AI customer support for real estate & letting agents
A property enquiry is worth more than almost any other message a business receives, and it goes cold faster than almost any other. This page is not the generic case for 24/7 AI support. It is what an AI agent actually does for an estate agency, a lettings office, a broker or a property manager: answering "is this still available?" in seconds, asking the questions that separate a buyer from a browser, booking the viewing with the right negotiator, taking a repair report with a photo, and knowing which conversations it must hand to a person.
Everyone who can answer is out on a viewing
An agency's best people are not at a desk. They are standing in a hallway with a set of keys, driving between two appointments, or sitting in a vendor's kitchen doing a valuation. That is the job, and it is exactly when the messages arrive: a listing goes live at four in the afternoon and the enquiries come in over the next few hours, while the negotiator who knows the property is showing a different one.
The person on the other end has usually sent the same message to three agencies about three similar flats. Whoever replies first with a real answer gets the viewing, and the others get a polite "thanks, we found somewhere". An AI agent answers while the negotiator is still holding the keys, and it answers with the facts of that listing and a time to see it, not "someone will be in touch".
"Is this still available?" is the whole business in one message
Most first messages to an agency are some version of five questions: is it still available, how much is it, when can I move in, are pets allowed, and when can I see it. None of them needs a negotiator's judgement. All of them need the right fact, quickly.
Give Replio a listing sheet: one entry per property with a reference, the address or area, price or rent, bedrooms and bathrooms, the availability date, furnished or not, parking, pets, service charge or council tax band, and anything a viewer always asks. The AI answers from that sheet, in those words. Give every listing a short reference and put it on the board and in the advert, because "the two-bed on Marina Walk" is easy for the AI to place when you have one and ambiguous when you have three.
Where this stops, honestly: Replio does not pull listings from Rightmove, Zoopla, Zillow, Property Finder, Bayut or any other portal, and it does not sync with a property CRM. The listing sheet is something you upload and keep current. That makes one habit matter more than any setting: the moment a property is let, sold or under offer, change it in the knowledge base. An AI that cheerfully books viewings on a flat that went yesterday is worse than a slow reply. It also does not receive the enquiry forms a portal emails you; it answers the people who message your WhatsApp number, Messenger, Telegram or website chat, so put that number on your boards, your listings where the portal allows it, and your email signature.
The qualifying questions a good negotiator asks anyway
A viewing diary full of people who cannot proceed is how a branch looks busy and lets nothing. Experienced negotiators qualify without making it feel like a form, and the AI does the same thing: it answers the question it was asked first, then asks one thing back.
| Who is messaging | What the AI asks, one at a time | What your team receives |
|---|---|---|
| Someone looking to rent | Move-in date, how many people, budget per month, pets, furnished or unfurnished, which areas | A lead with a move-in date and a budget attached |
| Someone looking to buy | Area, bedrooms, budget range, whether they have a property to sell, how soon they want to move | A lead that says whether this is a first look or someone ready to view this week |
| A landlord or vendor | Property type and address, whether it is occupied, when they want to let or sell | A valuation request with a time booked in the valuer's diary |
| An existing tenant | Which property, what the problem is, a photo if there is one, when access is possible | A complete report in the inbox instead of a missed call |
The answers are logged against the contact as a lead, and Replio remembers the person, so the applicant who asked about a one-bed in March and writes again in June is not a stranger. Notice what is not on that list. The AI asks about budget because the enquirer needs listings in range; it does not ask about nationality, family status, religion or benefits, and it never tells anyone they are or are not suitable for a property. Who gets a tenancy is a decision for a person working inside your local housing rules.
Viewings: a diary per negotiator, with the drive built in
Replio's booking calendar is free on every plan and is built from event types and hosts. For an agency that translates neatly. A viewing is an event type with its own length, a buffer afterwards so the negotiator can lock up and drive to the next one, a minimum-notice window so nobody books a viewing for twenty minutes from now, and a limit on how far ahead people can book. A valuation is a second event type, longer, hosted only by the people who do valuations.
Each negotiator is a host with their own week, so Saturdays worked in rotation and a lettings manager's day off are respected. When the enquirer already deals with a named agent, the AI offers that agent's open times. When they don't, a team event type routes round-robin and gives the soonest real slot. The AI takes the booking in the chat, reads it back, and the viewer gets a calendar invite, a reminder before the appointment and a link to reschedule or cancel. That link matters in property more than most trades: a viewer who has found somewhere else will tap "cancel" far more readily than phone to say so, and the negotiator does not drive across town to an empty doorstep.
The limits you should know before relying on it: the calendar does not sync live with Google Calendar or Outlook, so each negotiator's availability is set in Replio and a viewing agreed on the phone has to be added by hand. The buffer is a fixed number of minutes, not a calculation of the drive between two addresses. It books one party per slot, so an open house where a dozen people come through in an hour is better announced as a time in the listing sheet than booked one by one. And it knows nothing about keys, tenants who need notice, or a vendor who only allows viewings after six, unless you write those rules into the listing.
Repairs, rent questions and the tenant at 11pm
Lettings offices get a second stream of messages that sales offices don't: people who already live in the property. A tenant whose boiler has stopped does not want to fill in a web form. They want to send a photo of the error code and a voice note. Replio reads the photo, transcribes the voice note, asks which property and when someone can get in, and puts a complete report in the shared inbox for whoever manages the property.
