How to create an AI phone agent for real estate lead qualification

So, I’ve been experimenting quite a lot lately with AI phone agents, and one of the use cases that keeps coming up over and over is real estate lead qualification. Realtors get tons of calls, forms, and random “interested buyers,” but the reality is that half of them aren’t serious, and the other half take up way too much time with basic questions before even booking a meeting.

That’s where an AI phone agent comes in. Instead of hiring a junior assistant or burning hours yourself, you can set up an agent that actually answers calls, asks pre-qualification questions, and pushes only the good leads into your pipeline. Let me walk you through how I built mine using Callin.io (yep, shameless plug, but it works).

---

Step 1: Define the qualification logic

Before even touching the software, write down what makes a lead good for you. For example, in real estate:

• Are they the owner or just curious?

• Do they already have financing in place?

• What’s their budget range?

• Timeline: are they buying “this month” or just browsing “sometime in 2026”?

Your AI needs these rules baked into the script, otherwise it’s just small talk.

---

Step 2: Create the agent on Callin.io

Inside the dashboard it’s literally: Create Agent → Give it a name (e.g. “Real Estate Lead Qualifier”) → Choose a voice.
Then you write the prompt (basically its “brain”). Mine starts with:

“Hi, this is the assistant for [Agency Name]. I’ll just ask you a couple of quick questions so we can connect you with the right realtor.”

It’s polite, short, and sets expectations.

---

Step 3: Add the qualification questions

In the prompt, I layer them like a natural conversation:

• “Are you the property owner?”

• “Can I ask what budget you have in mind?”

• “Are you planning to buy in the next few months, or is this more long-term research?”

And here’s the cool part: you can instruct the agent to only push the lead forward if certain answers match your rules. For instance, “only if timeline ≤ 6 months” or “only if budget > 250k.”

---

Step 4: Connect phone numbers

On Callin you can either buy a number directly (like a local line in your city) or connect your existing one via Twilio/Telnyx/SIP. I tested both. For inbound leads, I recommend buying a dedicated line just for the agent — keeps it clean.

---

Step 5: Automations (Zapier/Make/N8N)

Here’s where it gets fun. When the agent finishes a call, the transcript + answers are instantly pushed to a Google Sheet or your CRM.
Example: If they said “Yes, I have financing, and my budget is 400k,” Zapier can:

• Add them as “Qualified Lead” in HubSpot/Pipedrive.

• Trigger a follow-up email with available listings.

• Notify you on Slack with: “🔥 Hot lead – call back now.”

No human bottleneck, you just get the alerts.

---

Step 6: Test like crazy

Don’t skip this. Run test calls pretending to be different personas: “serious buyer,” “time-waster,” “random curious neighbor.” See if the AI filters them correctly. Tweak the script until you’re happy.

Pro tip: Add ums and uhs in the prompt so it doesn’t sound robotic. Something like:

“Um, okay, can I ask what kind of budget you were thinking about?”
Makes it 10x more natural.

---

Step 7: Go live

Once you’re confident, forward your agency’s “info” number to the AI. Now instead of your phone blowing up at dinner, the AI is screening for you. You’ll only get the qualified calls that actually deserve your time.

---

Why this works so well

• Realtors waste HOURS every week filtering.

• Leads don’t care if they talk to AI at the beginning, as long as they get fast service.

• Your agent works 24/7 and never gets tired of asking “Do you already have financing approved?” 😅

---

That’s basically it. Took me around 2 hours to set up my first working prototype. The hardest part is deciding your qualification criteria. The tech side is super no-code, especially on Callin.io.

If anyone’s curious, I can share my exact prompt script that I use (cleaned up so you can copy/paste). Just let me know.

---

👉 What do you guys think? Would you trust an AI to screen your real estate calls, or do you think people still expect a human at first contact?