AI is reshaping real estate, MBA alum shares what you need to know

Learn more about the Master of Business Administration program. 

Artificial intelligence permeates nearly every aspect of modern life — from knowledge gathering and customer engagement to social discourse and political decision‑making. 

Real estate is no exception, says Trevor Koot, Royal Roads Master of Business Administration alum and chief executive officer of the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA). 

Representing more than 25,000 realtors, the BCREA sets the standard for working with AI tools and provides insight on how customers use AI to learn about the housing market, explains Koot.   

In a recent article he wrote on this topic for Real Estate Magazine, Koot says “the broader contemplation that I'm trying to instill is not just to consider how AI can, will and should benefit realtors, but really keeping an eye on how it's impacting the expectations of the consumer and how we show up.” 

Real estate customers are using AI 

A customer who uses ChatGPT or other AI tools to determine a market value for their home, for instance, may go into a relationship with a realtor anticipating certain prices and returns. But not all data is created equal, Koot says, and that’s where his peers come in. 

“There's a tremendous amount of data there, but it is finite and it isn't everything,” he says, “and it isn't always going to be accessible all the time to public domain. 

“I would advise consumers to be circumspect of responses they’re getting from internet-based [AI systems] … Don't shy away from using those models but verify, verify, verify. And the best verification is with a realtor who knows the data, who has access to the Multiple Listing Service system, who knows the community, who knows the industry and can put all that information together to give you some guidance.” 

Building AI tools for realtors 

For realtors, Koot advises placing themselves in their customers’ shoes – or in this case, their keyboards. By plugging their own addresses into ChatGPT and asking, “What is my home worth?” realtors can assess whether the information is accurate.  

Koot also shared the BCREA is in the process of training and building its own AI tool to provide regulatory guidance to its members across BC. BCREA members range from impatient for the latest tech to being wary of the challenges it can bring. 

“We need to make sure [the AI tool] has the data, it's got the answers, it's got the experience, it's learned everything it needs to learn before we release it to [our members],” he says. 

Royal Roads alumni network shines with AI tool development  

Koot notes that the association’s AI model is being built by a member of his MBA cohort, and other RRU classmates have provided data analysis and communications services for BCREA. 

Despite his considerable experience in real estate across multiple provinces, Koot says he appreciated the breadth of expertise and personalities he encountered at RRU, and says he maintains relationships with a number of classmates.  

“You find your people within your cohort, and you continue to connect with them.”  

Learn more about the Master of Business Administration program.