The average sale price in the United States is just a bit higher than $400,000. That makes the average commission about $12,000. This means you need eight deals to gross $100,000 and about 10 to net $100,000 — about two transactions per month. Inventory is rising. The only question is whether YOU will be the one to list the next homes in your market!
Fact: When you LIST two homes per month, you will automatically attract buyer business as well, so focus on listings!
Fact: It looks like you have more time than you do to create these 8-10 transactions. Take a wall calendar or your planner and count up the actual work days left in this year (or quarter…you can use this plan for ANY quarter you wish!)
Example: There are 14 weeks left this year, 90 days total. When you take out weekends and holidays, not to mention travel or other things you’ve got scheduled, you’ll find that you have 70 to 80 work days at most. Put a dollar sign on your work days so you are super focused on dollar productive activity on those days!
Post that calendar on your wall.
Rules to commit to before you accept the $100,000 challenge:
You will have to actively contact both people you already know as well as those you don’t know. People you know are past clients, people in your sphere of influence, and agent referrals. People you don’t know are everyone else. Are you willing to speak with both to earn your $100k this quarter?
You should analyze where your business came from last quarter, through last year, and keep doing what has worked. Consider doing more of what worked. For example, if you had five transactions from repeat clients, but you didn’t have a system to speak with your database regularly, how many more repeat clients could you create this year by being more drilled down on that source of business?
You must be willing to do what you don’t want to do when you don’t want to do it at the highest level. Keep doing what you’re doing and you’ll keep getting what you’re getting. To go to the next level financially, you must go to the next level with your skills.
You must ask for help when you need it. Don’t waste time re-inventing the wheel, sampling, or trying things out. Get help through coaching and make sure you’ve discussed your goals with your family, partner or team, so everyone is all- in!
Are you ready to commit to the $100,000 4th quarter challenge?
Let’s look at these 12 guaranteed effective lead sources to get you those eight listings and your $100k by the end of the quarter!
Expired listings. Expireds are at the top of the list because of the following:
–They clearly want to sell and many have to sell. These are the listings you’re looking for! There’s been a huge increase in expired listings recently since most agents still had too-short listing agreements in anticipation of the hot seller’s market continuing.
–You know that the wrong price is likely a problem. Your comparative market analysis is much easier on an expired listing.
–The agent you would have competed against (the one they thought would get the job done, who they probably already knew) is now out of the picture.
–The seller will correct negative feedback and reprice the home in most cases, creating a quick sale. The average days on the market for re-listed expireds is always very low.
Bonus: Don’t forget old and older expired listings. You’ll have less competition and are more likely to get the seller the price they wanted in the first place. Many of these expired sellers will simply ask you what it’s going to take to get it sold.
These are your most motivated prospects. Are you contacting them?
- Your past clients and sphere of influence. Otherwise known as your database, statistically when you have regular and real conversations with your list, 10% of your list will either do business with you or refer business to you every year. What would happen if you committed to speaking with 100% of the people in your database this quarter? Don’t get mad when another agent lists ‘your’ past client if you’re not making the effort!
- New build salespeople. These are the salespeople who sit in the builder’s model homes and write up all those new construction contracts. When someone builds with them and they have a home to sell, what happens to that lead? This is a fantastic lead source because you can have 1 new build salesperson contact who sends you multiple leads per year. What if you had five new build salesperson relationships?
- For sale by owners. When the market is hot like it’s been for so long, there are always plenty of Unrepresented Owners who need your help. Most of them give up on the process if it’s not sold in the first two weekends.
There are luxury- priced, unrepresented owners in today’s market as well. This is a great opportunity because many of them have not yet bought, could build with you, or downsize/upsize and purchase with you.
A recent development since the market has slowed is the fact that many For Sale By Owners were first expired listings. They simply didn’t know what else to do, probably because an agent like you hadn’t reached out to them.
- Open houses. Refer to our podcast, “How to not just ‘sit’ and open house, how to monetize them!” Our open house system and scripts are proven to generate a bare minimum of three close-able buyers or sellers every time.
It’s all about choosing the right house, promoting the open house, using good scripts, and having relentless lead follow-up. Many of our coaching clients have spun this source up to a very predictable listing machine.
If you’ve failed at open houses before, you’re missing a key element of the system to make it work.
- For rent by owners. Investors who own single-family or small multifamily units are an amazing source of new listings for you. This is one of the easiest scripts to learn and polish because it’s a simple business conversation.
If the home is vacant and for rent, might the owner rather sell it versus continue to keep it as a rental? Offer to do a free comparative market analysis so they can make an educated decision and see what that does to their plans.
Again, potentially one contact and multiple transactions. Maybe they want to re-invest in different properties with you. Maybe they want to cash out their entire portfolio while prices are high. You won’t know if you don’t ask. You’ll also love this source because the phone numbers are easy to get!
- Small and medium-sized builders who are building homes on ‘spec’. This means they’re speculating that the house will sell. There are many iterations of this but what is working for our clients lately is to identify buildable lots and take them to the small builder. You sell the lot and list the spec home, often bringing the buyer as well.
- Flippers. Sure, they might sell the home on their own (refer to the previous FSBO point), but flippers often will list with you so you can bring a buyer to them before they’re actually finished with the flip. This helps them because they can flip more homes in less time. A bird in hand so to speak. Meanwhile, while you have it listed and they’re finishing it, the house generates more and more buyer and seller business for you. It’s a win-win for everyone.
- Probate. Not many agents prospect probate leads because they don’t understand it. Probate is simply the process of selling a home after someone passes away. The court appoints an executor of the estate who can then sell the property. If keeping the home in the family is not an option and the executor(s) wish to cash it out, that’s a listing. Sometimes they’ll re-invest the proceeds in real estate, sometimes it’s just the listing that you’ll sell. Either way, they need someone caring and competent to get the job done.
- Your professional center of influence. When was the last time your favorite lender sent you leads? When have you asked? Whom do they know who is getting pre-qualified right now to buy and has a home to sell? Stagers are also great to know because smart sellers call a stager first. Refer business to stagers and ask for leads in exchange.
- Investors. Join a local investors’ club through meetup.com or private Facebook groups in your town. You’ll know who’s looking for what property and which investors are likely to sell. This also will give you insider information about ‘pocket’ listings which can benefit your buyers.
- Door knocking. This is not at the top of the list because it generally takes more contacts to take a listing, but it is still effective when you’re consistent. Door knocking can help you become more comfortable speaking with people about real estate and many times you’ll be at the right place at the right time and indeed take listings from being there. Before you go door-knocking, choose your neighborhood wisely. Does it turn over much? What’s the average sale price? What’s currently active, pending, and recently sold? What’s being built around the neighborhood? Is there new construction nearby? Become the go-to, neighborhood specialist and use good scripts at the door. Start with your own neighborhood since you already know it well.
Convinced you can list and sell 8-10 homes this quarter? If not, why not?
For many of you, you’re probably feeling comfortable with at least two or three of the twelve sources. Start with those and really drill down to increase your contacts and your level of skill. Just ask for help. Waiting is not profitable.
Once you’re getting results from those two or three resources, it’s time to add the next one. You may even have ‘dabbled’ in all twelve, but not really taken each to the next level. What would happen if you decided you will take 8 to 10 listings this quarter?
For those of you who are already listing and selling 8 to 10 homes per quarter, which of the twelve sources do you still need to add to your skillset to take your business to the next level?
Tim and Julie Harris host a podcast for Realtors called Real Estate Coaching Radio. They’ve been professional real estate coaches for more than 20 years, helping agents succeed in many different market conditions.
