Every major U.S. census survey in recent years shows over 1 in 5 people (22 %) speak a language other than English at home. Census.gov

And among those, many report they speak English less than very well.

In the apartment world, that matters. Because if your leasing office can’t handle calls in a prospect’s language, you create a barrier at your first point of contact.

What we’ve seen happen

• Calls go unanswered or they are rerouted to English-only agents. The prospect gives up.
• Agents struggle with broken translations mid-call, losing clarity on pricing, lease terms, or move-in timing.
• The friction of trying to lease in a language you don’t speak is too high, renters will simply go to the property that can understand them.

In one property we helped, French-speaking prospects were routinely routed to English agents. The result: high dropoff rates after the initial intro, tours canceled, and wasted leads.

Why spoken language on calls beats text translation

• Tone builds trust. A perfectly translated email can still feel flat. Hearing a prospect’s language spoken back to them creates instant connection.
• It’s a real conversation. On a call, you catch pauses, hesitations, and tone shifts—clues you can respond to in real time.
• No friction, no delay. There’s no “let me send you a translated version” or “I’ll call back with a translator.” The conversation happens immediately.
• Confidence to close. When everything is clear and natural on the first call, prospects are more comfortable moving forward.

How Vivian fixes this

• Vivian communicates in over 50+ languages.
• She answers calls (and texts, emails and chats) in the prospect’s language instantly.
• She knows leasing operations: pricing, availability, application steps, compliance.
• Conversations carry context. If the prospect switches languages mid-call, Vivian retains history and meaning.
• Because she works cross-channel, the call ties into any prior chat or text, making the experience seamless.

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Why this matters now

Margins in leasing are tighter than ever. Every vacant unit is lost revenue, and every lost call is a missed opportunity you may not get back. In this market, prospects won’t wait for clarity or struggle through a conversation they can’t understand, they’ll move on to the community that makes it easy.

That’s why spoken language access on calls isn’t a perk. It’s a competitive necessity. Operators using language-capable AI like Vivian aren’t just translating words, they’re keeping prospects engaged in real time, across any language, and removing the friction that makes renters leave.

Vivian does more than answer questions. She builds connection. And connection is what fills units. In a market where every lease matters, that difference is everything.