Want to know the foundation of a thriving real estate practice? A well-tended client database.
Experienced agents will tell you the same story: their sphere of influence remains their most reliable well. But in today's crowded market, you need multiple channels feeding that well.
Whether you work residential or commercial, you need intelligent tools that reach potential sellers before your competition does.
Identifying and acquiring quality leads
Finding your next client starts with knowing where they are in their buying or selling journey. Here's where agents are digging up quality leads right now:
Expired listings
40% relist within 30 days
Target motivated sellers who already tried the agent route
FSBO
90% fail to sell on their own, 70% list within 4 weeks
Approach them as a problem-solver, not a salesperson
Distressed properties
Highly motivated sellers
Help homeowners facing financial difficulties
Geographic/demographic targeting
Access to 134+ million property addresses
Zero in on neighborhoods where your message resonates
Winning expired listings and converting FSBOs? You've got to prove your value fast.
Professional-grade tools make the difference: Automated Valuation Models (AVMs) from the same providers appraisers and lenders use give you instant credibility that free consumer tools can't touch. Visual tools like buyer demand heatmaps let you drop concrete proof of your marketing reach right on the table.
For FSBOs especially, bring both a traditional valuation report and an instant cash offer option. Different sellers want different things.
If you don't cover both angles, an iBuyer will.
Expired listing databases
Expired listings are properties that didn't sell during their contract period.
About 40% relist with a different agent within a month.
These homeowners still want to sell. They're just disappointed in how round one went.
For expired listing data, Vulcan7 tends to give you cleaner contact information.
ArchAgent delivers their leads early morning, which puts you ahead of other agents targeting the same properties.
Some agents swear by REDX for their skip-traced data, though your mileage varies by market.
Remember though: these databases hand you raw contact information. Converting expired listings takes smart, persistent follow-up.
Ylopo's AI² technology automates this process, keeping these motivated sellers warm through intelligent text and voice conversations. Our system flags when an expired listing owner shows renewed interest and pings you immediately.
You never miss your shot at winning that listing the second time around.
For sale by owner (FSBO) databases
FSBOs form another gold mine. These homeowners tried selling on their own.
But nationwide, roughly 90% fail. Within just a month, nearly 70% list with an agent.
For FSBO data, most agents use either REDX or Landvoice. Vulcan7 notes that these homeowners are financially motivated.
They tried to save on commission.
ArchAgent has subscription options starting around $29 monthly. Worth testing if you're just dipping your toes into this lead type.
Distressed property databases
The distressed property approach demands sensitivity. These situations involve homeowners who genuinely need solutions.
ArchAgent provides pre-foreclosure leads, while PropStream is popular with investors hunting these properties. REDX offers pre-foreclosure data with contact information, cutting down your research time.
Geographic and demographic targeting
Many agents prefer focusing on particular neighborhoods or demographics.
GeoLeads pulls homeowner details for the areas you farm.
ListSource gives you access to data on roughly 134 million properties, with filters based on lifestyle factors that help you narrow down to likely sellers.
The Share Group specializes in building lead lists for particular markets, valuable if you farm a certain area.
Top real estate lead generation companies
The lead generation market keeps evolving. Several companies are worth your attention for their fresh approaches:
Ylopo
At Ylopo, we've built AI-powered systems that transform how agents generate and convert leads. Our platform features dynamic home search tools, instant valuation widgets, and advanced AI video ads that grab potential clients' attention.
Our AI has been trained on over 68 million text messages.
It qualifies leads 24/7. About 7 million consumers and counting.
Each market responds differently to our technology. But our clients consistently report significant ROI improvements compared with old-school methods.
Pricing is custom based on what you need.
Market leader
Market Leader provides exclusive leads plus a full marketing suite. They include email and SMS tools, lead capture forms, and an integrated CRM.
Their pricing starts around $189 monthly plus $15-50 per lead, which accumulates quickly but might be worthwhile if you're closing deals consistently from their system.
SmartZip
SmartZip uses predictive analytics for identifying likely sellers before they list. They analyze consumer data from various sources including credit card companies and MLS market data.
Their approach aims to identify sellers 6-12 months before listing, giving you plenty of time to build relationships. That is about ~$500/month upfront, plus setup and recurring costs.
Zillow premier agent
Zillow Premier Agent dominates the listing platform space. They give you buyer lead exposure and enhanced visibility.
Costs swing hard by area - think $300/month on the low end, $1K+ on the high. Some agents find it valuable, while others have bailed.
I think it depends on your market.
CINC
CINC focuses on your backyard; finding nearby buyers and staying on them. It's a turnkey setup: polished IDX site, built-in CRM, and follow-ups that run themselves.
Figure about $899 per month for a solo seat, leads baked in. Not cheap, but they promise enough leads to cover the spend.
A note on seller lead cost
Worth noting: seller leads have traditionally been the most expensive category. Often running $75-150 per lead.
But recent technological advances have slashed these costs. Ylopo's Seller Experience 2.0, for instance, now delivers seller leads at roughly $25 each.
A 3X cost reduction that makes seller-focused marketing financially viable for agents at all production levels.
MaverickRE:
The data-driven real estate platform that skyrockets your business through predictability, efficiency and control.
