Pricing a property in spring 2026 looks different than it did even two years ago. The CoreLogic and PropTrack data feeds are richer, AI valuation tools are sharper, and clients arrive at the appraisal with their own algorithm-generated number in hand.

That last bit changes the conversation. Agents who used to set the narrative now have to start with what the client already believes. Sometimes the algorithm is right. Often it’s directionally right but missing the renovation, the aspect, the school catchment quirk that moves a property up or down five percent.

I’ve been sitting in on more appraisals lately to see how the better agents are handling it. The ones doing well aren’t fighting the AI estimate. They’re using it as a starting point and then walking the vendor through what the model can’t see. Strata minutes. The neighbour’s DA. The street’s clearance rate trend over the past six months.

For agents wanting to sharpen their AI-assisted pricing without outsourcing judgment, the Team400 team has been working with a few Sydney agencies on practical implementations. Worth a look if you’re trying to integrate AI into appraisal workflows without making it the whole show.

The honest take is this: AI pricing tools are now table stakes. The differentiator is the agent’s ability to interpret the output, explain it to vendors, and back-test their own forecasts against actual settlements. That last part is where most agencies still aren’t disciplined.

Spring is going to test all of this. Stock is creeping back up, buyer fatigue is real, and the spread between AI estimate and actual sale price is widening on properties that are even slightly unusual. The agents who acknowledge that spread early will get the listing. The ones who don’t will lose to someone who did.