There has been an explosion of generative AI technologies built on large-scale language models released into the market. Consumers and companies serving homeowners, such as our digital home management platform HomeZada, are grappling with how to incorporate AI technology to improve home financial management and deliver more value to homeowners. I'm here.
How AI brings self-service to digital home management
Consumers go through a continuous cycle of homeownership. It starts with going through the process of buying your first home. Then, through a journey of trial and error, you discover what it takes to manage, maintain, and renovate a particular home in a particular location. Dynamics are constantly changing due to different seasonal weather patterns, different home ages, different renovation projects, and different financial situations. After five to seven years, you may decide it's time to sell your home and buy another. This cycle repeats many times throughout your life.
Now think about the endless questions and interactions with different companies in the homeowner lifecycle. Consumers seek advice and questions from real estate agents, mortgage brokers, insurance companies, home maintenance service providers, home improvement retailers, utility companies, and more.
apply Kiplinger's personal finance
Become a smarter, more informed investor.
Up to 74% off
Sign up for Kiplinger's free e-newsletter
Profit and prosper with the best expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more straight to your email.
Profit and prosper with the best expert advice straight to your email.
Generative AI technology within a digital home management platform is the starting point for many of the answers to the myriad questions you have about your home. This will be a self-service technology that you can access anytime, from any device, to ask questions specific to your home and homeownership in general. You can also have an in-depth Q&A chat session based on your previous questions when seeking better expertise about your home or your situation.
Kiplinger Advisor Collective is the premier standards-based professional organization for personal finance advisors, managers, and executives. Learn more >
Examples of using generative AI in housing management
This technology has the potential to reduce costs and increase the value of your home. Here are some categories and examples of how homeowners and the companies that serve them can leverage AI for home management.
- Financial awareness: Homeowners have all kinds of questions about how mortgages work, how home equity is calculated, what the loan-to-value ratio is and why it's important. Most people don't understand the difference between current estimated value and appraised value. This is a comparison of the amount of property tax on a house and the amount of home insurance compensation for rebuilding the house. Financial awareness around household budgets, neighborhood market conditions that change a home's value, and how value is calculated are all areas where consumers have questions and need expertise.
- Understanding home insurance: Homeowners need to understand the various coverage amounts listed in home insurance policies, such as home coverage, personal property, and liability, and can ask an AI chatbot for clarification. AI can also detect items in home photos, making it easier to create home inventories and assess whether homeowners are properly insured. This greatly increases the financial resiliency of homeowners if their home is destroyed or damaged by fire or disaster.
- How to perform DIY maintenance work: In my experience, most homeowners don't know what preventative maintenance work does, and even if they do, they don't know how to do it. When homeowners do these tasks themselves, they may end up saving money. But we get a lot of questions, like how to clean the coils on a refrigerator, how to clean the air ducts on a dryer, how to drain a water heater, and what type of air filter to buy. AI technology can provide step-by-step instructions. .
- Home renovation project: Homeowners embarking on a remodeling project want to know how much it will cost. But they usually don't know how to evaluate all the different materials, dimensions, and types of products that affect their budget. Generative AI with templates for common home improvement projects allows you to create detailed and more realistic budgets based on all of these factors. This will help you decide how much to invest in your project and how to pay for it, evaluate contractor bids, and get a better relationship and project outcome with your chosen contractor.
- Types of home improvement products: Once a homeowner has decided on a home improvement project, the next question is about the pros and cons of different product choices. Examples include tile or hardwood floors, granite or engineered countertops, roofing materials and window types. Even comparing different brands of each product can leave homeowners with an entirely different set of questions. Self-service AI can improve homeowner knowledge and ultimately make better decisions.
- Steps to prepare your home for sale: Homeowners want to know how to prepare their home for sale, how to find an agent, questions to ask a potential agent, how to maximize the value of their home, and more. You also want to know what the typical closing costs are. They think about how they will make money after paying off the loan and how to structure the sale of their current home while trying to buy another. These are just a few of the many questions that AI can help educate homeowners on.
Benefits homeowner education
Incorporating generative AI within digital home management systems is a knowledge-building vehicle that enables consumers to make smarter financial decisions about their homes. I believe that if homeowners were able to access the power of her AI in the context of their specific home, essentially available on demand, their personal financial situation regarding this large asset would improve. .
AI technology must be cross-referenced with other human experts that homeowners engage with during the homeownership lifecycle, but to provide up-front education to homeowners, Q&A with our experts to better understand homeowner issues and choices. hand.
relevant content
The information provided here is not investment, tax, or financial advice. You should consult a qualified professional for advice regarding your specific situation.
