> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.latchel.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# March 16, 2026

Welcome to a Special Edition of the Latchel Connection Newsletter!

For over a year, we’ve shared regular product updates through this newsletter, but today we’re sending a special off-cycle edition to highlight some exciting new releases we couldn’t wait to share

As always, these updates are designed to streamline your workflows and enhance your Latchel experience. Thanks for being an important part of the Latchel community!

### **New Features**

1. Meet Latchel’s New, Instant Answer Maintenance Call Intake

Now when residents call your **Latchel-assigned maintenance line** to submit a new request, they'll be greeted by our new **AI-powered phone intake system**. It's **fast**, **available 24/7**, and capable of handling most requests — including **urgent and emergency work orders** — right away.

<Tip>
  **A few things to know:**

  * **Instant response, any time** — no hold times for routine or emergency requests — even during **seasonal peaks or extreme weather events**.
  * **Human backup, always** — prefer to talk to a person? A **live team member is available within 60 seconds**.
  * **Same great service** — our expert human team **reviews and provides second-level troubleshooting for emergency requests**.
  * **Coming soon: Multilingual voice intake.** Follow our product newsletter for updates!
</Tip>

We made this change to deliver **faster service** without sacrificing the **personal support you expect from Latchel**.

2. **New Performance Metrics for Work Orders & Vendors**

We’ve added **8 new performance metrics** to help you better understand how quickly jobs move through your workflow and how your vendors are performing.

These new insights make it easier to identify bottlenecks, track vendor responsiveness, and improve how efficiently maintenance requests get resolved.

<Tip>
  **New metrics include:**

  * **Days from Job Assignment to Final Visit** — See how long it typically takes for a job to be completed after it’s assigned to a vendor.
  * **Hours to Invoice** — Track how long it takes vendors to submit an invoice after completing a job.
  * **Hours to Approve Work Orders** and **Hours to Approve Budgets** — Understand how long requests may sit waiting for approvals from your team.
  * **Hours to Schedule** — Measure how long it takes for a job to get scheduled after the work order is created (including time before it’s sent to a vendor).
  * **Days to Resolve** — See the total time it takes for a work order to move from creation to resolution.
  * **Budget Increase Rate** — Track how often jobs require a budget increase after the initial estimate.
</Tip>

Want to see how your performance compares to **similar property management companies?**

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  <Card title="Upgrade to Analytics+" color="#ff9b8a" icon="grid-2-plus" iconType="duotone" horizontal href="https://latchel.com/upgrade-to-analytics-plus/" />
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By upgrading, you will unlock **benchmarking insights** and deeper reporting. Companies who **refer other property managers** **to Latchel earn one year of Analytics+ for free!**

3. **Property Management Emergency Team Schedules**

**Do you want Latchel to contact different team members for emergency and extreme habitability escalations, or emergency budget approvals?** We now allow self-service management of your own team's schedules. This even includes swapping people out for both planned and unexpected absences. Make sure you never miss an emergency escalation due to out of date contact information.

<Tip>
  Reach out to [<u>success@latchel.com</u>](mailto:success@latchel.com) to configure your account for team schedules.
</Tip>

### **Influence Our 2026 Roadmap**

We’re locking our **2026 priorities** soon, and this is your chance to directly **influence what we build next**. It takes less than **60 seconds** — and every response is reviewed by our product and leadership teams!

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Your input directly impacts which features get built, improved, or deprioritized — this is where that thought turns into action!

### **Interested in learning more about Latchel's products? Book a meeting with us.**

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  <Card title="Get a Demo" color="#ff9b8a" icon="comments-question-check" iconType="duotone" horizontal href="https://latchel.com/demo-request-releases/" />
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