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Real estate lead first reply n8n template

What it does

When a new lead lands in Follow Up Boss, this workflow checks SMS consent, stage and quiet hours, looks up the inquired listing in your MLS feed, and has Claude draft a short first text with one real fact and one question. Approval mode saves drafts as notes for agents; with it off, consented leads are texted by Twilio. STOP replies are tagged as opt-outs. You need n8n, Follow Up Boss, Twilio, an MLS feed and an Anthropic API key.

What this workflow does

  1. FUB: new lead (Webhook) receives Follow Up Boss’s peopleCreated event, and FUB: get new people loads the full records.
  2. Check consent and eligibility (Code) skips leads tagged as opted out or already represented, and leads in blocked stages (Trash, Closed, Past Client, Under Contract and Pending by default). For everyone else it records why a text may not go out automatically: no SMS consent in your custom field, no valid mobile number, outside calling hours (it only sends when it is between 8am and 9pm everywhere from Eastern to Pacific time), or approval mode.
  3. FUB: get inquiry event finds the property the lead asked about, and Listing lookup (RESO Web API) checks its current status and details in your MLS feed.
  4. Claude: draft first text (HTTP Request) writes a short message that names the property, uses one fact from the data, asks one question, and avoids topics related to protected classes. Structured outputs return the text plus a review flag.
  5. Validate draft (Code) handles refusal and max_tokens, adds your team name and “Reply STOP to opt out”, and holds the text if the listing is not Active, the draft is too long or contains a link, or any eligibility reason applies.
  6. Send automatically? (If) sends eligible texts through Twilio: send first text. FUB: add note for agent logs what was sent, or saves the suggested text with the reason it was held. API errors land there too, so the agent always sees something.
  7. Twilio: lead replied (Webhook) and Detect opt-out (Code) catch STOP and similar words. FUB: find person by phone and FUB: tag reply or opt-out add the SMS Opt-Out tag and update the consent field, or tag other replies AI Text Replied so an FUB automation can alert the agent.

Before you import

  • A Follow Up Boss admin API key and a custom field for SMS consent that your lead forms fill in. Only the account owner can register FUB webhooks.
  • A Twilio number registered for A2P 10DLC.
  • Access to your MLS’s RESO Web API or your IDX vendor’s feed, under your data license.
  • An Anthropic API key and n8n 1.x with a public URL.

Setup

  1. Create a Basic Auth credential with the FUB API key as username and an empty password. Replace REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SYSTEM_NAME (the X-System header).
  2. Register the peopleCreated webhook in FUB pointing at the FUB: new lead URL.
  3. In Check consent and eligibility, set TEAM_NAME (replacing REPLACE_WITH_TEAM_NAME), TEAM_TZ, CONSENT_FIELD and BLOCKED_STAGES. If all your leads are in one region, narrow EAST_TZ and WEST_TZ to that region’s time zone. Leave APPROVAL_MODE = true at first.
  4. Replace REPLACE_WITH_RESO_BASE_URL and add the MLS bearer token as a Header Auth credential.
  5. Set REPLACE_WITH_TWILIO_NUMBER and point the number’s incoming message webhook at Twilio: lead replied.
  6. Add an FUB automation that notifies the assigned agent when the AI Text Replied tag is added.

Test it

Create a test lead with your own phone, consent set to Yes, and an inquiry on an active listing. In approval mode, check the note. Turn approval mode off, repeat, and confirm the text arrives with your team name and opt-out line. Reply STOP and confirm the tag appears. Repeat with an inactive listing and with no consent; both should only produce notes.

Make it production-ready

  • Under FCC TCPA rules, autodialed marketing texts need prior express written consent, opt-outs made by any reasonable means must be honored within 10 business days, and telephone solicitations are barred before 8am and after 9pm in the recipient’s local time. The template only sends when the 8am to 9pm window is open across Eastern through Pacific time, which keeps texts inside calling hours for continental US leads. Alaska and Hawaii leads need a narrower window, and state telemarketing laws can add rules. This template is not legal advice; have counsel review your consent language.
  • Run approval mode for two weeks and switch to automatic sending once agents stop editing drafts.
  • Add the pause-on-human rule and the qualification loop from the guide before automating follow-ups.
  • Add an error workflow, and respect FUB and MLS API rate limits.
  • claude-haiku-5-5 is cheaper for high volume, but first replies benefit from the stronger model.

Read the full guide at How to automate real estate lead follow-up with AI, see Follow Up Boss integration notes, or talk to us.

Next steps

01 Browse free n8n templates Fifty starter workflows you can import today. No email required. 02 Take the 5-minute AI readiness assessment Get a score and a recommended first project in your browser. 03 Get a written scope and estimate Tell us what you want to automate. We reply within two business days.