Grotto AI Helps Hillpointe Cut Leasing New-Hire Ramp Time 10x and Drive 27% Higher Tour-to-Lease Conversion

NMHC Top-10 Developer Uses Grotto to Accelerate Training, Improve Conversion and Save 100+ Hours of Administrative Work Per Property Each Month

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Grotto, the AI platform purpose-built for multifamily leasing, today announced results from its partnership with Hillpointe, an NMHC top-10 developer delivering more than 10,000 units of attainable housing annually. Using Grotto across its centralized contact center and on-site portfolio, Hillpointe reduced new-hire ramp time from 90 days to 9 days for on-site leasing agents and from 30 days to 3 days in its contact center. Agents using Grotto also converted tours to leases 27% more often than non-users.

The results show how AI can move beyond basic automation to measurably change how human leasing teams are trained and how they perform. At Hillpointe, Grotto is helping operators shorten the time it takes to get new hires up to speed, improve conversion, and identify where leasing opportunities are being won or lost.

Across Hillpointe’s portfolio, more than 90% of live tours are recorded, giving Grotto visibility into the interactions between leasing teams and prospects. That interaction data is used to reinforce coaching, surface opportunities for improvement, and automate administrative work. The result: Hillpointe saves more than 100 hours of work per property each month while giving operators greater visibility into leasing performance.

The impact extends beyond administrative efficiency. Agents who used Grotto saw 50% higher tour-to-application conversion compared to agents not using the platform. Within Grotto-assisted tours, high-scoring tours converted to leases at 2.5x the rate of low-scoring tours, and closed leases within seven days twice as often. The data also underscores that coaching is not a one-time intervention. When Grotto was temporarily paused, coached behaviors returned to the uncoached baseline quickly, underscoring the need for continuous feedback and reinforcement to sustain performance.

These results point to a measurable connection between leasing behaviors and business outcomes, giving operators a way to identify what high-performing agents do differently and reinforce those behaviors across their teams.

“The most valuable part of AI isn't just automating a task; it's helping operators understand what actually drives results,” said Nick Deveau, Founder and CEO of Grotto AI. “At Hillpointe, we learn which behaviors their specific top performers use to actually win leads, and then we coach everyone up based on that definition of success. We make sure that everything Grotto measures and coaches is directly connected to conversion. That's the kind of impact we're focused on delivering: helping leasing teams perform better and giving operators a measurable way to scale what works.”

For Hillpointe, the findings demonstrate how interaction data can become an operating tool – helping the company identify the behaviors that correlate with better leasing outcomes, reinforce those behaviors at scale, and reduce the administrative burden on frontline teams.

“Our goal is to create a brand experience that renters can trust, no matter which Hillpointe property they walk into,” said Josh Draughn, SVP of Marketing and Centralized Operations at Hillpointe. “Consistency is everything, because that first impression is so impactful and hard to gain back if you don’t start off well. Grotto gives us visibility into what’s happening on the front lines and the ability to turn that insight into action. It’s giving our teams more time to focus on prospects while creating a more consistent experience across the portfolio.”

Grotto Assist, Grotto’s post-tour AI copilot, is one component of the platform’s broader approach to turning leasing interactions into measurable operational improvements. Assist automatically transcribes interactions, populates guest cards, drafts personalized prospect follow-ups, and generates reporting, helping teams reduce the administrative work that follows every interaction.

For more information, the full case study is available at https://grotto.ai/blog/hillpointe_casestudy_blogpost.

About Grotto AI

Grotto AI is the AI platform that helps multifamily operators reduce vacancy loss by supercharging their leasing teams. Grotto AI delivers real-time guidance and post-call coaching that turns leasing conversations into measurable revenue. Grotto AI is trusted by the nation’s largest and most well-respected owners, operators, and developers. The company is backed by ICONIQ and Asymmetric Capital Partners. Learn more at grotto.ai.

About Hillpointe

Hillpointe is a vertically integrated real estate development and investment management firm specializing in attainable multifamily housing across the Sun Belt. Headquartered in Winter Park, Florida, Hillpointe manages over $1.7 billion in equity capital and has been involved in the development, construction and management of more than 18,000 apartment homes with a capitalization exceeding $3.2 billion. The company currently owns and operates 45 properties totaling 12,075 units and was ranked No. 5 and No. 7 on NMHC's 2026 lists of the nation's largest multifamily developers and builders, respectively. For more information, visit www.hillpointe.com.