AI Receptionist for Real Estate Agents and Letting Agents

Short answer: an AI receptionist answers every call to the office and works out which of the agency's calls it is: a seller or landlord wanting a valuation, a buyer or tenant asking about a listing, a viewing to book, an offer, or a tenant reporting a repair. It answers listing questions from your website, books valuations and viewings into the right diary, and passes offers, negotiations and complaints to a licensed agent or negotiator with the details written up.

Which calls matter most?

Viewing enquiries get the attention, but the call an agency can least afford to miss is the instruction: a homeowner or landlord ringing for a valuation. Our guide to answering viewing enquiries covers buyers and tenants in depth; this post covers the whole switchboard.

What does a valuation call sound like?

A lettings and sales agency in Manchester, a Sunday evening.

1. Greeting. "Thanks for calling Northbridge Homes, I'm the office's automated assistant. Are you calling about buying, renting, selling or letting?"
2. The caller. "I've got a two-bed flat I want to let out."
3. Your questions. The address and postcode, whether it is empty or tenanted, when it will be available, and whether they want letting only or full management.
4. Booking. The agent reads the lettings valuer's free times through tool calling (Google Calendar through Cal.com, or your agency software through its API) and books a visit.
5. Into your system. A signed webhook sends the new landlord lead, with the transcript, to your CRM.

In Austin, the same agent might take a call from someone reading the sign outside a house at 9pm and book them a showing. In Dubai, a caller asking in Arabic about an off-plan project gets answers from your project sheet and a meeting with the sales team; the agent speaks Arabic on calls.

What goes in the knowledge base?

• Your listings, kept current by crawling your website or importing a sitemap.
• Areas you cover, services you offer, and your fee information as you publish it.
• Your qualifying questions for buyers, tenants, sellers and landlords.
• Viewing rules: who can view alone, ID requirements, what happens with pets.
• Tenant repair rules and what counts as an emergency.
• Topics the agent must not discuss: valuations by phone, offers, other buyers' positions, and investment returns.

When should it hand over?

• Offers, counter-offers and anything negotiable.
• A seller or landlord who wants to talk fees or terms.
• Complaints, and repair emergencies on your list.
• A caller who asks for their negotiator by name.

Transfer works on imported Telnyx and Plivo numbers. On an imported Twilio number, offers and emergencies become urgent callbacks in your console.

What rules apply?

A pointer for your own checks, not legal advice. Your agency is responsible for what is said on its calls.

• US: the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing. Give the agent the same questions for every caller, and keep it away from describing neighbourhoods by who lives there. Negotiation belongs with licensed agents under your state's rules. Calls you make with an AI voice fall under the TCPA; see TCPA before AI calls.
• UK: in England, the Tenant Fees Act limits what tenants can be charged, including a cap on holding deposits, so the agent should quote only what you publish. The Renters' Rights Act brings further changes, such as the ban on rental bidding, so check which parts are in force. Listings must not leave out material information. Right to Rent and anti-money-laundering checks are done by your people.
• UAE: in Dubai, brokers are regulated by RERA, advertising needs a permit, and tenancies are registered through Ejari. Keep the agent from promising rental yields or returns on off-plan property; that is for your licensed brokers and your published material.

Is it a good fit?

It suits agencies whose phones ring through evenings and weekends, when sellers and landlords tend to call, and lettings teams whose line mixes new business with repair reports. It is less useful if your branch already has a person on the phone at all hours, or if most enquiries arrive through portals and are handled in a portal inbox you are happy with.

What do you need to start?

Your office number imported from Twilio, Telnyx or Plivo, your website for listings, your qualifying questions and diary access. See the AI receptionist page, voice AI for real estate, and pricing.