Clara's prospect email: one core, small overlays

Western Slope broke the assumption behind the leasing email prompt: it was built for one apartment community with an onsite office, and Western Slope is scattered single-family homes across several towns with a centralized team. One core prompt, small named overlays, instead of a second prompt per client.

Proposed — pending Fede's review · drafted 2026-09-19 · BEFORE evidence in from the real-inquiry replay; AFTER pending the rewrite

Contents

  1. TL;DR
  2. The design: core + overlays
  3. Rubric R1–R6
  4. Evidence
  5. Decisions for Fede
  6. Links

TL;DR

The design: core + overlays

One sentence describes the failure: the prompt assumed a shape of business that not every client has, so it reached for the one universal fallback — "call the office" — every time a client's shape didn't match. The fix is not a second prompt. It's a core that holds for everyone, and overlays that replace one named slot each.

CORE (every client, no exceptions)

A warm one-liner, then the answer, then one concrete next step — real tour slots when there are any. Five sentences or fewer. Facts only from the knowledge base and live availability, nothing else.

Overlays (named slots, picked from record fields)

OverlayCompany fieldValuesSlot it replaces
A — inventory shapeinventoryShapecommunity | scatteredhow Clara talks about "the property" — one community vs. a portfolio of addresses
B — team modelteamModelonsite | centralizedwho else is mentioned, if anyone — an onsite office vs. no office to name
C — asset typeproperty rowsingle-family → …the noun for the listing — "the home," never "Unit 280"
CORE answer + next step A — inventory shape community | scattered inventoryShape B — team model onsite | centralized teamModel C — asset type single-family → "the home" property row
Rule: an overlay only replaces its own named slot, never patches another overlay's output. Each overlay carries its own tests. A rule that's true for every client — like "no office hand-off" or "no vacancy counts" — moves into the core instead of living as an overlay everyone happens to set the same way.

Rubric R1–R6

RubricDefinition
R1Answers the question about the specific listing the prospect asked about.
R2No "not on file" / apologetic admissions ("unfortunately," "I don't have that").
R3Five sentences or fewer; no checklist dumps.
R4No hand-off to an office, phone number, or mailbox.
R5Ends on one concrete next step.
R6Never calls a single-family home "Unit n."

Evidence

AFTER pending. BEFORE is in, from the real-inquiry replay against 52 Western Slope syndicated guest cards, 2026-08-18 to 2026-09-19 (compose-only, nothing sent). AFTER fills in once the rewrite runs the same replay.

Quality read, 51 real inquiries (2026-09-19)

A judge read Clara's first email for 51 real Western Slope inquiries, once without and once with the renter's actual message, read-only.

VerdictWithout message (51)With message (37)
Send as is12 (23%)8 (21%)
Needs edit23 (45%)28 (75%)
Do not send16 (31%)1 (2%)

Control run against an open same-type home: 9 of 15 flipped to a correct offer, so "nothing available" is data, not a bug; but 4 of 15 attached the open home's numbers to the address the renter typed (address swap), which already fires in production.

Rubric pass rate, before → after

RubricBefore (N=52)After (pending)
R1 — answers the specific listing100% (41/41 applicable)pending
R2 — no "not on file" / apology100% (52/52)pending
R3 — ≤5 sentences, no checklist88% (46/52)pending
R4 — no office hand-off96% (50/52)pending
R5 — concrete next step88% (46/52)pending
R6 — no "Unit n" on single-family100% (38/38)pending

28 of 52 emails say nothing is available — being verified against AppFolio's vacancy report; if true, similar-homes (#9925) is the highest-value follow-up.

Sample 1 — Ethan, 566 Placer St

Home gone, 6-month lease ask, cat, cargo trailer. Real AppFolio inquiry text.

Before

Hi Ethan,

Thanks for reaching out about 566 Placer St. Right now there isn't a unit available there, including Unit 280, so I don't have current pricing or availability to share for an October 1 move-in. I'd suggest calling the leasing office directly at (970) 434-7000 or emailing leasing@westernslopepm.com to check on timing for that address, since they'll have the most current picture.

On the lease term: standard leases here run 12 months. A 6-month term with an option to extend would be outside the usual terms, so that's something the leasing team would need to weigh in on directly.

Good news on the cat — pets are welcome, with a $300 refundable pet deposit and $35/month pet rent, and every pet gets registered through OurPetPolicy before move-in.

As for parking for multiple vehicles plus a 7x16 cargo trailer, I don't have specifics on file for what this property can accommodate, so that's another one best confirmed with the leasing office — they'll know what the site can actually handle.

Feel free to give them a call or send an email with your details, and they can help you sort out the lease term and parking questions together.

Fails R2 (two "I don't have on file" admissions), R3 (5 paragraphs), R4 (office hand-off twice), R6 ("Unit 280" on a single-family home).

After — pending

Fills in with the replay.

Sample 2 — Katie, 460 32 1/8 Rd

"2 bed 1.5 bath blue home that allows dogs." Real AppFolio inquiry text.

Before

Hi Katie,

Thanks for reaching out! We do have a 2 bedroom home available right now — it's 1,728 sqft and rents for $1,300/mo. It's listed as 2 bath rather than 1.5, so if the blue home you saw was a specific listing elsewhere, this may or may not be the exact one — happy to help either way.

Dogs and cats are both welcome here (limit two pets, third considered case by case). There's a refundable pet deposit of $300 total and pet rent of $35 per pet per month.

For next steps: the application fee is $40 per applicant, and you'll want two forms of ID plus proof of income ready to go (self-employed applicants provide one year of profit and loss). Once everything's submitted, decisions typically come back in 1 to 2 business days. A security deposit (usually one month's rent) applies as well, and renter's insurance with at least $100,000 liability is required before move-in.

If you'd like to see the home or have questions about the application, the best way to reach the team is by calling (970) 434-7000 — they're also reachable at leasing@westernslopepm.com.

Fails R3 (4 paragraphs, application-checklist dump) and R4 (office hand-off at the close). R1 and R6 pass — correctly flags the 1.5 vs. 2 bath mismatch instead of asserting a match, and never says "Unit n."

After — pending

Fills in with the replay.

Sample 3 — plain "Interested in <property>"

No inquiry text on the card at all — the generic subject-line-only case.

Before

Hi [prospect],

Thanks for reaching out about Pomona Park Townhomes! We're a townhome community here in Grand Junction, and I'd love to help you find the right fit.

Right now we've got three-bedroom townhomes running $2,495–$2,595/mo, all around 1,528 sqft.

Let me know what you're looking for — bedroom count, budget, or move-in timing — and I can point you toward the best options. Happy to answer any questions about the community too.

Passes R1–R6 as written. Kept as the baseline "already fine" case — the rewrite must not regress it.

After — pending

Fills in with the replay.

Decisions for Fede

D1 — how long review mode stays on at Western Slope

  1. Recommended. Review mode stays on until the rubric holds ≥95% across two consecutive weekly replays.
  2. Review mode stays on until Fede says otherwise, no fixed bar.

D2 — how many overlay axes ship now

  1. Recommended. Inventory shape and team model ship as full overlays now; asset type ships as a noun swap only ("the home," not a full overlay with its own logic).
  2. All three ship as full overlays with their own logic and tests now.

D3 — similar-homes suggestions (#9925)

  1. Recommended. After this rewrite lands and clears the replay bar, not inside it — keeps this PR to one concern.
  2. Build similar-homes suggestions into this same rewrite.
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