At a glance
- AI can help real estate organizations improve decision-making, reduce manual work, strengthen asset and property management, and identify operational efficiencies.
- Many Canadian real estate, infrastructure, and construction companies are still in early adoption: 56% are experimenting, while only 7% embedding AI into operations.
- Real estate organizations that want long-term AI value need more than tools. Leaders need a business-aligned AI strategy, trusted data, governance controls, and people-focused change management.
- Companies that build strong AI foundations now will be better positioned to manage costs, improve project timelines, and compete for assets in the future.
Market volatility. Valuation pressures. Rising costs. Changing demand.
The factors affecting Canada’s real estate industry are changing day by day, making it difficult for real estate organizations—whether operating companies, developers, or fund managers—to determine their best path forward. They want to become more efficient, get more value from their data, and make quicker and more intelligent decisions so they can better navigate their challenges and grow their revenues. But the big question is how.
Used well, artificial intelligence (AI) can support these objectives. But AI in real estate operations is still emerging, with few Canadian organizations at the stage of digital transformation needed to use it strategically.
According to a 2026 BDO Canada survey conducted by Angus Reid,
56% of real estate, infrastructure, and construction companies are experimenting with AI, but haven’t yet achieved meaningful ROI.
In comparison, only 7% are actively working to embed AI into their workflows and operations.
Why should real estate leaders start AI transformation now?
For real estate firms that want to be competitive and financially sustainable, now’s the time to consider how AI can help. Why? Because AI transformation is already happening in real estate, even if it’s progressing more cautiously than in other sectors. Choosing to do nothing today will quickly lead to being left behind by competitors that use AI to support strategic decision-making or to complete projects faster and with fewer resources.
By 2030, AI leaders will be making their presence known in real estate. Companies using AI for data management, asset management, and property management. Companies using AI agents to help their people make better and more proactive decisions. Companies with small teams managing billions in assets using AI as an intelligence multiplier to drive productivity and gain an operational edge.
What might AI leaders in real estate look like in 2030?
Becoming an AI leader in real estate in 2030 means laying the groundwork today. That’s something easier said than done because there is no easy, one-size-fits-all approach to getting AI transformation right.
Every real estate organization needs to look realistically at their current state, evaluate their current data and technological infrastructure—whether they’re using a major platform, a real estate-specific system, or a combination of solutions that aren’t well-integrated—and determine their own path forward.
Getting AI transformation right from the get-go: Three pillars for success
We’ve worked with real estate companies across all stages of AI maturity, including those trying to manage informal AI use within their organization, those seeking to establish proper use cases before making AI investments, and those who jumped in with both feet—only to later recognize the critical importance of a robust governance framework and guardrails to protect sensitive data and manage their AI risks.
What we’ve found through this work, and from our own AI transformation, is that there are three foundational pillars that can help real estate companies set themselves up for long-term AI success, regardless of where they are on their AI journey.
1. Leadership AI strategy aligned to business value
Whether you want to turn your organization’s fragmented AI use into a safer, more cohesive whole or embed AI across your strategic, risk, and operational processes, developing an AI strategy can give you a strong foundation for moving forward and provide clear objectives to measure your progress against. Your AI strategy should include:
- your current state situation (e.g., investors or stakeholders, funding model, people capabilities, technology underpinnings);
- investor guidelines or limitations to abide by when making AI investments;
- a future-state vision for your real estate organization that you can work towards; and
- clear, specific, and measurable objectives that you want to achieve (e.g., freeing up employee time to focus on higher-value tasks, reducing asset management costs, obtaining deeper data insights to improve efficiencies and drive intelligent decision-making).
Once you’ve developed your AI strategy, you can then use it to create a practical roadmap for change—one that considers both the structural changes needed to transform into an AI-enabled real estate firm (e.g., organizational structure, people, processes, and technology) and quick wins to help foster commitment and buy-in.
2. Data, AI governance, and controls that support intelligent decision-making, trust, and risk management
Having reliable, secure, and trusted data is critical when it comes to getting the most from AI. The challenge is not all real estate companies have their data house in order, whether because their processes are highly manual, they’re using disconnected legacy systems to manage their assets or properties, or they rely on third parties to monitor and track their data.
Establishing a robust data management framework and controls (e.g., privacy, security) can give you the foundation to trust where your data is coming from, how it is being secured, and how it is being used. Depending on where you are today, this might mean rethinking your technology landscape from the ground up using an AI native platform or creating or using an over-the-top solution that pulls information from your legacy or third-party systems.
But data and controls are only a part of the trust equation. To use AI effectively, you’ll also need to establish strong AI governance so your people know when and how to use AI, and their responsibilities for verifying AI outputs. By making governance and accountabilities clear, you can put your firm in a better position to manage your AI risks moving forward.
3. A people-focused change management approach
People are the most important piece of the puzzle when it comes to successful AI transformation. If you don’t incorporate what they need to embrace AI and new ways of working, it could be difficult to translate your AI strategy into practical and sustainable outcomes. But if you do, you can make your people powerful allies in your AI transformation journey.
What does a people-focused change management approach look like? It starts by taking the time to understand and address your people’s concerns, making sure your leaders are providing clear and consistent communications, and providing the training and upskilling your people need to feel confident, capable, and well-equipped to use AI solutions and manage AI agents.
Let’s work together to turn your AI strategy into a future differentiator
There’s little doubt that AI is going to change how the real estate industry operates over the next five years. The companies that bury their heads in the sand could quickly find themselves left behind, and at a long-term cost disadvantage compared to those that embrace AI in a responsible way to help drive operational efficiencies and support more intelligent decision-making.
That’s why now is the time to act. By laying a strong foundation today, you can turn AI into a long-term competitive advantage, whether that means accelerating market development activities, improving project timelines to rein in costs, extending your people’s reach and capabilities, or making more proactive, data-driven decisions.
BDO can help real estate organizations move from AI experimentation to practical, responsible AI adoption. Whether you’re looking to develop an AI strategy, need to assess your data foundation and technology infrastructure with an AI lens in mind, want help integrating AI into your due diligence processes, or want a collaborator to help you with your AI transformation journey every step of the way, we’re here to help.