Artificial intelligence is an emerging technology across many industries, but it’s starting to affect real estate in the form of an AI leasing assistant. This new property management software is shaping how leads are processed and converted into tenants. While the technology is still relatively new, AI leasing agents are paving the way toward better, more efficient leasing and property management.
With that said, there is a lot to know about AI leasing assistants. That’s why, in this blog, you’ll learn what exactly AI is, how AI leasing assistants work, and how they benefit the real estate industry. More importantly, you’ll find a list of the 11 best AI leasing assistants available today.
This post covers:
- What is artificial intelligence?
- What is an AI leasing assistant?
- How AI leasing agents benefit real estate
- 11 best AI leasing assistants to consider
What is artificial intelligence?
Artificial intelligence, or AI, is the ability of a digital machine to simulate the human mind in the form of learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and language.
AI is not meant to replace human jobs. Rather, its purpose is to assist humans with inefficient, manual duties that benefit from automation. Many industries have benefited from implementing artificial intelligence, such as healthcare, automotive, finance, and, of course, real estate.
In order to implement AI, industries must choose between two different types:
- Weak: Weak AI, also known as narrow AI, is designed to complete a single job. For example, Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple’s Siri are personal assistants designed to complete a single task: answer your questions.
- Strong: On the other hand, strong AI can complete complex jobs that are more suited for humans. For instance, strong AI is used to monitor, analyze, and respond to security threats in physical and digital environments.
Learn what smart amenities residents are looking for in their next apartment:
What is an AI leasing assistant?
An AI leasing assistant is a strong artificial intelligence designed to help properties streamline the leasing process by addressing inquiries from prospective tenants.
AI leasing assistants can complete multiple duties, such as:
- Answer questions about the building or the leasing process
- Schedule apartment tours
- Collect prospect data
- Research market trends
- Direct prospects to representatives
What’s more, virtual leasing assistants operate 24/7 when human staff members are off the clock, so properties can benefit greatly from their implementation.
How does an AI leasing agent work?
AI leasing agents work by using natural language processing. More simply, virtual leasing agents understand the prospect’s intent based on certain identifiers within their language.
Rather than answering scripted questions with answers already written by a human, the virtual leasing agent answers based on the intent of the question, no matter how it’s asked. Over time, the AI will improve its responses as it learns from previous interactions. As a result, it becomes more efficient and effective at providing prospective renters with what they want.
What’s the difference between an AI leasing assistant and a chatbot?
The difference between an AI leasing assistant and a real estate chatbot is the complexity of jobs they can complete.
As aforementioned, AI leasing assistants learn and adapt using language processing. They can understand the intent of an inquiry based on the words used. Additionally, AI leasing agents perform many other complex, human-like duties like answering phone calls, scheduling tours, and researching market trends.
Conversely, chatbots for real estate can only address scripted questions or requests. Website visitors select predefined questions from a menu in the chat to which the bot already has answers. Some chatbots are more advanced and can schedule tours or appointments, but AI leasing agents are best suited for the role.
How AI leasing agents benefit real estate
The introduction of AI for real estate is somewhat new, but it’s hard to deny the dramatic benefits this technology has provided.
The benefits of AI leasing agents include:
- Obtain a better understanding of prospects and tenants. An AI leasing agent collects data for you to analyze, which can bring up some outstanding revelations. For instance, you can learn the pressing questions prospective tenants have or learn what target demographic is most interested in your property so you can better market to them.
- Improve the customer experience. Having a leasing agent answer phone calls or emails all day is a waste of precious resources. AI leasing assistants are available 24/7, meaning they can provide answers to customers at any time of the day and even to multiple customers at the same time. Don’t expect that kind of efficiency from a human.
- Increase your property’s conversion rates. Customer service is a serious concern for prospective tenants. If they can get answers to their questions faster and more efficiently, they’re more likely to schedule a tour. In turn, you can obtain more leads and convert them into tenants faster.
- Streamline the process of leasing units. With greater customer service efforts and insightful data from your AI leasing agent, you can get new tenants faster. The virtual assistant can answer their questions and schedule tours faster, allowing you to convert them into tenants sooner than by playing phone tag or waiting on an email.
- Lower your property’s operating costs. Lastly, instead of having a human staff member answer every phone call or respond to all emails, the AI leasing assistant will handle the majority of inquiries from prospects. That way, you and your team can spend resources in other critical areas.
11 AI leasing assistants to consider
If you’re considering an AI leasing assistant for your property, you have many options to choose from.
