Zillow is launching an AI-powered feature that will allow home hunters to empty the room of furniture or subtly change the design style. The intent is to make it easier to overcome the owner’s dodgy design choices and questionable furniture so buyers can better picture themselves living in a property.
In concept, the tool, called Virtual Staging, is great. It tackles a genuine and difficult problem that almost anyone who has searched for a home at some point has encountered. “Too many buyers overlook what could be the perfect home for their family simply because they can’t see past the furniture or design choices,” says Zillow home trends expert Amanda Pendleton.
Unfortunately, Virtual Staging is rather basic in this phase of the rollout. The lackluster changes are so subtle — adjusting a bit of furniture here, changing the color of a rug there — you’d have trouble knowing anything had changed without the telltale sparkles of AI or the ability to slide back and forth between preselected styles like modern, Scandinavian, luxury and farmhouse.
Zillow says the feature is a “smarter way to shop” and sell, joining an AI search feature it upgraded last year to help shoppers find homes. Its use will be limited to premium “Showcase” listings, and even then it’s only on “select featured room photos.” All the examples seem limited to plain white walls, as well.
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