Apartment List and Grotto AI Partner to Bring Renter Preferences Into Leasing Calls and Tours
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, NOVEMBER 3, 2026 — Apartment List, the AI-powered rental platform, announced on November 3, 2026 a partnership with Grotto AI, which provides AI-powered sales coaching and on-site visibility for apartment leasing teams. The integration puts the preferences renters share during an Apartment List search in front of leasing agents before and during calls and property tours.
What the integration does
Renters share their budget, move-in date, pets and must-have amenities while searching on Apartment List. According to the companies, Grotto's platform combines that information with property details and available inventory, then coaches agents in real time on when to use it in conversations with prospective residents.
The companies gave the example of a renter looking for a two-bedroom apartment with in-unit laundry and room for a pet. An agent can come to that call or tour prepared to discuss units and features that fit, instead of repeating basic questions the renter has already answered.
Test results at Weidner Apartment Homes
The companies reported results from a randomized A/B test across 311 communities at Weidner Apartment Homes. When Grotto surfaced Apartment List's renter insights and coached agents to use them, lead-to-tour conversion increased by 35%, according to the announcement. The release did not disclose the length of the test or baseline conversion rates.
"Grotto already gives our agents the insight they need to book high-converting tours, consistently," said Cody Lee, Director of Marketing at Weidner Apartment Homes. "Now, with Apartment List data to enrich these insights, this benefit extends beyond our ecosystem to new, fresh prospects entering it."
What the companies said
"Too often, renters have to explain what they're looking for over and over again," said Mike Wolber, Chief Sales Officer at Apartment List. "With Grotto, we're bringing what renters have already told us directly to leasing teams, so they can spend less time starting from scratch and more time helping someone find the right home."
Nick Deveau, Co-Founder and CEO at Grotto, described today's leasing process as a series of disconnected steps. "Today, every step of the rental journey is a cold start. The initial inbound, the calls, the tours. Each one starts without context from the previous, and there's no concept of a unified customer journey," he said.
About the companies
Apartment List says its platform draws on 12 million leases with known outcomes and 65 million conversations between renters and properties, and that it is paid when a lease is signed. Grotto AI provides sales coaching and intelligence for multifamily leasing teams, including preparation for calls and tours and visibility into team performance and renter preferences.
Details on the partnership are available from Apartment List.
Source: Apartment List announcement via PR Newswire, November 3, 2026.