Some do, and the share depends on how you ask. A 2026 Rentals.ca survey found 28.5% of Canadian renters had used an AI tool such as ChatGPT in their search. A 2025 SatisFacts study found only 11.5% of renters named AI as a source they used while shopping. Listing sites still lead at 65%.
How many renters use AI to search for a rental?
The Rentals.ca Spring Renter Preference Survey collected 1,194 responses across Canada between May 5 and June 14, 2026. It asked whether renters had used AI tools to help with their apartment search, and 28.5% said yes. It was the first year Rentals.ca tracked the behaviour, so there is no trend line yet.
The SatisFacts 2025 Biennial Online Renter Study asked a narrower question: which sources renters actually used when shopping for an apartment. AI search or chat tools came in at 11.5%. Listing sites came in at 65%, a community's own website at 51.7%, and a traditional search engine at 46%.
Read together, the gap makes sense. Plenty of renters ask a chatbot something during a search. Far fewer treat it as a place to shop for the unit itself.
What do renters actually ask AI to do?
Mostly research. Among the Rentals.ca respondents who used AI, 57.7% used it to find listings or research neighbourhoods, 45.5% to compare rents across areas, 40.2% to understand lease terms or rental rules, and 38.1% for budgeting advice.
The fifth use matters most to a leasing team: 33.3% of AI users had it help write messages to landlords. Some of the inquiries already in your inbox were drafted with AI. The renter has done the homework and is waiting on you.
Who is most likely to use AI in a rental search?
Younger and higher-income renters, though the spread is narrower than you might expect. Rentals.ca found adoption highest at 35.5% among renters aged 25 to 34. Renters 65 and over came in at 22.8%. By income, 37.9% of renters earning $125,000 or more had used AI, against 23.8% of those earning under $25,000.
Region moved the number too. Ontario led at 29.9% and Quebec sat lowest at 22.7%. SatisFacts saw a flatter picture in its US sample: AI use stayed roughly between 9% and 12% across generations and under about 14% even among renters with advanced degrees.
Where does AI fall short for renters?
Fresh, local facts. Most users liked it: 72.6% of Rentals.ca's AI users called it helpful. But 21.2% did not, and Rentals.ca points to the reasons: listing data that was out of date, local market nuance the tool missed, and lease guidance from a general-purpose assistant that is no substitute for legal advice.
Those gaps are exactly the questions a property manager owns. Is the unit still available? Are cats allowed? When can I see it? A chatbot can point a renter toward your listing. It cannot confirm a showing time on your calendar.
What should property managers do about AI renter search?
If somewhere between one renter in nine and one in four is using AI during the search, the practical moves are modest ones.
First, keep listings complete and accurate everywhere they appear, because both renters and AI tools read them. The Rentals.ca 2025 Year in Review found high-performing listings typically had detailed descriptions, fully completed listing fields and often 18 or more photos. Second, make availability, pet policy and showing times easy to confirm. Those are the answers AI gets wrong. Third, reply while the renter is still in research mode. Our property management software trends for 2026 post covers how AI discovery fits into the wider leasing stack.
LetHub handles the third part. It answers rental inquiries in about 30 seconds by text, chat and phone, around the clock, and books the showing in the same conversation, including self-showings with bank-level ID verification. Book a demo to see it on your own listings.
Renters and AI search: FAQ
What percentage of renters use ChatGPT to find apartments?
It depends on the question. Rentals.ca's 2026 survey of 1,194 Canadian renters found 28.5% had used an AI tool such as ChatGPT or Gemini to help with their search. SatisFacts' 2025 renter study found 11.5% named AI search or chat tools as a source they used while apartment shopping.
Do renters trust AI for rental search?
Mostly, with limits. In the Rentals.ca survey, 72.6% of renters who used AI found it helpful and 21.2% did not. The reasons given were outdated listing data, missed local nuance and lease guidance that is no substitute for legal advice, so renters still need the property manager to confirm the details.
Are AI tools replacing rental listing sites?
Not on current data. SatisFacts found 65% of renters used listing sites while apartment shopping, compared with 11.5% for AI tools. Rentals.ca found the most common AI use was finding listings or researching neighbourhoods, at 57.7% of AI users, so AI often works alongside listings rather than instead of them.
Are rental inquiries being written by AI?
Some are. Rentals.ca found 33.3% of renters who used AI had it help write messages to landlords. Expect more complete first messages with dates, budget and questions included. A renter who arrives that prepared is ready for a showing time, so a fast and specific reply matters more than a template.
