I have a few questions on this topic. Now I know there are a multitude of ways to prospect and while warm calling and door knocking are not how I want to spend my next twenty years, I do need clients and individuals to add to my database. I would greatly appreciate any advice based on this one topic alone.

1. Do you call on expireds the morning of the expired date? I feel I'm calling as well as about two dozen different agents in the area.

2. How early do you start? I started at 8:30 and with 10 calls made already I haven't connected with anyone?

3. To follow along with question 2; do you leave a message or keep calling until you reach someone?

4. If you never reach someone do you send out a thank you card or some sort of mailer?

Those are the ones I can remember right now. There were a ton of them last night but now I seem to be drawing a blank.

Thank you for the advice everyone,

Shawn

I have drove by and knocked on the door you can't talk to as many but the closing percentage is through the roof.

Agreed - - it's almost always better to establish rapport with a face to face conversation. Definitely slower than phone calling, but I wouldn't try to contact every expired. There's a reason these listings didn't sell the first time around - - I'm not interested in listing a piece of crap that the vendor thinks is worth full market value.

Cherry pick the best ones and focus your efforts on those. Don't wait until they've already expired though, get started a couple weeks before the listings will actually expire. Identify the prime potential targets and then get started.

Drop off or mail them a flyer/brochure. Book an agent preview of the property and take a few notes while you're there - - this lets you get knowledgeable about the property. Book it in teh evening around 7pm - - ideally the vendors will be home when you get there and you take that opportunity to strike up a conversation with them.

- - Hi, I'm here for the agent preview between 7 and 8.

- - Preview? Where's your buyer?

- - Yes, I try to preview the home myself and prescreen it for my clients so I can be sure it's something that would meet their needs before I bring them by.

- - I've never heard of that?

- - It's a another value add for my clients that my service provides. It doesn't amtter if you're buying or selling with me, I work for you and my mandate is to not only get you the best possible deal, but to provide the best possible service to go along with it. Now I'm going to get started by taking a look upstairs....by the way, here's my card.

You're not there to sell him anything or to beg for his business. You're just out working for your clients and taking care of their interests. Not soliciting his business while he's currently under contract with another agent - - just telling him everything you do to go above and beyond for your clients. And likely causing him to wonder if said agent is providing that level of service to him.

Before you leave make sure to bring up the topic of how long his house has been on the market.

- - I noticed your property has been on the market for a while now. From what I've seen it shows pretty well.

- - Uhh, yeah.

- - Well don't get too discouraged. I mean, there's all kinds of reasons why a property doesn't sell. That's actually one of the topics that I wrote about in my guide book for selling houses. I wish I had a copy with me to give to you.

- - Oh yeah?

- - I'll tell you what though, I've got an appointment in the neighbourhood tomorrow night around this time, and what I can do is drop off a copy for you on my way by.

Then you drop off your pre listing package - - a.k.a your guide book for selling houses - - for him the next night. You're giving him a valuable guide, and not asking for anything in return. It's like what Mase said in Harlem Lullaby - - I give and get it back in a hundred fold.

There's a better than average chance his house isn't going to sell in the next few days, and in the event that he decides to re list again, who do you think is going to be the agent that's at the top of his mind? Now when you knock on his door the day after the listing has expired, you won't even need an introduction.

Don's got the right idea on planting the seed, but that may not be your cup of tea either for the next 20 years. So, if you'd like to have lead generation that is consistent and isn't going anywhere, look to the internet. Using programs like DiverseSolutions and the like really up potential. The best part is, once you do the work to establish an internet personality and gain some search engine credibility, the leads come without any effort. I would especially suggest this if you have any desire to open a brokerage.

Indeedies

I would take some of the property dons suggestions but if you were to jump the gun past a certain point on any of my company listings I would have you up before the board in no time flat. And I have a couple of ex-board members who can testify that it wasn't the brightest idea they ever had.

Something we did for awhile was to contact the listing agent and suggest if they were going to lose the listing that they get something out of it. We would take it over with a new listing and put them on it for 1/3rd.

We made an appointment with the agent and the sellers, of course their broker needed to be on board. And if the sellers didn't see the light we didn't want it either, a unsaleable listing is an unsaleable listing. It was a fairly successful program but I changed it to something else that was even better for me, but I'll keep that one to myself for a few more years.

thats increedibly unethical to contact an expireds before it expired..very clever..
and very unethical in the state of nj..trust me you are gonna [censored] off a lot of agents..
and may find yourself facing fines from the mls board
and the real estate commission..
plus pissing off all the agents in the mls..the ones you nbeed to sell more homes..

OK, I give up where is this incredibly unethical activity when we are contacting the listing broker instead of the seller prior to expiration, or was you post intended in response to someone else's post.