Routine questions are answered from the knowledge base: how to report a repair, when rent is due and how to pay it, what the notice period in your standard agreement is, who to call about a lost key. What the AI must not do is diagnose or decide. It should not tell a tenant a leak "can wait until Monday", and it has no access to an individual rent account, so "have you received my payment?" is passed to a person. Write down what counts as an emergency for you, such as a smell of gas, water coming through a ceiling, no heating in winter or a door that will not lock, and those chats are escalated immediately with an alert to the manager on WhatsApp or Telegram. Replio is not a maintenance ticketing system and does not instruct contractors; it makes sure the report is complete and that a person has seen it.
What a person answers, every time
Property is a regulated business in most countries, and the expensive mistakes are the ones made in writing. Set these as topics the AI always hands over, and it will say plainly that a member of the team will reply:
- Offers and negotiation. The AI records the figure and the buyer's position and passes it on. It does not accept, reject or hint at what the vendor might take.
- Mortgage, affordability and investment advice. It can say that you work with a broker. It should not say what someone can borrow or what a property will be worth.
- Deposits, tenancy disputes and notices. It can quote your published policy. A disagreement about a deduction goes to a person.
- Referencing decisions. It can list the documents you ask for and where to send them. It does not judge an application.
- Complaints. A complaint is logged and escalated, not argued with.
One practical point on documents: have the AI tell applicants where to send passports, payslips and bank statements, which should be your referencing provider or a secure upload, and not invite them into a chat thread.
Buyers and tenants who are not in your time zone
In Dubai, Doha, London, Lisbon or Toronto, a real share of enquiries come from people who are not in the country yet: an investor nine hours away, a family relocating for a job, a student arriving in September. They message when it is evening for them and the middle of the night for you, and often in a language nobody in the branch speaks.
The AI detects and replies in each person's own language across 50+ languages, from one listing sheet, not a translated copy per language. It transcribes voice notes, which is how many overseas enquirers prefer to explain what they need. On Scale and Pro, Live Translate lets your negotiators read and reply in any language inside the shared inbox, so the conversation does not fall apart at the moment a human takes over. A relocating tenant who gets a clear answer at 2am their agent's time, plus a call booked with a negotiator for the next morning, is a tenant who stops shopping around.
Telling people about a new instruction
Applicants who registered with you last month are the cheapest viewings you will ever book. WhatsApp broadcasts send an approved template to contacts who opted in, handle STOP replies automatically, and the AI answers whatever comes back, "what's the service charge?", "can I see it Saturday?", and books the viewing in the same chat. Meta charges per marketing template, so send a new listing to the people it suits.
Be clear about the limit: Replio does not hold each applicant's saved search and match new listings against it automatically. You choose who a broadcast goes to. A new instruction in a popular block, a price reduction, an open-house date: those are good broadcasts. Per-applicant property alerts are still the job of your CRM or the portals.
Instagram, where the listings get seen
Walk-through reels and "just listed" posts drive a lot of first contact, and the natural next step is a direct message. Where Instagram stands today: answering Instagram DMs for every customer needs a permission from Meta, instagram_manage_messages, which Meta has not yet approved for Replio. You can connect your Instagram account now, and replies start for everyone once it is approved, with nothing to change on your side. WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram and the website widget are live for all customers today, so most agencies start with WhatsApp and put a click-to-chat link and the replio.live/book/ viewing page in their Instagram bio in the meantime.
One listing, its first 24 hours
| Time | What arrives | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 4:10pm | WhatsApp: "Is the 2 bed on Marina Walk still available?" | The AI confirms it is, gives the rent and move-in date, asks when they want to move, and books a viewing for 10am tomorrow. |
| 6:45pm | "Are pets allowed? We have a cat." | Answers from the listing sheet: considered with the landlord's consent. Notes the cat on the lead. |
| 9:20pm | A voice note in Russian from an overseas buyer asking about a different apartment | Transcribes it, replies in Russian with the price and service charge, books a call with a sales negotiator. |
| 11:05pm | A tenant's photo of water under a kitchen sink | Asks which property and whether it is still running, escalates as urgent, and the property manager gets a WhatsApp alert. |
| 8:30am | "I'd like to offer 5% under asking." | Records the offer and the buyer's position, says the negotiator will call, and escalates. It does not respond to the figure. |
| 9:40am | The 10am viewer taps "reschedule" | The slot reopens in the calendar and is offered to the next enquirer who asks. |
The negotiator started the day with a booked diary, one offer to ring back about, and no missed calls to return.
Setting it up
- Connect the WhatsApp number that is already on your boards. It is live today. Add Messenger and Instagram when you are on a plan that covers them.
- Upload a listing sheet, one entry per property with a reference, price, availability date and the facts viewers ask about. Decide who updates it when a property is let or sold, and make that part of the same routine as taking the listing down.
- Add each negotiator as a host with their own week, and create event types for a viewing, a valuation and a phone or video call, each with a realistic length and a travel buffer.
- Write down what always goes to a person: offers, mortgage and affordability questions, deposit disputes, referencing decisions, complaints, and your list of repair emergencies.
- Invite sales, lettings and property management to the shared inbox and turn on escalation alerts, so an urgent repair or an offer reaches someone the same hour.
Pricing for an estate or letting agency
Starter at $49/month covers one channel (WhatsApp, Instagram or Messenger, your pick) plus Telegram and the website widget, 2 seats and 8,000 AI replies a month, which fits an independent agent or a two-person lettings office running on WhatsApp. A branch with several negotiators usually wants Scale at $149/month: WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger together, 5 seats, 30,000 AI replies and Live Translate included. Pro at $349/month adds 15 seats and 50,000 AI replies, which suits an agency with sales, lettings and property management teams or more than one office. Customer messages are unlimited on every plan, and the booking calendar, image reading and broadcasts are included, not sold separately. Signing up is free, and Starter begins with a 7-day free trial when you choose it.
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