Consider these 11 AI leasing assistants:
- Meet Elise
- RentCafe Chat IQ by Yardi
- Lisa by AppFolio
- Adam by Travtus
- PERQ
- ResMate by Respage
- Lea by Diffe.Rent
- ACE by LeaseHawk
- Hyro
- Kelsey by Zuma
- BetterBot
1. Meet Elise
Meet Elise was created using language processing and advanced machine learning from the team at EliseAI. Elise is designed to perform a variety of different tasks, such as answering questions, scheduling tours, and even sending follow-ups, reminders, or applications.
Notable features of Meet Elise include:
- Seamless integration with PMS and CRM
- Customized responses and sign-offs
- Custom reporting of essential data
Read the full MeetElise review »
2. RentCafe Chat IQ by Yardi
Developed by Yardi, RentCafe Chat IQ is an AI chatbot for property management. It can talk with customers via live chat, text, email, and even phone calls. Chat IQ allows for customizable answers to questions, and, of course, you can give your chatbot a name for a personalized experience.
Other qualities of Chat IQ include:
- Understands misspelled words and incorrect grammar
- Conversion rate optimization features
- Seamless live chat or phone call transfers
Read the full RentCafe Chat IQ review »
3. Lisa by AppFolio
Created by AppFolio, Lisa is an AI leasing assistant who helps property managers with daily tasks. Lisa is capable of data entry, scheduling unit showings, and responding to inquiries. Similarly to other AI leasing assistants, Lisa is available 24/7, so property staff is free to handle other duties that require a human touch.
Read the full Lisa by AppFolio review »
4. Adam by Travtus
Adam by Travtus is your digital teammate for your multifamily property. In short, Adam is packed with features designed to lighten the load of real estate agents and property managers. This AI leasing assistant can develop conversational intelligence, which provides fast and reliable responses to live chats, emails, and reviews.
Travtus has implemented many great features into Adam:
- Scheduling automation
- Lead capture
- Payment processing
- Mapping resident journeys
- Prioritizing and enriching data
Read the full Adam by Travtus review »
5. PERQ
When compared to other AI leasing assistants, PERQ considers itself the only standalone multifamily marketing automation platform. In summary, PERQ provides a robust platform of tools for property management teams to find new leads and funnel them into long-lasting tenants.
The perks of choosing PERQ include:
- 24/7 conversational AI for customer inquiries
- Customizable and automated lead nurturing
- Website personalization
- Integrations with lead sources
- Transfer to human team members when appropriate
6. ResMate by Respage
Respage offers many marketing services to multifamily properties, two of which include AI leasing and a chatbot.
The AI leasing agent, ResMate, helps generate new leads for your property by answering questions, scheduling tours, and accelerating the leasing process by 50%. Paired alongside the Respage apartment chatbot, property managers can feel better knowing customers are receiving the right kinds of information from an AI with natural language processing capabilities.
Read the full ResMate by Respage review »
7. Lea by Diffe.Rent
Lea is an all-in-one AI leasing assistant that provides 24/7 support to property management. In fact, Lea saves property management an average of 20 hours a week when integrated into daily operations. Meanwhile, Lea can also integrate with PMS and leasing agent workflows, decreasing the time it takes for leads to become tenants.
Read the full Lea by Diffe.Rent review »
8. ACE by LeaseHawk
Developed by LeaseHawk, ACE is a virtual leasing assistant that is fully autonomous. ACE helps offload the work of property management by answering text messages, emails, and even phone calls. Moreover, LeaseHawk has implemented features for ACE to follow up with prospective tenants, moving them down the funnel effectively.
LeaseHawk has implemented many unique features into ACE:
- Customizable voice, personality, and more
- Add custom HTML for custom chat responses
- 15 voice options ranging from U.S. to Australian
Read the full ACE by LeaseHawk review »
9. Hyro
Founded in 2018, Hyro is built to answer phone calls, text messages, and emails when staff cannot be in the office. More importantly, Hyro collects data, detects patterns, and responds to them in real time. Therefore, your property management team stays on top of the latest trends in the real estate industry.
10. Kelsey by Zuma
Zuma has developed Kelsey, a personal AI leasing agent. What’s notable about this AI leasing assistant is Kelsey continues to follow up with leads even after the initial contact. Additionally, Zuma has incorporated the ability for Kelsey to reschedule tours that prospective tenants might have missed.
Of course, Kelsey also provides many other great features:
- Immediately reaches out to new leads with PMS integration
- Human-like responses
- Live chat, text, email, and call responses
Read the full Kelsey by Zuma review »
11. BetterBot
Finally, BetterBot is a leasing automation assistant for multifamily properties. The team behind BetterBot helps property managers save 56.3 hours, giving them the time they need for other critical duties. BetterBot can save so many hours thanks to the many features it’s packed with.
BetterBot provides the following:
- Embedded photo galleries
- Multiple languages
- Self-guided tour integrations
- Virtual tours and videos
- Marketing channel integrations
Read the full BetterBot review »
