Marbella 15 September 2026: New research has revealed how ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Google AI Overviews recommend estate agencies to buyers, sellers, landlords and investors.
AI visibility company Schutle analysed 10,560 AI responses across 116 commercially relevant prompts covering London, Dubai and Marbella.
The study found that AI platforms typically recommended only three to five agencies in each response. However, the companies selected changed considerably depending on the customer’s location, nationality, requirements and choice of AI platform.
The research suggests that AI is creating a new commercial consideration set for estate agencies. Companies that are not included in an AI-generated answer may never reach the customer’s original shortlist.
Among the findings:
- Knight Frank led Central London recommendations, appearing in 63.8% of relevant responses.
- Hurford Salvi Carr led Canary Wharf, Docklands and E14 prompts with 30.3% visibility.
- Allsopp & Allsopp led buyer-support and seller searches in Dubai.
- fäm Properties led Dubai investment and market-coverage prompts.
- Engel & Völkers appeared in 96.6% of Marbella responses concerning German buyers.
- Independent agency Bromley Estates Marbella appeared in 81.2% of responses concerning British buyers, outperforming several larger international brands.
- Agent capabilities were mentioned in 98.8% of the responses where the reasons behind recommendations were analysed.
The results also exposed significant differences between AI platforms.
Dubai-based Harbor Real Estate appeared in 95 ChatGPT responses and 15 Gemini responses, but did not appear in Google AI Overviews during the study. This suggests that an agency can appear highly visible on one platform while remaining almost completely absent from another.
Jaimie Beers, founder of Schutle, said:
“There is a lot of noise and conjecture about what AI could eventually mean for estate agencies. We wanted to carry out controlled research to see what is actually happening now.
“The results show that AI is already forming a much smaller shortlist of businesses for customers. It is not simply reproducing Google’s search results, and there is no single agency that wins every type of question.
“The customer’s location, nationality and particular requirements can completely change the recommendations. The AI platform being used can also materially change which companies are included.
“This creates both a risk and an opportunity. Established businesses cannot assume that their traditional prominence will automatically translate into AI recommendations, while specialist and independent agencies can outperform much larger brands when their expertise is particularly relevant to the question.”
Why AI recommends particular agencies
The research also examined the reasons AI platforms gave for recommending particular companies.
Frequently cited factors included operating history, independent reviews, professional standards, transparency, local expertise, language capabilities, investment knowledge, property management and specialist market experience.
However, the report distinguishes between having a capability and making that capability sufficiently clear and credible online.
Beers continued:
“AI needs accessible evidence before it can confidently understand and recommend a business. An agency may offer an specific service, but if its public digital footprint does not clearly demonstrate that capability, the AI may have little evidence on which to recommend it.
“This is not just about appearing in more places. It is about helping intelligent systems accurately understand who the company serves, where it operates, what it can do and why its claims should be trusted.”
About the research
The research was conducted between 1 June and 31 July 2026.
Schutle created a structured set of neutral questions reflecting how buyers, sellers, landlords and investors might ask an AI platform to recommend a real estate company. These prompts were run repeatedly across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Google AI Overviews, where available.
Only companies clearly recommended or presented as suitable shortlist options were counted. Incidental mentions, citations, comparisons and negative references were excluded.
The results measure AI recommendation visibility. They do not independently assess service quality, transaction volumes, achieved prices, investment performance or customer satisfaction. AI-generated answers can also change as models, retrieval systems and online source material are updated.
The complete Real Estate AI Visibility Report, including market findings, methodology and recommendations for estate agencies, is available at:
https://schutle.com/research/real-estate-ai-visibility-report
Notes to editors
Schutle helps estate agencies make their business information, capabilities and evidence easier for AI systems to discover, understand and use.
The company monitors how estate agencies appear across leading AI platforms and creates structured, machine-readable data that gives AI systems clearer and more reliable information about each business.
Publication-ready charts, market-specific findings and supporting methodology are available on request.
Media contact
Jaimie Beers
Founder, Schutle
Email: jaimie@schutle.com