Document Type
Article
Journal Title
Georgetown Law Technology Review
Volume
9
First Page
444
Publication Date
Spring 2025
Abstract
Proptech is undermining the human right to housing. Proptech is a term of art for the digital transformation of the real estate industry. It includes a range of real estate businesses engaged in development, financing, construction, management, and more. Proptech’s boosters promise frictionless and efficient housing markets. However, Proptech appears to be reinforcing existing power imbalances in real estate markets that are masked by the supposed objectivity and opacity of computer-generated processes. Meanwhile, countries across the globe face a profound housing crisis, with a lack of affordable and safe housing, high rates of homelessness, and rampant housing discrimination and segregation. Proptech’s impact may violate the human right to housing, which recognizes housing as the basis of stability and security for individuals and families. This Article examines five forms of Proptech through a human rights lens: (1) tenant screening algorithms; (2) digital mortgage financing; (3) online, platform-based advertising for real estate; (4) home surveillance technology, including facial recognition technology; and (5) short-term rental platforms. For each form of Proptech, the Article describes how the human right to housing is violated and explains the legal framework in the United States that governs these technologies. The Article also highlights human rights advocacy attempting to hold Proptech accountable. This advocacy includes repositioning big data as a counterweight to the dynamics of data capitalism and housing financialization, leveraging it instead to expand housing opportunities.
Recommended Citation
Michele E. Gilman,
The Impact of Proptech and the Datafication of Real Estate on the Human Right to Housing,
9
Georgetown Law Technology Review
444
(2025).
Available at:
https://scholarworks.law.ubalt.edu/all_fac/1200