Can AI Replace a Realtor?

The internet has recently informed me that AI is coming for my job.

More specifically, the internet, and a surprising number of people who would like to sell me a course for $499, have informed me that if you're not visible online, your business is dead.

While I won't be purchasing these courses, I do love to yap about real estate, so I'll gladly answer the question.

As a Raleigh Realtor, former CPA, and someone who has spent years helping buyers and sellers navigate complex transactions across the Triangle, I've thought a lot about where AI fits into our industry. My name is Kendall Harris, and despite what the internet may think, I don't believe AI is replacing great Realtors anytime soon.

Not because AI isn't impressive. It is.

I use it regularly.

But over hundreds of deals, I've come to believe that the most valuable part of real estate isn't access to information. It's knowing what to do with that information when real money is on the line.

The role I've found to be most irreplaceable is that of the advisor. The researcher, negotiator, market expert, and guide all wrapped into one.

Negotiation is my professional obsession, so let's start there.

Earlier this year, a buyer threatened to walk away from a signed contract unless my clients provided an exorbitant amount of cash concessions. Yikes.

Losing a buyer puts a distracting blemish on a property when it goes back to market, making it all the more challenging to secure a new buyer at market value. The buyer understood this and felt they were forcing our hand with their threat to back out.

But our hands weren't forced.

By that point, we had a very clear understanding of their emotional state, personal timeline, and even some visibility into their financial means. Most importantly, I had built rapport with the agent on the other side.

I made sure they had a high opinion of me because you cut better deals with people you like. That is just how people work.

When we went to the negotiation table, we had the appropriate context to call their bluff and the rapport to restart the conversation under the frame of "let's work out what's fair."

Do you know what turned out to be fair?

An 80% reduction of their original demand.

The transaction stayed together. My clients avoided a significant financial loss. Everyone moved on with their lives.

The interesting part is that the negotiation didn't start when the demand was made.

It started weeks earlier.

Every conversation, interaction, and piece of information gathered along the way created leverage long before anyone realized leverage would be needed.

One thing I've learned as a Raleigh Realtor is that strong negotiators don't posture and bulldog on behalf of their clients. That doesn't work in the real world. They collect and live in the minutia, understand the people involved, and know how to turn those insights into value.

That is a part of real estate I struggle to imagine being replaced.

Real estate deals happen between people carrying unique goals, fears, timelines, finances, and emotional attachments. Understanding those dynamics and navigating them when money is on the line is a huge part of the value this profession delivers.

I love AI. It blows my mind with the information it provides.

But information isn't judgment.

AI can answer questions.

A good Realtor helps people make decisions.

And when negotiations become difficult, a good Realtor finds the way forward when your back is against the wall.