The whirlwind of technological innovation and change increasingly complicates spending decisions for real estate businesses of any size. With so many emerging and competing technologies, it’s a constant challenge to decide which may offer the greatest return on investment, which ones will have staying power, and which untested technologies are worth a try. There are many opportunities to spend money on technologies that are not the right fit for the business, and technology can become a black hole for a company’s budget, whether it is developing the technology in-house, or contracting out for custom or off-the-shelf tools and services.

Inman News asked four real estate companies of various sizes to share information about their technology operations and spending, and to identify top tech priorities for this year and the year ahead. The whirlwind of technological innovation and change increasingly complicates spending decisions for real estate businesses of any size. With so many emerging and competing technologies, it’s a constant challenge to decide which may offer the greatest return on investment, which ones will have staying power, and which untested technologies are worth a try.

There are many opportunities to spend money on technologies that are not the right fit for the business, and technology can become a black hole for a company’s budget, whether it is developing the technology in-house, or contracting out for custom or off-the-shelf tools and services. Inman News asked four real estate companies of various sizes to share information about their technology operations and spending, and to identify top tech priorities for this year and the year ahead. The first part of this report, “Case Studies in Tech Spending,” features information shared by Shelton, Conn.-based William Raveis Real Estate, including the company’s tech-spending priorities, trends and projections.