Finding Sellers is also called “Prospecting for Sellers.”
Prospecting for sellers is similar to prospecting for buyers. The same activities that generate buyers will also find sellers. Most real estate agents design marketing material to take advantage of reaching both buyers and sellers at the same time. Yet, having a property listed as an agent will put the agent in contact with buyers through inquiries on the property. For that reason, most agents focus on finding listings.
Sellers can be found through the following methods:
- Working office phone duty for incoming calls or “walk-ins.”
- Holding open houses of one property to find other potential sellers who visit the property.
- Reaching out to family and friends to find out who is in the market to sell.
- Asking friends and family for referrals.
- Joining groups and clubs to meet more people.
- Networking with professionals.
- Farming neighborhoods or demographic groups. In real estate, a farm area is an area/neighborhood picked by a licensee to market to on a very regular basis; thus, cultivating sellers.
- Contacting For Sale By Owners to try to list the property.
- Contacting sellers that have had their property expire unsold in the multiple listing service.
- Finally, in today’s market it is important to find a way to reach buyers online. This spans from sending emails, posting on social media and building formal business web pages.
Finding sellers does not require spending money. But once a licensee reaches the stage in his or her career where he or she decides to spend marketing dollars – do so with careful, measurable results!
Consult with your broker for more ideas about finding sellers.
By Pamela Kemper, Instructor
Azure Tide All Florida School of Real Estate
For more information see references:
Florida Real Estate Sales Associate Post-Licensing Excellence by Pamela Kemper
Career Tips: Finding Buyers by Pamela Kemper