01 Feb AI & Real Estate What To Expect

AI & Real Estate What To Expect

AI & real estate – what to expect? Will it replace the role of the real estate broker/agent? As far as disruption goes, the real estate industry here in Quebec, has managed to remain unscathed. In contrast, other Provinces and Countries have an open MLS system and have witnessed many innovations, such as Redfin, Zillow, Trulia, Opendoor and a long list of other incumbents.

As far as Artificial Intelligence goes, there’s no doubt it’s here to stay, and in a big way.

“Intelligent software has massive potential for creating technology that changes labor markets. Real estate labor is a natural target, and a couple of recent pieces got the ball rolling this past week. Russ Cofano penned a broker outlook that viewed “cognitive computing” not as a threat to labor, but an asset to the baseline of real estate’s agent intelligence:

“So here’s the question. What if cognitive computing enables agents to be better professionals and make better recommendations to their clients? What if access to cognitive computing power, and the data necessary to power it, becomes the 21st century equivalent of the MLS utility?”

Further, Cofano states, “Cognitive computing has the potential to add massive value to the real estate brokerage value proposition and do for agent professionalism what no other initiative could touch.”

AI can help with helping buyers find suitable home choices, and automating repetitive tasks, It can play an important role in helping to safeguard the real estate industry as illustrated in this infographic by Forrent.com

How to Secure Your Apartment Wi-Fi Created By: ForRent.com

“Big data is playing a transformative role in the real estate industry. With troves of customer and industry data at the disposal of real estate companies, companies can use AI algorithms to make sense of the data and improve one or more facets of the business. Areas that can be improved include targeted marketing, financial and accounting, and appraisals, which are increasingly becoming difficult to conduct due to the high number of evolving factors that keep on affecting the price of properties.

Zillow, one of the biggest names in the real estate industry, is among a few companies that offer tons of data that customers can use to make buying or renting decisions. Zillow, a popular listing platform, is slowly helping to revolutionize the industry in terms of AI-powered data analytics, even though a lot more work is needed before it can become the perfect AI-powered platform.”

in 2016, 51% of homebuyers began house-hunting online, even though most of them eventually used an agent to complete the purchase. Now, with AI, searches are more sophisticated with multiple layers of information available for specific properties. Users are now able to get details about ROI, good neighborhoods, and other seemingly minute details about properties before buying.

Perhaps the most significant illustration of the true capabilities of AI in intelligent search platforms was the Broker Vs Bot challenge conducted by Inman. With the bot winning the challenge against three real estate agents, the challenge shed the spotlight on the true potential of AI in real estate.

Artificially intelligent bots are leading the AI revolution. Bots are being used to answer queries relating to terms of leasing, footage, and other common questions during virtual tours

Some real estate companies are already using AI to help lead change in this area, though their efforts are targeted more towards augmenting the work of a real estate agent rather than replacing it.

While the internet has disrupted physical book stores and travel agents or in other words, how we buy books or book travel, in contrast, the real estate industry has only benefited from the advent of the internet. Houses are not commodities, and buying property is not like buying a seat on a plane or a t-shirt. Beyond the basic information and sometimes beautiful photos displayed on an online listing, there is nothing that replaces an in person visit. It’s the fine details and experience of the space…what’s the street and neighborhood like. Who are the neighbors? Is it noisy? Are there visual clues that something is amiss? Properties should always be inspected before purchase….and it’s of the utmost importance having the buyer present at the time of an inspection, especially if buying a house.  At the end of the day, Real estate is neither consumable nor disposable and buying or selling property remains a complex process. There are so many steps needed for a successful outcome; from the documentation, to the staging, photography, uploading of accurate information into the MLS system, marketing the property and all that it entails, (social media, mailers, prospecting for buyers), showings, meeting with prospective clients, negotiations, directing those clients to the right professionals such as inspectors, mortgage brokers, designers, renovation experts…right through to the transfer of the deed of sale….at the notary. Conclusion, we still need a human with emotional IQ to show up and close the deal. The creation of a relationship might be initiated by data, but it’s going to be sealed with emotion. Real life brokers/agents are cementing unbreakable relationships with real people. Consumers want to  work with agents they view as honest, trustworthy, and reputable with a successful track record. No matter what amazing intelligence is dangled in front of them by some AI. the human element of the transaction is not being replaced any time soon!