I want to share one of the best strategies I’ve heard from a top agent in years. This story comes from my friend Dan, who had a client searching for a specific type of property.

Dan started making calls and came across a duplex owner. While driving by the property, he saw the owner outside mowing the grass. He introduced himself:

"Hi, I’m Dan. I have a buyer interested in multifamily properties, and I was wondering if you’d consider selling these units."

Her response? "No, I think I’m going to hold onto them."

But here’s where Dan worked his magic.

Dan didn’t stop at the first “no.” Instead, he asked a follow-up question:

"Can I ask why you’re holding onto them?"

Her answer? "I think I’m getting a good rate of return."

Dan responded: "That’s great! And if you are, you should definitely keep them. But if I could find you something with a better rate of return, would you consider selling these?"

That opened the door to...

Other than your direct sphere of influence, what’s the second-best source of business for REALTORS? Let me share my perspective and see if it aligns with yours.

We know 70–80% of our business comes from our sphere. So, what should we focus on to generate the remaining 20–30%? In my 35 years of coaching, I believe the biggest opportunity lies in your buyer pool.

Buyers are the ultimate magnet for sellers. The question is, are you using your buyers effectively as a lure? I call this strategy In Search Of (ISO) ads. Here’s how it works:

Think of yourself as a fisherman. The lure on the end of your line could be a free CMA or tips on getting top dollar for a home. But the best lure is a live buyer ready to purchase.

For example, if I have a buyer interested in a specific neighborhood, I’ll let the neighborhood know:

• "I’ve got a live buyer moving from Sacramento. They’re ready to purchase within the next couple of months, but nothing on the...

Every year, NAR studies home buyers and sellers and compiles the data into a report called the NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. It examines metrics like how buyers and sellers behave, how they find agents, and what technology they use.

I pulled out some key insights today that are especially relevant to lead generation.

First, let’s talk about how sellers find their real estate agent. Any guesses? Here’s the data: 77% of sellers find their agents through a referral or repeat business. That number is increasing, not decreasing. Last year, it was 69%, and now it’s up to 77%.

Despite predictions that online leads and new technologies would reduce this percentage, that hasn’t been the case. Referrals and repeat business remain the dominant ways sellers find agents.

Now, how many agents do sellers typically interview before hiring? You might think there’s a lot of competition, but the reality is this: 81% of sellers interview only one agent. While we...

Are you doing live buyer farming right now?

If not, you're missing a huge lead generation opportunity.

So, what is live buyer farming? It’s simple. When you go out to show a home, use the 5-5-10 method: reach out to five homes on either side and 10 homes across the street. Send them a quick text or call saying something like:

"Hey, my name's Jim. I just showed your neighbor's property across the street. They love the neighborhood, but the home didn’t quite check all the boxes. Quick question—would you consider selling for the right price if you didn’t have to list your house and had plenty of time to find your dream home? If you’d consider it, give me a call, email, or text. I’d love to have that conversation."

What's the response rate on this? On average, one out of every 20 people you contact will be open to having that conversation.

This is a winning strategy for lead generation. You’ll start so many conversations that can lead to future...

Hey guys, we know the number of listings getting stale on the market is rising, right?

70% of listings have been on the market for over 30 days, and nearly 50% for over 60 days. What does this mean?

It means more expired listings are going to start showing up in your MLS soon.

Going after expireds is a huge opportunity, something we haven't seen much of in recent years because the market has been so short on listings. But today, we have 34% more listings than a year ago, and many are going stale, which means a lot of them will be coming off the market.

Let me give you one quick, out-of-the-box approach for going after expired listings that’s definitely effective.

The conversation will go like this: I'm going to call that expired listing as early as possible and say, "Hey, my name’s Jim Emily with ABC Real Estate, and I noticed your listing got delisted from the MLS this morning." (The keyword here is delisted).

Then I’ll say, "I’m sure you're getting a lot of...

Have you ever had a seller who wants to overprice their property? Almost all sellers, right? It's pretty much universal. So, what's a conversation we can have with sellers to help them price their home correctly?

One approach I like is called the "One Bite at the Apple" conversation.

Here's how it goes:

"Hey Mr./Mrs. Seller, I totally understand that you want to get top dollar for your home. But the market has shifted a bit, especially when it comes to marketing homes. Over the past five to ten years, mobile and internet searches have become the dominant way buyers find homes. Most buyers—99%—are signed up on a portal to receive new listing updates.

So, here's what that means: when we list your home, within 24 hours, essentially every buyer in the market is going to see it. They'll all get the listing in their inbox around the same time and make a snap decision: is it priced right or overpriced? Do I want to go see it?

This is why most homes that sell do so within the...

Hey guys, here’s something really important:

70% of all the listings in America right now have been on the market for over 30 days, and about 50% have been on for over 60 days.

That should sound some alarm bells if your listings are in that category. One challenge you might be facing is the seller's perception of the market versus the reality.

For the last 10 years, sellers have gotten used to hearing stories of listings getting tons of showings, multiple offers, and selling at or above asking price. But the market is changing. If we look closely at different price categories in the U.S., we’ll find that many price bands have shifted into a buyer's market.

A buyer's market means there’s more than six months of inventory, giving buyers more control and power. Sellers still have leverage in the lower price tiers, but in the upper markets, buyers are gaining more power.

So, what do we do? How do we educate our sellers? The key is understanding the difference between...

Hey guys, did you know that only 5% of REALTORS reach out on the one-year home anniversary after selling someone a house?

Isn’t that crazy? Just 5%! And even fewer do it for the second, third, fourth, or fifth year.

But if you’re one of the 95% who haven’t done this, here’s your opportunity. Go back — not just this year, but 2, 3, 4, or even 5 years — and load up the contacts you’ve forgotten about. Give them a quick call today and say, “Hey, I just wanted to wish you a happy belated one-year (or two, three, five-year) anniversary on your home purchase.”

And by the way, take a couple of minutes to run an updated equity analysis for them. Say, “Here’s how much money you’ve made on your house in the past few years. I’m sending you the report so you can check it out.”

If you start doing this every year with all your past clients, your business will boom. This simple gesture can unlock so much potential....

As we approach the end of summer, many listings might still be lingering on the market. Currently, two-thirds of listings in the U.S. have been on the market for over 30 days, and 40% have been on the market for over 60 days. We're seeing more listings and less activity on the sales side, leading to a buildup of inventory and a shift toward a buyer's market.

If you have a listing that’s been on the market for a few weeks with little activity, try this script:

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Seller, this week I’m refreshing all my listings. Here’s what that means: I’ll be updating the lead photos so your listing looks new in the MLS. I’ll also revise the property description and review all the data points to ensure everything is accurate.

I’ll also schedule a 'meeting the market' to discuss any potential improvements to the listing. This meeting involves considering any incentives we might offer buyers or buyer’s agents. For buyers, we could consider...

So, how are you going to communicate your buyer agent commissions now that the MLS policies have changed?

We can’t list them in the MLS anymore, and agents and offices are coming up with different approaches. I want to share one of my favorite ideas that I’ve seen a few offices implement.

One office is using a Google Sheet—a live, online spreadsheet. The Google Sheet lists all their property addresses in one column and the corresponding buyer agent commissions (BACs) in another. It’s simple but effective. Since it’s a live document, you can update it in real time. The sheet generates a URL, so anyone with that link can access it and see the current BACs.

Now, here’s the cool part: With that URL, you can create a QR code using any free online generator. Attach the QR code to your marketing materials, and when someone scans it, they’ll be taken directly to your Google Sheet with all the BACs. As you add or remove listings, the document updates...