This New App Is Designed to Predict Which Reno Projects Will Improve Your Home’s Value
Plunk is a new smartphone app that uses AI to measure and forecast home value and remodeling projects in real time.
Photo: getplunk.com
Are you hoping to make some home improvements soon, but don’t know what projects will actually increase your home’s value when it comes time to sell? We understand that conundrum, and so does Plunk. This new mobile application is the first of its kind, and is designed to help homeowners measure and forecast their home’s value and the remodeling projects that are worth their time and money. Using artificial intelligence (AI) technology, machine learning, and computer vision, Plunk is designed to help you increase your home’s value. The app just launched earlier this month.
Increasing Your Home’s Value
The new app (spearheaded by tech, data science, and real estate professionals Brian Lent, David Bluhm, and Mike Shapiro) aims to help homeowners make smarter financial decisions to increase their property value on a project-by-project basis. Using Plunk’s interface, homeowners can find out which reno projects would improve the house’s overall value before getting started. This way you know exactly what projects will deliver the most bang for your buck!
RELATED: 21 Home Improvement Projects to Put on Your To-Do List for 2021
Photo: istockphoto.com
Homeownership Helps Grow Wealth
For most U.S. homeowners, net worth is largely determined by their homes. Many residents’ home equity totals around 62 percent of their net worth.
“Homeownership for most Americans is the best way to grow wealth, but there has never been a trusted source when it comes to the most important financial commitment we make,” Lent and Bluhm said in a statement. “We’re helping people level up on homeownership [to] better access the American dream.”
Special Features Aplenty
Plunk aims to give homeowners a resource to grow their home’s value with the touch of a button. Features include real-time home valuation to give you an accurate estimate of how much it’s worth, Plunk Value to calculate potential values based on projects, and specific recommendations to provide you with the greatest returns.
All in Real Time
Are you wondering “how much is my home worth right now, as is?” That’s what this app hopes to help you answer. The real-time valuation feature aims to go beyond classic appraisals or online guesstimates to provide more accurate data sets. Using AI, image analysis, and computer vision, the app can plug in details about upgrades made years or days ago for the most updated valuation possible.
Photo: istockphoto.com
What’s Plunk Value?
An original feature, called Plunk Value, introduces a new metric in the housing market that can predict a home’s potential value. Answering the question “how much could my home be worth,” the app calculates that amount using its top preset product recommendations. Plunk can also identify specific remodeling projects that will yield the greatest impact on your home’s value by using advanced analytics.
RELATED: A Flipper’s Top 10 Tips for Increasing Home Value
How it Works
Plunk aims to leverage advanced AI and machine learning to analyze your home on a hyper-local level. From there, it can make specific recommendations to help increase its value, including ideas for home-specific remodeling projects and customized recommendations. It uses expert, data-driven suggestions (both simple and complex) and a calculated ROI to help you drive up the value.
Photo: istockphoto.com
A One-of-a-Kind Resource for Homeowners
This type of resource and technology has previously never been used to help homeowners track which renos can positively help increase their home values.
“Despite residential real estate being the world’s largest asset class—representing over $36 trillion in the U.S.—there’s never been a reliable resource that helps homeowners make sense of how to maximize their investments,” Plunk Managing Director Mark Shapiro said in a statement.
The initial rollout of the app just launched in the greater Seattle area. Potential users can sign up for iOS-only beta access at getplunk.com.
RELATED: The Low-Stress Home Renovation
