Aussie home buyers are being warned over a growing reliance on AI tools that can deliver outdated data, unrealistic budgets and “dud” advice when searching for property.
Property experts have issued an urgent warning to house hunters using artificial intelligence to guide their decisions, revealing the technology can lead buyers astray and cost them thousands.
Buyer’s advocate and M R Advocacy director Madeleine Roberts said generic AI platforms were not built for property and were already causing concern.
Experts warn buyers using AI the wrong way in their property search could cost themselves thousands.
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“The generic platforms don’t give the right answers,” Ms Roberts said.
“Tools like ChatGPT or Claude don’t have up-to-date property data.”
She said many tools leaned heavily on lifestyle factors such as amenities and commute times, rather than the fundamentals that actually drive capital growth.
“AI often focuses on lifestyle factors, but they’re not the drivers of capital growth,” she said.
Madeleine Roberts says generic AI tools don’t provide accurate or up-to-date property data.
“What it’s suggesting is ‘affordable’ might have been accurate four or five months ago, but in a rising market that can quickly become outdated.
“Buyers can end up with a completely unrealistic view of what they can actually afford.”
Ms Roberts said relying on the technology could reinforce confidence in decisions that were not grounded in current market conditions.
Artificial intelligence is becoming a popular tool for buyers researching suburbs and property prices.
“It can reinforce confidence even when the information isn’t entirely accurate,” she said.
PIPA chair and buyers agent Cate Bakos said she was seeing the consequences play out regularly, with buyers missing opportunities and entering the market with the wrong expectations.
“I regularly speak to buyers who’ve missed out on properties they should have secured and are now feeling genuine regret,” Ms Bakos said.
“Others have gone to auction with completely the wrong budget in mind. They’ve trusted AI outputs and got it badly wrong.”
Cate Bakos says buyers are going to auction with the wrong budgets after relying on AI advice.
She said relying on automated valuations and comparable sales without proper checks could also lead to costly mistakes.
“When people rely on AI without cross-checking it with human judgement, the margin for error can be significant,” she said.
“AI can sound confident, but that doesn’t mean it’s correct.”
Ms Bakos said buyers were also at risk of making long-term decisions based on incomplete data, particularly when planning renovations or redevelopment.
“The first risk is overpaying. The second is setting your budget too low and missing out,” she said.
“And the third is buying with a future plan that doesn’t hold up because of planning restrictions.”
Jordan Veleski says buyers need to be more specific when using AI to get meaningful insights.
Flo buyers agents director Jordan Veleski said the issue was not the technology itself, but how it was being used.
“The biggest issue is buyers are asking very general questions without giving the tool any real direction,” Mr Veleski said.
“People are still using AI like Google instead of guiding it properly.
“AI needs detail. The more detail you give it, the better the output.”
Mr Veleski said buyers who understood how to use the technology properly could extract valuable insights, including trends in vacancy rates, demand and days on market.
“A lot of the research people used to pay thousands for can now be done in minutes,” he said.
“But it’s a tool, not the final decision-maker.”
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