Homebuyers in Florida have quietly begun closing on homes without using an agent — relying instead on artificial intelligence to search listings, generate offers and draft contracts.
Tech startup Homa says at least 10 homes have already closed end-to-end using its AI-powered system, with several more deals currently in escrow — a shift that could challenge a commission-driven industry already rattled by a recent landmark National Association of Realtors settlement.
Homa’s platform allows buyers to self-represent, cutting out the buyer’s agent commission — typically around 2.5% to 3% — and either pocket the savings or apply them toward closing costs.
Those savings can be substantial.
DJ, a 32-year-old pharmacist, said he bought a $420,000 home in the Tampa Bay area using Homa and saved $10,500 on a buyer’s agent commission.
“Once I heard about this, I was like, let me just go down this route,” DJ, who didn’t want his last name published, told The Post.
“They pretty much walk you through the whole [thing] step by step, and you can end up saving at least 2.5% on your final purchase price.”
Vicki Lynn, a physical therapist assistant who relocated from California to Vero Beach, said she purchased a $313,000 home and saved about $8,000, which she applied directly toward closing costs.
“I just dove right in,” she said. “The contract system was similar to TurboTax — filling in the blanks. Very straightforward.”
Homa was co-founded by Arman Javaherian, a former senior product director at Zillow.
He told The Post that he got the idea for an AI-powered web site that would cut out the middleman after years of watching buyers do most of the work — only to see agents collect five-figure commissions at the finish line.
“At Zillow, I saw firsthand a lot of inefficiencies in the process,” Javaherian said.
“Homebuyers are going on search sites, finding the homes themselves, doing all this legwork — and then these agents come in and make $10,000, $20,000, $30,000.”
He said the NAR settlement from March, which forces buyers to sign contracts with agents before touring homes, was the catalyst.
“For the first time, buyers are seeing in black and white how much buyers’ agents get paid,” Javaherian said.
“A lot of them are taking a step back and looking for alternatives.”
Homa’s system combines home search, instant tour scheduling, AI-generated pricing analysis and automated contract creation — allowing buyers to submit offers within hours instead of days.
“We can get people into a home immediately and help them put an offer together the same day,” Javaherian said.
“All powered by data. It’s 2025 — we don’t need to do this manually anymore.”
The company launched a free self-service version earlier this year, followed by a $1,995 paid tier — called Homa Pro — that assigns a licensed transaction broker to the deal and ensures the buyer receives the rebated commission.
Without that layer, Javaherian said, some listing agents try to pocket both sides of the commission when buyers show up without representation.
For some buyers, AI is quietly becoming a second set of eyes.
On Redfin, home shoppers type out what they actually want in plain language — a quiet street, room to grow, a short commute — and let the platform surface homes and neighborhoods they hadn’t thought to search.
Others lean on Zillow — using its automated price estimates to decide whether a listing feels fair or inflated before calling an agent.
In markets where speed matters, buyers encounter homes owned or priced by Opendoor, where algorithms set prices and timelines with little negotiation.
More research-driven buyers turn to Flyhomes, using its AI tools to ask questions they might be embarrassed to ask a human.
PROMISE AND PERIL
Despite AI’s potential benefits for homebuyers, not everyone is convinced.
Inside the brokerage world, some agents warn that platforms like Homa risk oversimplifying a business built on human judgment, negotiation psychology and local intelligence that doesn’t show up in public records.
Ivan Chorney, a Miami area broker with Compass, said AI-generated advice often amounts to little more than generic formulas already offered by Zillow and other portals — while missing the off-market context that can make or break a deal.
“Where real buyer representation becomes valuable is understanding people and context,” Chorney said.
“Motivation, pressure, ego, timing — those things don’t live in public records.”
He added that local intelligence — such as undisclosed development plans or nearby construction — can dramatically change a property’s value and isn’t captured by AI models scanning listings.
“I don’t see a future where AI replaces experienced human advisors,” Chorney said.
“The best outcomes will come from professionals who use AI to enhance judgment, not from AI trying to replace it.”
For buyers who used Homa, that tradeoff was precisely the appeal.
Lynn said working with agents often meant delays, miscommunication, and pressure — especially after being asked to sign multiple exclusive contracts just to tour homes.
“I felt like I was dealing with too many people,” she said.
“Questions would get watered down as they went through the buyer’s agent and seller’s agent. It was frustrating.”
Once she cut ties and used Homa, she said she submitted an offer the very next night.
“I wanted control,” Lynn said. “And I got it.”
Javaherian insists Homa isn’t a fully autonomous AI free-for-all.
“All AI has hallucinations,” he acknowledged.
“That’s why with Homa Pro, we assign a human transaction broker to review offers and negotiations.”
He compared the model to autonomous driving systems, which still rely on human oversight.
“We’re aiming for 95% or 98% autonomy — not 100%,” he said. “This is the biggest purchase of someone’s life.”
So far, Homa operates only in Florida, but the company plans to expand into Texas and California next year. It is backed by venture firms Restive Ventures and Cambrian Ventures and is currently raising its next funding round.
Whether AI remains a niche tool for real estate or becomes a mainstream alternative remains an open question — but with commissions under fresh scrutiny and buyers increasingly willing to go it alone, the pressure on traditional agents may be intensifying.
“Most people don’t even realize they’re allowed to buy a house without a buyer’s agent — until now,” Javaherian said.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
