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5 August 2025 August 2025 » themortgagepoint.com M T E C H AI BOOM FUELS SURGE IN SAN FRANCISCO'S LUXURY HOUSING MARKET S an Francisco's luxury housing market is experiencing a dramatic revival, with artificial intelligence at the center of the city's real estate re- surgence. According to Sotheby's Inter- national Realty's 2025 Mid-Year Luxury Outlook report, more homes sold for over $20 million in San Francisco than in any previous year on record. The Bay Area's high-end real estate had cooled following the pandemic, but it's now seeing renewed demand from tech founders, engineers, and investors who are relocating or reinvesting in the region. "The thought is that the AI space is going to be the next major source of wealth creation in the global economy," said Bradley Nelson, Sotheby's Chief Marketing Officer. "San Francisco be- came a magnetic location really quickly because if an entrepreneur or a tech investor was saying, 'OK, I want to make a bet in AI,' they were deciding they needed to do it in San Francisco and in the Bay Area for access to the labor pool with that technical expertise." The city is home to OpenAI, the de- veloper of ChatGPT, as well as a host of other startups and research institutions focused on artificial intelligence (AI). The tech boom has brought new energy (and a huge cash flow) into the housing market, most visibly on San Francisco's Billionaires' Row, where Laurene Powell Jobs reportedly purchased a home for $70 million. Buyers aren't just purchasing ultra-pricey homes; they're committed to staying. Nelson noted that many new owners are investing in multi- million-dollar, multi-year custom renovations, signaling long-term plans to reside in the city. He also told Bloomberg that "the luxury real estate market in 2025 has just stepped out as the perennial safe haven," and credited San Francisco's rebound in part to newly elected Mayor Daniel Lurie. Other luxury markets are also booming. In New York City, homes priced at $10 million or more saw an estimated 115% increase in sales, accord- ing to Sotheby's. Deer Valley, Utah, is an- other rising star, where a state record of 15 homes have sold for over $15 million this year already. VEROS BROADENS VEROSELECT PLATFORM WITH VALLIGENT'S VIRTUAL INSPECTION B y integrating Valligent's virtual inspection, disaster inspection, and new evaluation services, Veros Real Estate Solutions (Veros) has announced a major expansion of its VeroSELECT platform. "Veros is fundamentally transform- ing how clients manage valuation work- flows," said Sarah Petteway-Dib, SVP of Product & Data Ops at Veros Real Estate Solutions, about the VeroSELECT ex- pansion. "With Valligent's virtual tools, it's about smarter decisions through flexibility, insight, and speed." Stronger risk mitigation and speedier workflows are still required by the home financing sector. Through this interface, VeroSELECT users can centrally manage all aspects of their val- uation procedures, including Valligent's virtual tools, AVMs, assessments, and property inspections and appraisals. Users can achieve operational efficiency and a comprehensive understanding of collateral risk with a single platform. "Our commitment at Veros is to con- tinually advance what's possible in hous- ing finance," said Sarah Petteway-Dib, SVP, Product & Data Operations at Veros. "Integrating Valligent's virtual inspection and valuation capabilities transforms how clients access and manage their workflows—providing more flexibility, sharper insights, and greater confidence in lending decisions." This extension builds upon prior developments, such as the VeroSELECT API's provision of Disaster Vision. Within the same platform, clients can now rapidly discover properties that have probably been affected by natural catastrophes and start virtual inspec- tions with homeowners to determine possible damage. • The newly added Valligent offer- ings now available on VeroSELECT include: ValINSPECT Virtual (In- terior/Exterior or Exterior Only): A streamlined virtual property inspec- tion solution, leveraging Valligent's internal virtual inspection agents for mobile device-driven photo and live video streaming to deliver property insights. • ValINSPECT Disaster (In Person or Virtual Exterior Inspection): Key rap- id response inspection capabilities for properties in areas affected by natural disasters, conducted virtually or in person to provide timely collateral condition updates when they matter most. • eVAL Virtual (Interior/Exterior or Exterior Only): An evaluation form compliant with interagency guide- lines, paired with a virtual property inspection, where Valligent's internal evaluation staff provides value insights complemented by compre- hensive virtual inspection data—a powerful combination for efficiency and compliance. • Appraiser Field Review (Exterior): A Form 2000 residential field review, providing essential quality control and analysis of appraisal report accuracy—an important layer of oversight for appraisal integrity.