Extended reality (XR) impacts on real estate market and economic-financial project management of residential built environments: systematic review and analysis

Purpose Extended reality (XR) technologies are increasingly used in project management and, more recently, in real estate transactions to enhance customization, collaboration, and transparency in decision-making processes. However, the impact of XR on residential real estate market dynamics, including value estimates and economic management of housing projects, has never been explored through systematic reviews providing an integrated perspective. This paper aims to fill this gap by conducting a systematic review of scientific literature. Design/methodology/approach This study conducted a systematic review following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. Records were sourced from Scopus, Web of Science (WoS), and Google Scholar. Based on defined inclusion criteria, 90 scientific papers were thoroughly analysed. A scientometric analysis was implemented, which allowed, among other outcomes, the classification of contributions into two main categories: (1) economic-financial management of housing projects and (2) residential real estate market studies, further subdivided into quantitative and qualitative analyses of XR impacts. Findings The results obtained answer three research questions. First, it is shown that XR technologies influence project economics by enhancing customisation and collaboration, resulting in reduced construction costs. In real estate valuation, it emerges that XR boosts transparency, accelerating and positively conditioning the decision-making process. Second, the following key parameters are identified from the literature: purchase price, time on market (TOM), purchase intention, construction cost, and life cycle cost (LCC). Third, the challenges and opportunities of XR application in the analysis fields are defined. XR adoption is challenged by infrastructural barriers and costs but offers opportunities to improve customer engagement and sustainability. Mixed reality (MR) remains underexplored, and significant gaps in correlating key variables persist. Originality/value This is the first review exclusively focused on the impacts of XR on residential real estate valuation and the economic management of housing projects. It provides valuable insights for scholars, researchers, and practitioners while highlighting critical gaps and future research directions.