Every few years someone says the real estate agent is about to become obsolete. First it was listing websites. Then it was iBuyers. Then the NAR settlement. Now it's AI.

This time the question deserves a real answer, because the change is real. Buyers are no longer just searching for homes. They're talking to software that can search, compare, explain, and schedule on their behalf.

My view after years in brokerage, healthcare leadership, and the classroom is simple: AI will not replace the realtor. It will replace the realtor who only moves information from one place to another. The agents who do well will be the ones who can advise, negotiate, protect clients, and be accountable for the result.

Here's what's changing, what isn't, and what I think agents should do about it.

The shift has already happened

This isn't a prediction anymore. The numbers are here.

The home search used to start with a portal. More and more, it now starts with a conversation, and that conversation happens before the buyer ever calls us.

The part that should get every agent's attention

A recent Fortune headline said that 37% of Americans would let AI buy their next home with "minimal human involvement" (Fortune).

You can read that as a threat. I read it as a warning about perception. If more than a third of consumers think a machine could do most of what we do, then too many of us have been selling the wrong thing. We've been selling access to listings, forms, and showings. AI now does those things for free.

The same research tells us what consumers still want from people. In Cotality's 2026 survey, more than half of buyers said they prefer humans for mortgage and legal tasks, and 44% said they would pay more for expert verification of AI-driven decisions (HousingWire).

Read that again: people would pay more for a professional to check the machine's work. That is our job description for the next decade.

What AI will take off our plate

AI is going to take over much of the work that used to fill an agent's week, and honestly, that's fine. That includes:

  1. Early research: affordability questions, neighborhood comparisons, school data, and commute times.
  2. Content: listing descriptions, social posts, and emails. These are already agents' top three AI uses, at 75%, 56%, and 52% (HousingWire).
  3. Scheduling and follow-up: booking tours, sending reminders, and keeping the CRM up to date.
  4. First-pass analysis: rough comps, pricing ranges, and summaries of disclosures.

If most of your value lives in that list, the next few years will be hard. If that list is just what keeps you from your real work, the next few years could be the best of your career.

What AI can't do, and why it matters more now

1. Judgment when things are uncertain

AI can tell a buyer what a home is listed for. It can't walk into the house, notice the soft spot in the floor or the smell of a musty crawlspace, and tell the client what that means for their offer. In Central Mississippi, where flood zones, older foundations, and rural septic systems are everyday issues, local knowledge isn't a nice extra. It protects people.

2. Negotiation

Negotiation is about people. It involves reading the other agent, knowing when a seller is emotionally tied to a number, and knowing when to push and when to stop. A model can suggest a counteroffer. It can't feel the moment when a deal is about to fall apart and rescue it.

3. Accountability

Nobody is licensed to be a chatbot. When a disclosure is missed, a deadline slips, or a contract term hurts the client, someone has to answer for it. Licensed professionals carry fiduciary duty, legal exposure, and their reputation. Our clients are paying for that responsibility, and it can't be automated.

4. Trust during a stressful time

For most families, buying a home is the biggest financial decision they'll make, and it often comes with a divorce, a new baby, a job move, or a death in the family. My healthcare background has taught me that people don't just want information in hard moments. They want someone steady beside them.

5. Verifying the machine

AI makes mistakes. It can state wrong tax figures, outdated flood maps, or loan rules that no longer apply with complete confidence. Agents are right to be careful. An RPR survey reported by NAR found that agents still have real concerns about accuracy, compliance, and using AI directly with clients (NAR). Being the person who checks the facts is becoming one of the most valuable services we offer.

The new relationship: partner, gatekeeper, and competitor

The relationship between agents and AI platforms has three sides, and we should be clear about all of them.

AI as a partner. Used well, AI gives a solo agent the capacity of a small team. It writes the first draft so we can spend our time on the conversation that matters.

AI platforms as gatekeepers. When the search starts inside Zillow AI mode or ChatGPT, the platform decides which agent the buyer gets connected to. Realtor.com has said its ChatGPT app is designed to answer "pre-search" questions and then route high-intent buyers back to its own platform (Real Estate News). Whoever controls those introductions controls the leads, so agents who depend entirely on portal leads should expect to pay more for them.

AI platforms as competitors. The line between "helping the consumer" and "doing the agent's job" will keep moving. Regulators are watching too. Advocacy groups have already asked state attorneys general to look into portal practices around referral fees and pocket listings (HousingWire).

The takeaway is to use the tools while building your own relationships, reputation, and pipeline, so that no platform owns your business.

A reality check on compensation

Many people expected the NAR settlement to drive commissions sharply down. So far it hasn't. Inman reports that about two-thirds of agents say their commissions haven't meaningfully changed (Inman).

But steady pay isn't guaranteed pay. Buyers now sign written agreements and see exactly what they're paying for. As AI does more of the visible work, every agent will need to explain their value clearly and specifically. "I'll show you houses" won't be enough. "I'll protect you from a $20,000 mistake, and here's how" will be.

What agents should do now

Here is the playbook I'm using at HomesRX:

  1. Use AI every day for the busywork, and review every word before it goes out. Your name is on it.
  2. Build local knowledge AI can't copy: flood history, builder reputations, which subdivisions have HOA problems, and how long local municipalities take on permits.
  3. Become the person clients trust to check facts. Offer to review whatever the chatbot told them. That makes AI a way to start the relationship instead of a competitor.
  4. Own your audience. Newsletters, community education, and referral networks are yours. Portal leads are rented.
  5. Be open about how you use AI. Tell clients where you use it and where you don't. Being honest builds trust.
  6. Practice your value conversation. Written buyer agreements mean you have to say what you do, clearly and with confidence, before the first showing.
  7. Keep learning. Treat this the way healthcare treats new clinical tools: adopt it carefully, measure the results, and keep the person at the center.

The bottom line

The realtor of 2030 won't be a human search engine. They'll be an advisor, negotiator, fact-checker, and steady presence who uses AI to do in one hour what used to take five, then spends the time saved with clients.

AI platforms will get smarter, faster, and more persuasive. But buying a home is still a human decision made by people with real fears, real families, and real money at stake. As long as that's true, there will be a place for a professional who knows the market, knows the client, and is willing to be accountable.

The question isn't whether AI will change our industry. It already has. The question is whether we'll change with it.

I'd like to hear from other agents, lenders, and buyers: how are you using AI in your transactions today, and where do you draw the line? Share your thoughts in the comments.

#RealEstate #Realtors #ArtificialIntelligence #PropTech #CentralMississippi #HomesRX #FutureOfWork

This article was originally published on LinkedIn.

Dr. Zakk Varughese
Real Estate Broker | HomesRX
(601) 667-8414
HomesRX@outlook.com

SELL with success & BUY with confidence.