# AI in real estate: which tasks to automate first Updated October 2026 Across the 1.8 million US jobs in real estate, the work scores 44 of 100 for AI exposure, weighted by how many people do each job. AI can take on about 744 hours a year per full-time person, 37% of a working year. The task that frees the most hours across the industry is to record type and cost of maintenance or repair work, about 68 hours a year for each person who does it. AI exposure, weighted by employment 44 out of 100 Moderate exposure Hours AI can take on 744 hours a year per full-time person Task time AI can do today 17% AI speeds up another 51% ## Tasks to automate first The 15 tasks where AI can take on the most hours across real estate: how exposed each task is, how much of the job it takes and how many people do that job. Hours are per person in the role that does the task. [How we score each task](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). | Task and who does it | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Record type and cost of maintenance or repair work. Logging repair type and cost is structured data entry. Done by maintenance workers. | 80% AI can do it 68 hours a year for each person in the role | | Order parts, supplies, or equipment from catalogs or suppliers. Ordering from catalogs and suppliers is routine digital work. Done by maintenance workers. | 70% AI can do it 61 hours a year for each person in the role | | Prepare detailed budgets and financial reports for properties. AI can draft budgets and reports; manager verifies figures and assumptions. Done by property managers. | 65% AI helps 68 hours a year for each person in the role | | Maintain records of sales, rental or usage activity, special permits issued, maintenance and operating costs, or property availability. Recordkeeping and activity logs are structured digital data work. Done by property managers. | 75% AI can do it 66 hours a year for each person in the role | | Prepare and administer contracts for provision of property services, such as cleaning, maintenance, and security services. AI can draft service contracts and compare terms; manager negotiates and signs. Done by property managers. | 60% AI helps 59 hours a year for each person in the role | ## What stays with people 32% of the task time across these roles needs a person, and the output of the rest still needs someone to check it. The tasks below take the most of that time. - **17%** AI can do it - **51%** AI helps - **32%** Needs a person - Perform routine maintenance, such as inspecting drives, motors, or belts, checking fluid levels, replacing filters, or doing other preventive maintenance actions. Maintenance workers, 12% exposed - Adjust functional parts of devices or control instruments, using hand tools, levels, plumb bobs, or straightedges. Maintenance workers, 8% exposed - Repair machines, equipment, or structures, using tools such as hammers, hoists, saws, drills, wrenches, or equipment such as precision measuring instruments or electrical or electronic testing devices. Maintenance workers, 8% exposed - Assemble, install, or repair wiring, electrical or electronic components, pipe systems, plumbing, machinery, or equipment. Maintenance workers, 4% exposed - Clean or lubricate shafts, bearings, gears, or other parts of machinery. Maintenance workers, 5% exposed ## Adoption path Start with the tasks where AI helps a person, then automate the routine ones, then give whole workflows to agents with a person approving the output. 1. ### Quick wins Agents and property managers get listing drafts, tenant letters and lease summaries from an approved assistant. Example: Prepare detailed budgets and financial reports for properties. AI helps with 65% of the time. [AI governance](https://www.aigentcy.com/services/ai-governance/) 2. ### Workflow automation Lead follow-up, viewing scheduling, rent reminders and maintenance requests run as automations. Example: Record type and cost of maintenance or repair work. AI can do 80% of it. [Process automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/services/process-automation/) 3. ### Agents An agent answers tenant and buyer questions, books viewings and logs repair requests for a manager. 5 of the 15 tasks on this page are ones AI can do end to end, the work an agent takes on. [Private AI](https://www.aigentcy.com/services/private-ai/) ## Teams in this industry The business functions in real estate, by share of the workforce, with each one's exposure. 1. [Sales, 17.9% of the workforce, score **55**](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/sales/) 2. [Operations and admin, 15.8% of the workforce, score **55**](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/operations/) 3. [Finance and accounting, 8% of the workforce, score **61**](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/finance/) 4. [Customer service, 3% of the workforce, score **66**](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/customer-service/) 5. [Marketing and content, 1.7% of the workforce, score **60**](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/marketing/) ## Roles in real estate The 20 largest roles, each linked to its task-by-task score. Shares come from the BLS industry staffing estimates, May 2025. Of the roles with at least 2% of the jobs, bookkeepers score highest at 67, janitors lowest at 14. 1. [Maintenance workers, 17.8% of the workforce, score **21** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/maintenance-workers/) 2. [Property managers, 14.2% of the workforce, score **48** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/property-managers/) 3. [Real estate agents, 8.9% of the workforce, score **54** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/real-estate-agents/) 4. [Rental clerks, 5.2% of the workforce, score **57** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/rental-clerks/) 5. [Office clerks, 4.8% of the workforce, score **60** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/office-clerks/) 6. [General managers, 4.1% of the workforce, score **44** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/general-managers/) 7. [Janitors, 3.6% of the workforce, score **14** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/janitors/) 8. [Secretaries, 2.9% of the workforce, score **66** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/secretaries/) 9. [Bookkeepers, 2.8% of the workforce, score **67** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/bookkeepers/) 10. [Maintenance supervisors, 2.7% of the workforce, score **44** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/maintenance-supervisors/) 11. [Accountants, 2.6% of the workforce, score **60** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/accountants/) 12. [Real estate brokers, 2.3% of the workforce, score **57** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/real-estate-brokers/) 13. [Landscapers, 1.6% of the workforce, score **11** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/landscapers/) 14. [Maids, 1.5% of the workforce, score **8** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/maids/) 15. [Receptionists, 1.5% of the workforce, score **62** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/receptionists/) 16. [Security guards, 1.4% of the workforce, score **26** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/security-guards/) 17. [Customer service representatives, 1.3% of the workforce, score **74** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/customer-service-representatives/) 18. [Administrative supervisors, 1.2% of the workforce, score **55** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/administrative-supervisors/) 19. [Financial managers, 1.2% of the workforce, score **49** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/financial-managers/) 20. [Digital marketers, 1.1% of the workforce, score **62** out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/digital-marketers/) ## Questions about AI in real estate Which tasks should a real estate business automate first? The first task to automate is to record type and cost of maintenance or repair work (80% exposed). Next come the tasks to order parts, supplies (70%) and to prepare detailed budgets and financial reports for properties (65%). Together they free the most hours across the industry. How many hours can AI save a real estate business? About 744 hours a year per full-time person, 37% of a 2,000-hour working year. For a team of 10 that is about 7,440 hours, the time of 3.7 full-time people. The figure is the share of task time AI can remove today, weighted by how many people do each job. Which roles in a real estate business are most exposed to AI? Of the roles with at least 2% of the jobs, bookkeepers score highest, at 67 of 100, and janitors lowest, at 14. Each role's page lists its tasks one by one. Will AI replace jobs in real estate? AI can do 17% of the task time across these roles today. Another 51% gets faster with AI while a person stays in charge. 32% needs a person. One task that stays with people is to perform routine maintenance. Where should a real estate business start with AI? With the quick wins: approved assistants for the tasks AI helps with, under a written AI policy. Then automate the 5 tasks on this page AI can do end to end. An AI audit maps the tasks in your team and ranks them the same way this page does. ## Next steps ### Find the tasks to automate first in your team We map the tasks in your business, score each one the way this page does and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.