Any good paperless options for commercial real estate?

answered 2012-01-14 09:42:47 -0500

LancasterCommercial
86 ●6 http://www.lancastercomme...

Concur with SoundCRE regarding ScanSnap - good gear. You will also need an efficient way to associate documents with the proper client/account and then retrieve same when needed. Two thoughts here:

Tag and Dump (quick and cheep)

1. Dump all scanned docs into a single big pile (ie store them in a single folder on your computer).
2. Make sure to either name the file for the client or otherwise tag it with metadata
3. Then install Google Desktop Search or similar personal search engine
4. To retrieve, just launch your desktop search and type in client’s name (or the tag from step 1.b) and all that client’s documents will be available.

CRM Integration

1. Integrate scan system with your CRM (contact relationship management) software of choice. Assuming, of course, your CRM supports this feature.
2. Generally, you will open up the client in question Initiate the “store document” feature
3. Select your scanner as the source Scan doc
4. That’s it – the CRM handles the tagging and storage for you

answered 2012-01-13 10:55:01 -0500

@mjking
336 ●2 ●10 ●20 http://www.kiddermathews....

I use a Fujitsu ScanSnap for all my documents. It is an autofeed color scanner that automatically detects if it should scan one side or both sides of the page.

answered 2012-02-10 23:47:03 -0500

Dominic Zabriskie
86 ●2 ●3

Depending on your needs, either Dropbox or Box could be great options: http://cre-apps.com/2012/01/box-verses-dropbox-whats-best-for-cre/

answered 2013-05-11 06:35:35 -0500

Keith Smith
11 ●2

updated 2013-05-11 06:41:45 -0500

Power Broker CRM is built specifically for commercial real estate brokers on Salesforce.com--and it can be used paperless.

The application offers very complete functionality for tracking and managing Accounts/Contacts, Property, Leases, Loans Listings, Deal, 1031 Exchange, Comparables, Closings and more.

Documents can be stored electronically and attached to specific records for fast reference. eStorage can be inside the application on web or through direct integration to Google Docs, Amazon storage, DropBox, or Box com.

Free trial at http://powerbrokersoftware.com

If I can help, I am happy to discuss ideas and our experience on how to go paperless and improve processes anytime. Call me at 800-680-4276 x 717