Lead response for letting agents, evenings and weekends included.

Why lettings enquiries go cold

A good rental listing can bring in a stack of enquiries in its first few days, and plenty of them arrive when the office is shut: after work, on Sunday evenings, late at night when people are scrolling through Rightmove and Zoopla on the sofa. Most applicants message several agents about several properties at once. The agent who comes back first with a clear answer and a viewing time usually gets them through the door.

The portals know this. Zoopla's own guidance on its Leads report tells agents to check that every email lead has been actioned and the sender contacted. Rightmove's lead report logs every email lead with the time it was sent and whether the applicant wants more details, a viewing or a valuation. What neither portal can do is write the reply for you at 9pm on a Sunday.

The enquiries a lettings branch actually gets

• "Is it still available?" The most common portal message, and the easiest one to lose by replying on Monday. A quick yes, the rent and two viewing times is usually all it needs.
• Viewing requests. Applicants who already know they want to see it. The reply should offer real slots, not ask them to ring the office.
• Questions about the property. Parking, bills, furnished or unfurnished, the move-in date, whether pets will be considered. We answer from the listing details and the notes you give us, and flag anything we can't answer.
• Landlord and valuation enquiries. Landlords asking about lettings or management fees, or a rental valuation. These are often worth more than any single applicant, so they're flagged Hot and come to you for approval.
• Tenant repair reports that land in the general inbox by mistake. These are flagged and passed to you. A gas smell gets the National Gas Emergency number, 0800 111 999, straight away, and is never sent automatically.
• Not a fit. Properties already let, duplicate enquiries and sales pitches. These shouldn't eat into your evening.

An example: Sunday evening Rightmove enquiry

The applicant, property and agency below are made up.

Rightmove lettings enquiry, Sunday 20:14: "Hi, is the two-bed flat on Ashley Road still available? We'd like to view this week if possible. It's me and my partner, and we have a small, well-behaved dog."

Hi Jess, thanks for your enquiry about the two-bed flat on Ashley Road. It's still available at the advertised rent of £1,150 a month, and the landlord is happy to consider pets, so do tell us a little about your dog and we'll pass it on. We have viewings on Tuesday at 5.30pm or Thursday at 12.15pm. Which suits you best?
Sophie, Parkside Lettings

Jess had an email acknowledgement within seconds of the enquiry reaching us. The reply above came to the branch to approve, with the viewing slots from your booking link, and went out in the agency's name once approved.

Replies that stay on the right side of the rules

Since 1 May 2026 the Renters' Rights Act has changed how private lets work in England. Among other things, landlords must consider a tenant's request to keep a pet, can't refuse to rent to someone because they have children or receive benefits, and can't ask for rent before the tenancy is signed. Written adverts must state a specific rent, and the GOV.UK guidance on rental bidding is clear that agents can't invite or accept offers above it.

We build those rules into your reply templates. Drafts quote the advertised rent and nothing else, never hint at competing offers, and never use questions about children or benefits to screen people out. The questions we ask, such as move-in date, how many people will live there, pets and viewing availability, are the ones you agree with us at setup. Scotland and Wales have their own rules, so templates follow the rules you give us for where your branches are. You stay responsible for the advice, and you approve every reply until you're comfortable.

What we need from you

Setup is done by email, with a short written questionnaire and no calls needed. You'd tell us:

• The properties you're marketing, or where we can see the current listings, and which are let agreed.
• Your standard answers: holding deposits, referencing, pets, parking, bills, and anything landlords have asked you to say.
• A booking link for viewings (Calendly, Google or Outlook booking page), or a daily list of free viewing times.
• 5–10 replies your team has sent before, so we match how you write.

Rightmove allows one lettings lead email per branch, so we don't change where your leads go. You simply forward a copy, keep everything in your own inbox as now, and we test every source before go-live. You're live within 5 working days. We don't connect to your property software as standard; CRM sync is available on request.

What it costs

Flat monthly fees with no per-lead portal charges from us. Portal leads from Rightmove and Zoopla are included on Speed-to-Lead and Front Desk Autopilot, which draft replies 7 days a week, so evening and weekend enquiries are covered. Agencies with two branches usually look at Front Desk Autopilot.