2 new technologies changing client acquisition
AI-powered lead generation
Ylopo AI represents advanced lead qualification and follow-up technology. Using sophisticated text and voice capabilities, these digital team members have conversations with prospects that drive results.
Our internal data shows response rates that match or exceed those of human agents. Plus 24/7 availability.
We get it: personal connection matters in real estate. Our AI complements rather than replaces the human element.
It handles initial qualification and regular check-ins so you can focus your expertise on building relationships and closing deals.
Beyond lead qualification, Ylopo's AI technology solves one of the biggest pain points agents face: database reactivation.
Our AI² system achieves 5X higher response rates from your existing database by intelligently re-engaging cold leads you thought were dead.
Agents consistently report discovering 'surprise cash' in their dormant databases. The 'dead' leads?
Some were actually ready to move.
Predictive analytics
Predictive analytics continues advancing:
Offrs has been honing their AI-powered analytics for about a decade.
SmartZip works to predict likely sellers 6-12 months ahead of time.
Catalyze AI specializes in inheritance leads with high selling probability. A niche often overlooked.
Traditional lead generation remains effective
Many agents lean on traditional methods that continue producing results:
Your sphere of influence remains incredibly effective. Last month I spoke with an agent who made over 700 GCI the previous year just from their sphere.
Open houses produce results. Most agents acquire 1-2 solid buyer leads from weekend open houses.
Getting active in your community continues generating quality leads. Join local organizations.
Volunteer. Sponsor events.
Even door knocking and cold calling work for motivated agents, especially in neighborhoods where you already have a listing. Direct human contact delivers something digital methods can't duplicate.
On cold calling
Cold calling remains effective for motivated agents. But many professionals struggle with its high rejection rates and psychological stress.
An emerging alternative? The 'warm inbound call' model.
Technology generates calls from motivated prospects who then get screened and live-transferred to you. This approach eliminates the rejection factor while delivering pre-qualified conversations.
Some agents report that 29% of these warm transfers qualify as hot prospects. Five percent close within 90 days.
That's conversion rates that far exceed traditional cold calling.
For teams managing multiple agents making calls (whether cold outbound or warm inbound), platforms like MaverickRE deliver the business intelligence needed to maximize calling efficiency and ROI. MaverickRE's AI call grading analyzes conversation quality and delivers coaching insights.
Sophisticated lead routing puts the right prospect in front of the right agent at the right time.
The ROI calculator tracks which call sources (Google transfers, expired listings, FSBOs) deliver the best returns. Transaction management integration connects calling activity directly to closed deals.
This level of oversight helps teams move beyond simply "making more calls" to surgically optimizing their entire prospecting operation based on hard data.
Ylopo Webinars:
Field-tested tactics from top agents, ready to copy and use.
Keeping leads warm throughout their journey
Converting prospects into clients demands consistency. Your communication should deliver relevant neighborhood insights, give value before asking for anything, maintain regular contact without becoming a pest, and demonstrate your expertise.
Email newsletters remain one of the most important ways to keep your name in customers' inboxes. Valuable content designed to support their journey.
Focus on building relationships rather than just pursuing transactions. It positions you as a trusted advisor rather than just another salesperson.
Time management and productivity
Time management is one of the biggest challenges in lead follow-up. Industry data shows agents work 40-60 hours weekly.
Sixty-two percent spend at least an hour daily on marketing tasks alone. This desk work contributes to the 80% burnout rate among agents in their first two years.
Realtor income hovers around the mid-50s because the hours go to the wrong work. No automation, you tread water.
With it, you make bank.
Agents who automate the busywork win back 10+ hours a week and often 3× their ROI.
Revitalizing dormant leads
Every database contains contacts that have gone quiet. These dormant relationships represent potential you can reinvigorate.
Try personalized outreach that acknowledges the gap in communication. Send current valuations for properties they were interested in previously.
Share community updates for neighborhoods they were considering.
Buyers and sellers want to work with someone who delivers great service and accurate details on the housing marketplace.
Ylopo's database reactivation capabilities are specifically designed for this challenge. Our Dynamic Ads for Real Estate (DARE) technology automatically displays relevant properties to your entire database across Facebook and Instagram.
Reviving leads who've gone cold.
Combined with AI² technology that identifies behavioral signals indicating renewed interest, our system helps agents successfully re-engage over 25% of their existing database.
One client, Jason O'Keefe, closed 37 of his 45 deals in 8 months from remarketing to existing leads alone.
Convert More Leads with Less Effort
Your real estate database holds tremendous potential. But only when powered by the right technology.
Ylopo's AI-driven platform can transform your lead generation and follow-up processes. Giving you more time to focus where it counts: building relationships and closing deals.
Our AI team works 24/7 to qualify leads. Our full marketing suite delivers consistent results across all channels.
Want to maximize your database potential? Schedule a personalized demo today and see how Ylopo transforms your real estate business.
Aaron Franklin
Head of Growth
Aaron "Kiwi" Franklin is the Head of Growth at Ylopo and a serial technologist and entrepreneur who has over 25 years of experience creating digital solutions for major brands and pioneering companies where technology and real estate meet. His depth of expertise stems from leading development of the first website for Apple to founding a global community of over 1,000 elite athletes.