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When it comes to artificial intelligence (AI) in the property sector, professionals have high hopes for the technology and want to be empowered with the tools to change their workflow.
The Digital Transformation Report, conducted by property management software provider Yardi and the Property Council of Australia, has found that the vast majority of professionals in the property sector believe AI is on the cusp of changing the industry in a big way.
In the survey of 341 property professionals working as either fund managers, developers, property consultants or investors, 35 per cent said they believed AI would usher in a “revolutionary impact” on the sector, while a further 58 per cent were sure that it would have at least some impact.
“The AI genie is out of the bottle,” Property Council of Australia chief executive Mike Zorbas said.
“AI will transform the property sector for the better. With the disruption caused by automation, artificial intelligence, smart building systems and intelligent devices at every stage of the real estate value chain, business as usual is shifting,” he added.
For some, however, that “disruption” is being stymied by industry take-up.
Of the respondents, 62 per cent said they thought real estate was lagging behind other sectors in technology, while 31 per cent thought it was on par with others and just 7 per cent said it was leading the way.
Those thoughts seem to track with the numbers: roughly one-third of survey participants said they had not yet implemented AI, with an additional 28 per cent uncertain about their next course of action when it comes to the tech.
From a national perspective as well, Australia was felt to be on the back foot. Yardi’s senior regional director of Asia Pacific, Bernie Devine, reported that in another recent survey of attitudes from across the APAC region, only 9 per cent of respondents felt that the country was leading the way when it comes to AI in property.
In contrast, respondents overwhelmingly named India and mainland China as at the forefront of AI in the sector.
At the same time, the duo behind the research feel that further AI adoption is soon to be on the cards, with 45 per cent of the property industry reporting that they are aiming to streamline business processes and 30 per cent focusing on enhancing data timeliness and accuracy as their top information management priorities for 2024. With the prevalence of AI growing, much of that business reorganisation is sure to intersect with AI tools.
As for the lag in take-up, Mr Devine hinted that security concerns could be delaying some companies from making big tech moves with their systems and processes.
“While there is no question real estate companies must proceed with caution when it comes to AI, most respondents to our survey acknowledged AI as a game changer and are looking at ways to implement these systems into their business,” he said.
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