How AI Is Changing the Homebuying Process, From House Hunting to Home Staging

SALEM, Mass. — Buying a home can be overwhelming, especially in a competitive market. Now, artificial intelligence is becoming a bigger part of the process, helping buyers search for properties, visualize spaces, and gather information before they ever set foot inside a home.

In Salem, real estate broker and Movement Group at Compass co-founder Dante Bruzzese demonstrated how AI is transforming the way homes are marketed.

Standing inside an empty condo, Bruzzese used AI technology to digitally furnish rooms and create different layouts, helping potential buyers imagine how the space could work for their specific needs.

“With AI, it’s pretty cool because we can show this if you work from home as a home office,” Bruzzese said.

The technology can generate multiple floor plans and room arrangements, allowing buyers to see how furniture and other features might fit inside a property before scheduling a visit.

“We’re able to depict this in multiple different floor plans, so it kind of caters to your needs,” Bruzzese explained. “When we have consumers come in they can get a general idea of how things would be situated.”

But experts caution that there is a fine line between helping buyers visualize a space and creating unrealistic expectations.

“If you go through every single photo in every piece of content and you’re starting to really just enhance everything, it’s going to bring that false reality to a buyer,” Bruzzese said. “They’re going to be very excited to see that property and they might get let down when they walk in the door.”

AI is also changing the way people search for homes.

Realtor.com recently launched “Real Assist,” an AI-powered home shopping tool that allows users to search using lifestyle and financial priorities instead of traditional filters.

“We’re seeing a lot of exciting ways people are using it,” said Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com. “It’s not just, ‘Show me a three-bedroom in Cincinnati.’ It’s, ‘Show me a home close to the golf course,’ or ‘Show me a home that I can rent out at a cash-flow positive to my mortgage payment.’ We’re finding a lot of financial usages and a lot of lifestyle usages.”

Still, Berner says AI isn’t replacing real estate professionals.

“We’re not replacing agents by any means,” he said.

Bruzzese agrees that while AI can be a valuable tool, buyers shouldn’t rely on it alone when making one of the largest financial decisions of their lives.

“I think that you’re able to use it, but don’t abuse it,” he said. “Rely on the advisor. Rely on your family and friends, the people who are encouraging you. This is a large financial decision. Don’t just rely on a piece of technology to take you to the finish line.”

Experts say AI is helping buyers enter the homebuying process with more information than ever before. However, consumers should still work closely with trusted real estate agents who understand local market conditions, can guide them through bidding wars, and negotiate on their behalf.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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