A few years ago, buyers started with Zillow. Now a growing number of them start by typing a question into an AI chatbot: "What's a good town near Philadelphia with good schools?" or "How much is my house worth?"
This is real. A National Association of Realtors report found that about one in five prospective buyers and homeowners have used AI for home research, and the number is higher for millennials and Gen Z. Realtor.com even launched an app inside ChatGPT this spring, and Zillow added a conversational AI search.
I'm all for it. I use AI in my own business. But I'd be doing you a disservice if I didn't tell you where it falls short.
What AI is genuinely good at
- Explaining the process. Closing costs, contingencies, how an inspection works. It's a patient teacher at 11 p.m. when you can't sleep.
- Narrowing your wish list. Describe what you want and let it help you sort needs from wants.
- Budget math. Run payment scenarios at different rates and down payments.
- Drafting. Listing descriptions, checklists, questions to ask at a showing.
Where it gets risky
1. It doesn't know your street. A neighborhood in Cherry Hill can feel completely different from the next one over. AI doesn't know about the flood-prone corner, the school boundary change, or which Moorestown blocks sell fast.
2. Home values are not a guess. AI value estimates lean on public data and averages. They miss your updated kitchen, your busy road, or the fact that the comparable it used sold under unusual circumstances. Pricing wrong costs sellers real money, either by sitting on the market or by leaving dollars on the table.
3. It can be confidently wrong. In a 2026 Cotality survey, about three in four buyers assumed AI was part of their home search, but the share who trust AI to help them find a home dropped from 30% in 2025 to 16% in 2026. And 64% worried it was recycling unverified information from other websites. They're right to be careful.
4. It can't negotiate or inspect. AI can't walk the basement, smell a musty crawl space, read a seller's body language, or call the other agent to find out what's really motivating the deal.
5. Scams. Agents nationally report more real estate scams, including fake listings and wire-fraud emails. AI-generated fakes make them look more convincing. Never wire money based on an email, and always call a number you already know.
A smart way to use both
My advice to buyers and sellers: use AI to get informed, then use a local professional to get it right. Come to me with the questions AI helped you form. I'll check them against what's really happening in Cherry Hill, Cinnaminson, Maple Shade, Mount Laurel, Voorhees, Marlton and Moorestown this week, not last year.
If you're curious what AI says about your home, send me the answer. I'll tell you honestly what it got right and what it missed.
Jerry Mac | Keller Williams Realty | 856-220-1874 | www.southjerseyrealty.com
Statistics from NAR, Cotality and Realtor.com reporting in 2026. This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Sources: NAR, Cotality AI in Housing report, Realtor.com ChatGPT app.