AI In Real Estate: Growing Your Rental Business

Artificial intelligence is having a profound impact of nearly every sector. And real estate is no different, offering new advancements in business efficiencies for real estate investors, property managers, and self-managing landlords.

Investors can leverage AI to automate tasks, save them time and money as well as to predict potential issues, analyze markets, and use advanced data modeling for more informed investment decisions. 

This no doubt all sounds very well and good. But, how exactly can you use AI to achieve these things, what tools should you be exploring, and how much does it all cost? 

In this article, we’re going to be taking a look at some of the practical ways you can apply AI to the management of your rental portfolio alongside some of the groundbreaking tools now on the market.

What Is AI And How Can You Use It In Property Management?

AI, or artificial intelligence, refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines. It encompasses a broad range of techniques such as machine learning, natural language processing, computer decision, robotics, and more.

As demand for advanced AI infrastructure grows, many organizations are exploring scale alternatives to support flexible model training and deployment.

AI usage is hugely flexible. No doubt you’ve heard of the generative AI program, ChatGPT, and image generators like Midjourney. AI tools are quickly being developed for every field, but, when it comes to AI helping you with your real estate business and property management you may not be sure where to start.

Well, first think about what issues you’re trying to solve. Do you need help creating a rental listing? Do you want a better way to screen tenants? Need a program that can help you streamline financial management or make predictive models for expenses? Perhaps, you want to cut utility bills down or improve security?

There's also a good chance you may not even fully understand the best ways in which you can leverage AI for your real estate business. A lot of larger business owners elect to hire an AI consultant or partner with an AI software development company to walk them through the best ways to implement AI software and tools for their real estate business.

Advances in AI agent development are also playing a key role by enabling more responsive, automated interactions between property managers and tenants. Below we go into the various ways that AI and other smart solutions in proptech are already improving property management for people like you.

How Can It Help: AI In Real Estate

Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can use AI in property management and real estate investing.

Part 1: Leveraging AI To Create Rental Property Listings

When it comes to marketing a property for rent (or sale) there are a number of steps you need to take.

First, you need to write a quality listing with compelling title. You also need images, and you may also want to include a video and floorplan. 

Well, what if I told you there are AI tools that can help you with almost every aspect of this process?

Writing Your Property Description With AI

When it comes to writing your rental property listing the first and most obvious AIT tool is ChatGPT. It’s free, and once you’ve got a bit of practice with the kind of prompts that work, it's easy to use.

However, if you're looking for a system that offers more support, you can try something like Write.homes. This software leverages ChatGPT, but provides a framework for users so you can get the most out of it. Pricing starts at $8 per month.

Editing Photos

Photo's are one of the most important elements of any rental property listing. However, getting great photos and editing them so they show your property at its best can be time-consuming and expensive.

Photo editing is a skill that very few of us have the time, or patience to learn. Software like Photoshop may be powerful, but it has a steep learning curve. AI, however, is changing the game. There are a number AI-powered editing software you can use to help improve your property photography. 

• Adobe Photoshop The go-to full-featured photo editing and design app now leverages AI making it even more powerful. Starting at $22.99.
• Luminar Neo for an AI-powered photo editor starting at $14.95
• Canva is a powerful design app that offers AI-powered tools to help you create stunning unique designs. Canva starts free and offers a powerful Pro plan for $19.99 per month.
• With Picsart's AI template generator you can create templates for everything from Instagram stories to business flyers and posters. It starts free, and it offers Picsart Plus that costs $5 per month on a yearly plan.
• Pixlr is an easy-to-use online AI editor and image creator. Pricing starts at $1.99 per month.
• Lensa for a mobile AI photo editor. Most regularly used for creating social content.

While, AI can't be able to replace the photographer, it can give you the tools to take great photographs yourself.

Creating Video

Video editing is another skill that takes some learning but AI offers some powerful tools to make it easier for you. AI editors like CapCut (has a free plan), Revoicer (from $47 p/m), latte.social (from $11.25 p/m), and capsule.video (has a free plan), are all worth experimenting with if you want to create engaging videos for your rentals.

Creating a 3D Walkthrough

Zillow's 3D generator employs AI to craft virtual tours for your clientele, facilitating property promotion and sales for any real estate enterprise. Its utmost utility lies in catering to commercial real estate investors, who frequently require swift and cost-effective virtual tours for expansive properties. Zillow’s 3D Generator is free to use.

