically there," said Liddy. “A 3D virtual showcase gives the full context of every view, it’s an online experience that lets home buyers move through a property and see it from any angle, the completed showcase can be uploaded to all platforms including realestate.com.au, Domain and they’re even being pulled into the social space by Facebook which now allows you to embed interactive 3D files. I certainly see it as another string in the bow."

Liddy said he is also exploring whether it's possible to create 3D models for renderings for off the plan properties so people can get a virtual walk-through.