Letting agents rushing to invest in artificial intelligence and automation risk making existing problems worse rather than improving efficiency, an industry consultant has warned.
Sally Lawson, founder of Agent Rainmaker, believes many agencies are investing in technology without first addressing weaknesses in their operations.
With margins under pressure and the Renters’ Rights Act adding to compliance demands, more letting businesses are turning to AI and automation to reduce workloads and costs.
However, Lawson argues that technology cannot compensate for poorly defined processes, outdated staffing structures or unclear responsibilities.
“You can’t automate what you never built,” she said.
“Most agencies didn’t get planned, they just happened. Someone was good at letting property, the phone kept ringing, so they hired help.
“Ten years later there are twelve people, six hundred properties on the books, and no processes that anyone in the business could lay out in the exact same way. Automating that just makes a broken business break faster.”
Software cannot fix staffing problems
Lawson also questioned whether some agencies are using technology to avoid difficult decisions about staffing and business structure.
She argues that businesses often retain roles created years earlier, even when their operational requirements have changed.
“People get taken on for the job which needed doing at the time. The business moves on, the job changes shape, and the person is still there,” she said.
“Often loyal, often great at something, just not the ‘something’ that the agency now relies on to grow sustainably.
“Nobody wants to have that conversation, so they buy software instead and hope it fills the gap. It rarely does.”
According to Lawson, agency owners should examine how work moves through their businesses before introducing new systems.
That includes identifying duplicated tasks, unclear responsibilities and processes that rely too heavily on individual employees.
Only then, she argues, should businesses decide whether to recruit staff, outsource work or introduce automation.
Automation can multiply existing problems
Despite her concerns, Lawson insists technology has an important role in improving agency performance.
However, she believes owners must establish effective systems before attempting to automate them.
“I’ve built my career on systems that bring in business while people sleep. But every one of them worked because the thinking came first,” she said.
“Automation is a multiplier. Multiply a well-built agency and you get scale. Multiply a mess and you get an even bigger mess, with a monthly subscription.”
Her comments come as letting agents face mounting pressure to manage costs while adapting to regulatory changes.
Lawson is urging business owners to review their operations, staffing requirements and use of technology rather than assuming another software subscription will solve their problems.
She will discuss the issue at Agent Rainmaker’s Unbroken: The Letting Agency Reborn event in London on 12–13 November.
Five warning signs your letting agency needs an overhaul
Lawson identifies five signs that an agency may have expanded without establishing the systems needed to support its growth:
+ Inconsistent processes: Staff cannot agree on the steps involved in converting a landlord enquiry into a signed management agreement.
+ Overdependence on key employees: One or two people hold essential operational knowledge that others lack.
+ Outdated staffing structures: Roles still reflect a business focused on new lettings, despite management and renewals now generating much of its income.
+ Unused technology: The agency has invested in software that large parts of the team rarely use.
+ Unclear job responsibilities: Some positions have become catch-all roles without clearly defined duties or measurable objectives.
The central warning is that agencies should fix their operational weaknesses before investing further in automation.
