AI agents for property and block management
Repairs, certificates, rent and residents all need a reply, and most of it follows the same steps. Cogent triages, tracks and chases so your portfolio runs on a schedule instead of on memory.
01Where the week goes
We work with landlords, HMO operators, block managers and property management companies. The details differ from firm to firm, but the same few jobs come up on almost every discovery call:
- Maintenance triage. Tenants report repairs by text, email and phone. Working out what's urgent and who to send takes hours.
- Certificate deadlines. Gas safety, EICR, fire risk assessments and licences each have dates. Miss one and you're exposed.
- Rent and arrears. Checking payments and sending reminders is slow and uncomfortable.
- Contractor follow-up. Chasing quotes, access and completion photos from contractors.
None of these need your expertise. They need doing quickly, the same way every time, and that's exactly the kind of work AI agents do well, with your Business Map telling them how your business runs.
Key idea
Compliance failures rarely come from not caring. They come from a date living in someone's head.
02Agents built for property and block management
These are the agents we most often switch on first in this sector. Each one reads your second brain, works around the clock and asks you before anything that matters.
- Trigger
- A tenant reports a repair by any channel
- Does
- Asks for photos, sorts by urgency, matches the right contractor and opens a job
- Asks you
- Before instructing a contractor or approving spend
- Trigger
- A certificate is within 60 days of expiry
- Does
- Books the inspection, reminds tenants about access and files the new certificate
- Asks you
- Before booking anything that costs money
- Trigger
- A rent payment is late
- Does
- Sends reminders on your schedule and logs every reply against the tenancy
- Asks you
- Before any formal notice or arrears letter
Your first agent is the one with the highest score on your discovery call, not the one on the top of this list. Most firms add a second and third over the following months.
03Ask your business anything
Because every agent writes to the same memory, you can ask questions in plain English that used to mean an afternoon in spreadsheets and inboxes.
YouWhich properties have certificates expiring in the next 90 days?
CogentFive: 3 gas safety, 1 EICR and 1 HMO licence renewal. Two inspections are already booked.
YouHow many repairs did we have at Victoria House this year?
CogentFourteen, mostly plumbing. The same flat reported damp three times. Want a summary for the freeholder?
04Your Monday briefing
At 7am every Monday you get a short briefing built from your own tools: what came in, what's stuck and what changed.
05Find your peak
On the call we score every repeating job by hours a week × how easy it is to hand off (1 hard, 2 medium, 3 easy). The highest score gets built first. Here's how a typical list might look.
| Job | Hours a week | Ease | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Triage of repair requests | 7 | 3 | 21 |
| Tracking certificates | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Chasing rent | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Owner and landlord reports | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Chasing contractors | 4 | 2 | 8 |
Example · dummy data. Score = hours a week × ease.
In this example, triage of repair requests is the peak. Run your own numbers with the calculator on our home page, or bring them to the call.
06Where approvals sit
Every agent starts on a short lead. Here's a typical starting point for this sector. Yours is written into your Business Map.
Does alone
- Logging and sorting repair reports
- Tracking certificate dates
- Drafting tenant and contractor messages
Asks first
- Instructing contractors or approving spend
- Anything sent to a tenant or leaseholder
- Arrears and notice letters
Never
- Serving legal notices
- Deciding on a deposit dispute
Section 21/8 notices, deposit decisions and licensing applications stay with you or your solicitor. Agents keep the dates and the evidence ready.
07Works with the tools you already use
We connect to what you have rather than asking you to move. Common tools in this sector include Arthur Online, Fixflo, Goodlord, Landlord Vision, Re-Leased, Xero, QuickBooks, Outlook or Gmail, and WhatsApp. If a system has no integration, a Portal Operator agent can work it the way a person would.
08Questions
Can AI handle maintenance requests from tenants?
Yes. It collects the details and photos, judges urgency against your rules and drafts the contractor instruction for your approval.
How do I keep track of gas safety and EICR certificates?
A Certificate Tracker watches every expiry date, books inspections ahead of time and files the new certificate, so nothing depends on memory.
Does it work for HMO landlords?
Yes. HMOs have more certificates, more residents and more repairs, so the time saved is usually higher.
Can it chase rent arrears?
It sends polite reminders and logs replies. Formal arrears letters and notices always wait for you.
CogentIntelligence