You know what is funny, is you'll have been brainwashed into thinking that contacting a currently listed property is 'unethical'. You know what is ludicrous, is that our industry's bylaws violate the Sherman Anti-Trust Act for this very reason, can you imagine if AAA were able to sue Geico because they solicited me for my auto-insurance? Or if Safeway could sue Giant for trying to show me their specials? This is where I whole-heartedly disagree with most of you that have been in this business for longer than me and have come to accept it in the norm. NAR should have their pants sued off for this part of our code of ethics, completely unethical to discourage competition, and completely illegal... good thing NAR's pockets are so deep they can fund tons of support in Congress.. one day though, there will be a judge who has the brains and the balls to say - uh uh - I don't need to be re-elected.

By the way -- I hate Help-U-Sell & Redfin just as much as you do.. but what can I say, this is Capitalism and competition is just part of the game... make them sign a listing agreement with no cancellation or a termination fee or else.. sell the damn house..

You forgot to think: Can you imagine the craziness that would go on in and around a seller's house 24/7 if we were allowed to chase clients already under contract and try and talk them out of it?

The difference is we agents have a bilateral contract with our clients to perform a service and the companies you mention do not.

When you interfere with that contract you are then breaking a law, a civil law but a law non the less. You can look up tortious interference if you need clarification.

If you interfere with a contract between an agent and a seller then that agent can then come after you for damages in court.

So it makes perfect sense for NAR to make something unethical that is already illegal.

I feel for your "clients" seeing as you have rationalized reasons for not following the law and code of ethics because it gets in your way. This type of rationalization is one of the reasons why real estate agents have such a bad reputation.

Going to preview the house, planting a tiny seed seems like a good idea, but, with my MLS, the only way to know when a listing expires is by contacting the listing agent. If you outright ask the seller and not the listing agent, our board KNOWS there's only one reason why you're asking. Our MLS rules have it that the listing agent is obligated to tell you. If they don't, you then have the blessing of asking the seller. It is considered dishonest and our board feels you do not serve the public well with dishonesty. It's the way it is.

To "drop off" or send this seller a specific package - you do violate, at least, Virginia rules. This is not part of a "regular" mailing or advertising to a farm that you've been marketing for a great length of time. And yes, REALTOR DC, I can understand anti-trust and all that stuff (worked legal for years and STILL can't get away from it). I don't have a written agreement with Geico except I pay them and they insure me. I stop paying, they stop insuring. But there is a written agreement between Listing Agent and Seller, just as there may be between Selling Agent and Buyer. It's an agreement that should be respected. If we don't respect each other's agreements, then there's no reason not to view real estate agents as low-lifes.

Bigtoe beat me to it - I type tooooo slowly.

Oh agreed, but all listing agreements have an expiration date & a termination clause right? The idea that we should not be able to solicit sellers is what I have a problem with, I'm not saying you should talk them into breaching their contract, but marketing takes time. The idea that I can't or shouldn't knock on a door or mail someone whose house is currently listed I think is an anti-trust violation.. this is my opinion, I'm not asking them to break their contract or slandering their agent, I am simply soliciting them just like everyone else in America. So if I have a written 2 year agreement with Sprint, Verizon should not be able to try to get me to switch? Is what you are saying..? Because they sure do seem to mail me every couple weeks and I do have a 2 year agreement with Sprint..

There has to be some line in the sand we should not cross. When someone is under contract with another Realtor by no means should you be deceitful in trying to plant a seed with the seller to try to obtain their business before the listing should expire. In my opinion it is deceitful to say that you have a buyer you need to preview a property for when you don't. If you actually do have a buyer that would fit a particular property then that is a different story. As far as mailings go, if you mail to your farm and happen to hit listed properties then there is nothing unethical or against the law on that. As long as you intent is to generate leads for new business and not to target listed properties.

DC I'm also new like you, 7 months in, with sprint and verizon you are a customer. Like in real estate you have customers and clients. With your clients you have an agency arrangement with them that comes with fiduciary considerations, with customers you don't. This is why the trust act probably isn't going to apply here. I think of it like this with customers your on the cash registers side opposite the customer and with clients your on the cash or credit side sliding the card through for your client. Now if someone tries to snatch that card, yeah we are going to court. Just like any other common thief.

Now with that said like any good thief, trying to find ways around this isn't that difficult. I made a list and then drew a line which separates the ethical and legal from the unethical and illegal. Then I just walk the line.

And if you work expireds like I do, you know how difficult it is to keep up any rate of success which is why most agents who do this are new. So eventually you going to need to market yourself. Not just to other consumers but to agents as well. So don't do anything to cast yourself in a negative light with agents in your area. Unless you plan on making a career of expired listings.

'Brainwashed'? Perhaps some have different set of ethics than you, it doesn't qualify those who differ as 'brainwashed'.

By the way, as you're fairly new I don't know whether you have any listings, but if you do, you wouldn't have any issue with other agents openly soliciting your clients?