Creating A Floorplan

GetFloorPlan uses AI technology to generate 2D and 3D floor plans as well as 360° virtual tours. It can even fully render the 3D floor plans in color if needed. GetFloorPlan starts at $35 per floor plan.

Virtual Staging

Empty properties are less appealing than properties with furniture in. It makes it harder for the prospective tenant (or buyer) to imagine themselves in the property. However, staging a property just for photography is an expensive job. This is where AI powered virtual staging comes in. 

One software worth exploring is REimagineHome. this software offers the ability to virtually dress your property with a range of tools that allow you to make your property stand out. It’s so quick and easy that you’ll wonder why you’re not an interior designer. The basic plan is free with 30 output images per month.

Part 2: More Examples Of AI In Real Estate

1. Automate Operations With Property Management Software

By using intelligent real estate software with AI capabilities you can free up time by automating time-consuming tasks. For instance, automate rent collection and income tracking and leverage Landlord Studio’s intelligent bank feeds to make income and expense reconciliation as easy as possible. 

Landlord Studio pricing starts as free, but if you want to take advantage of its advanced automation and AI technology you’ll need to upgrade to PRO starting at $12 p/m.

2. Streamline Tenant Screening

AI is already being used by many major tenant screening providers to increase the accuracy of their reports and help users analyze applicants. By scrutinizing factors such as credit history, employment records, and rental references, AI algorithms provide more precise evaluations, mitigating default risks and fostering a dependable tenant community.

3. Use Smart Home Technology For Energy Efficiency

Having a greener, more economical property that uses modern smart home technology can be a big draw for modern renters. 

AI-driven smart home systems have the capability to monitor energy usage patterns, detect areas of inefficiency, and propose energy-conservation strategies. Through integration with smart devices and sensors, property managers harness AI to enhance the efficiency of HVAC systems, lighting, and other utilities, leading to significant energy conservation and a diminished environmental footprint.

If you’re covering the utilities it will keep your costs down, and even if you’re not, it will keep your tenant's costs down which will make your property more attractive helping you keep vacancies to a minimum.

4. Leverage AI For Improved Security

Security is a major concern for many renters, especially in larger cities and in buildings with shared access. AI-powered surveillance systems have the capability to analyze live video feeds, with real-time alerts for property managers about possible security breaches. These systems can also enhance access control, guaranteeing that only authorized individuals can access restricted zones. 

AI security systems will require you to purchase a physical camera system. Plus, you’ll likely need to pay an installation cost and an ongoing monthly subscription service.

5. Market and Deal Analysis

Assessing an investment's potential can be a challenging task, requiring multiple data sources, alongside complex calculations that account for potential contingencies. Leveraging AI-powered tools can help you streamline this process so you can more effectively analyze a wider range of potential properties and find the deal with the best investment potential.  

DealWorthIt is one example of AI-powered designed to help expedite the property analysis process. It has three pricing tiers. Silver for $59, Gold for $99, and Diamond for $299.

How AI Addresses Property Management Challenges

AI isn’t just hype. It provides flexible and powerful software solutions to a whole range of challenges, helping people across sectors streamline their businesses. 

And, the big companies know this. As it becomes more accessible AI is being integrated at every level. 

Some of the main advantages of AI in real estate include:

• Enhances usability of property management software.
• Automates routine tasks.
• Anticipates costly issues before they arise.
• Reduces costs.
• Saves time.
• Lowers overhead expenses.
• Helps reduce vacancies.
• Enhances tenant satisfaction.
• Improves team productivity.
• Scales seamlessly with business growth without necessitating major system overhauls.

AI integration in property management opens doors to a plethora of opportunities in a cost-efficient manner, transforming common challenges into strategic investments.

Final Words: Balancing AI in Property Management, Software, and The Human Touch

When it comes to AI in real estate we have to be aware not only of its possibilities but of its limitations. It can help you streamline tasks, improve the quality of your rental listings, analyze properties, and select tenants, but it can’t make decisions for you.

AI should be part of everyone's arsenal of tools, but it’s just that a tool. It requires a certain level of skill if you want to get the best results. 

Whatever software you use, there should always be a human touch involved. If you’re writing your listing, you still need to know what to include, and what will make your rental appeal to your target audience. If you’re leveraging AI tools in your rental property accounting, you still need to understand income and expense categories, set financial goals, and ensure accuracy. And if you’re managing tenants, as the landlord or property manager, you still need to be there to offer that valuable human perspective to find solutions that work. 

So, with that said, it’s time to see just how AI can help you enhance your property management experience.

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