The rapid pace of the Real Estate industry means agents need to use what tools they can to maximise the experience of buyers and vendors alike. For real estate agents, AI is more than just a buzzword — it’s a powerful tool that can boost productivity, generate better leads, and create a more personalised experience for clients. In today’s competitive market, agents who leverage AI are gaining a serious edge, but it’s vital to strike the balance between productivity and lack of creativity.

When generative AI first hit the industry, its most celebrated use was content and copywriting. However, now it can offer so much more. One of the best practical uses for AI in an agency is lead generation and qualification. AI-driven platforms can qualify buyers’ and renters’ property interests and help find properties best suited for them. These tools don’t just match leads – they prioritise them based on readiness and intent, which helps agents focus their energy elsewhere, instead of getting bogged down in the admin work.

Similarly, AI-powered virtual assistants and chatbots are also transforming client communication. These tools can handle routine inquiries, schedule showings, and follow up with prospective buyers, vendors, renters and landlords even outside of office hours. That means agents can stay connected with clients even when they’re out in the field or off the clock.

AI’s ability to find information online also allows it to provide advanced valuation models using recent sales, market conditions and neighbourhood trends. This saves teams time on doing the research and analysis required to uncover the best prices for vendors and buyers alike. Beyond saving time, this helps agents provide more data-backed pricing strategies that build trust with clients and increase the likelihood of a successful transaction.

Importantly, AI doesn’t replace agents — it enhances their capabilities. The personal connection, negotiation skills, and local knowledge that great agents provide can’t be automated. But with AI handling repetitive tasks and crunching the data, agents are free to focus on what they do best: building relationships and closing deals. The only warning is to avoid over-reliance. Earlier this year Realestate.com.au published an article about the over-use of generative AI in the production of marketing copy and digitally-altered listing images. One prospective buyer complained that all listings were starting to look the same, and that the digitally created interior design made visiting the property in-person underwhelming. Further, as programs like ChatGPT are American, the content it produces uses American spelling, and American cultural references like ‘New-York style’ or ‘Hamptons design’ that may not hold true in an Australian context.

Artificial Intelligence is here, and it is here to stay. There are a multitude of invaluable uses that can change the shape of how the industry is experienced by vendors, buyers and agents themselves. What matters most, though, is to keep people at the centre and ensure real estate doesn’t lose its human touch.