Introducing Curate


Sotheby’s International Realty® First Real Estate Brand to Launch Augmented Reality App

Curate Mobile Augmented Reality App

Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC has announced the launch of Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty, a mobile augmented reality (AR) app that will bring a home’s virtual staging images from 2-D perception into augmented reality.

“Buying a house is not only a significant financial decision, but is also deeply personal and emotional. Introducing an augmented reality component to the homebuying experience takes the consumer on a personal journey that allows them to see a house transformed into a home, their home, through the magic of technology.” – John Passerini, global vice president of interactive marketing, Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC.

Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty allows consumers to visualize a house as their own before purchase, thereby curating the homebuying experience. The app is built with ARCore, Google’s AR Software platform, and is powered by roOomy, the leading virtual staging technology platform specializing in 3D/AR/VR content creation and application development. Working closely with Google in the run up to ARCore’s release, the Sotheby’s International Realty® brand is the first real estate brand to launch and implement a virtual staging AR app, transforming the homebuying and selling experience for sales associates and consumers.

The app also features a curated selection of AR interior designs, ranging from modern living rooms to traditional dining rooms that provides the consumer with the opportunity to immediately swap among these styles, something physical staging could never accomplish.


Curate Mobile Augmented Reality App

Here are the key groundbreaking features of the app:

  • Visualization – Any property can be transformed through a curated selection of AR furnishings and décor sets. Listing-specific staging options will be available in the near future.
  • Recollection – The app has screenshot capabilities, allowing viewers to capture and store the images of AR furniture sets placed within the visit.
  • Shop – Virtual home furnishings can be clicked for more information about the product, including a link to exit the app and be directed to a retailer’s website. All furniture is shown to-scale and provides accurate room dimensions, ensuring furniture viewed in the app will be a fit, making purchasing and moving into a new home easier on new home buyers.


Curate Mobile Augmented Reality App

Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty also offers Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty agents and their clients the ability to form more accurate expectations of what the space has to offer through AR:

  • For prospective homebuyers – Viewing a potential house in AR breaks down visualization barriers that often accompany the homebuying process, allowing prospective homebuyers the unique ability to envision the house in their personal taste and style. Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty offers the opportunity for buyers to ultimately see a house as their own home, increasing confidence in any purchasing decisions.
  • For home sellers / Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty clients – Selling a home with a Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty sales associate means tapping into the power of AR to sell the home by helping prospective buyers overcome the visualization barriers of touring an empty home or one decorated in style that differs from their taste.
  • For the Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty sales associate – The benefits for the sales associate are similar to those of the homebuyer and seller; Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty empowers the sales associate to present a home in an objective and neutral manner. The app also alleviates the need for sales associates to physically stage homes, allowing them to save money on the costs of either renting or buying and storing furniture.


Providing the highest possible customer service and a truly exceptional real estate experience has always been the top priority for Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty. We are proud to continue our tradition of leadership and innovation with the launch of this groundbreaking app.

“The Sotheby’s International Realty brand has always been a leader when it comes to adapting new technologies to the real estate industry and understanding homebuying trends,” noted Passerini. “Almost a decade ago, we committed to only displaying high-resolution photography on our website; we then had the foresight to understand that video would become increasingly important to homebuyers and so we introduced high-definition videography to our website; and then came 3D and Virtual Reality Tours with Matterport. We recognized that augmented reality is the way in which people will shop in the future and when Google approached us to be an official launch partner for ARCore, we knew it was the right move.”

Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty is available now for download in the Google Play Store. The app was built with Google’s ARCore, which can run on 100 million Android devices worldwide. The Sotheby’s International Realty brand will launch Curate by Sotheby’s International Realty for iOS this spring through a continued partnership with roOomy.

Learn more about this unprecedented augmented reality experience on sothebysrealty.com