How to Get Real Estate Clients and Listings: 15 Sources That Work

If you’re wondering how to get real estate clients, start with people who already know you, not portal leads that never close or cold calls you dread. Past clients and their referrals bring in about half of a typical REALTOR’s business, according to the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). Below are 15 sources, rated by effort and cost.

Where Do Real Estate Agents Actually Get Clients?

Real estate agents get most of their clients through people they already know. In NAR’s 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 43% of buyers found their agent through a referral. Among sellers, 66% used an agent who was referred to them or one they had worked with before.

The rest of the buyer list is short. In the NAR 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 15% of buyers used an agent they had worked with before. Another 7% asked about a home they saw online, and 7% were sent by another agent. Only 6% of buyers found their agent through a website, 5% met their agent at an open house and 4% heard from the agent first.

Sellers lean even harder on trust. In NAR’s survey of recent sellers, 37% found their agent through a referral and 29% used an agent they had used before.

Many buyers do start online. In NAR’s 2025 survey of recent buyers, 46% began by looking at homes for sale online, and 20% contacted an agent first. Still, the choice of agent runs mostly through people.

Happy clients talk. In a NAR press release on the 2025 Profile, 91% of buyers said they would use their agent again or recommend them. NAR’s full report adds that 62% of buyers and 65% of sellers had already recommended their agent.

The catch is time, since repeat and referral business grows from clients you have already served. The NAR 2026 Member Profile says REALTORS with two years or less in the business earned a median of $8,000 in 2025. That low figure is one reason new agents feel squeezed, and why the faster sources below matter early on.

If you have past clients, check that base before you add anything new.

15 Ways to Get Real Estate Clients, Rated by Effort and Cost

Here are 15 ways to get real estate clients, grouped by how you reach people. Sources 1 to 5 start with people who know you or meet you in person. Sources 6 to 9 are outreach to owners, 10 to 13 help people find you online, and 14 and 15 are paid. The effort, cost and timing columns are a rough guide from how each channel works, not survey data.

1. Past Clients

Past clients are the quickest source because they already trust you. NAR’s 2026 Member Profile puts repeat clients and their referrals at half of the typical REALTOR’s business: 28% plus 22%.

Sellers often buy again, too. NAR’s full 2025 report found that 51% of sellers used the same agent to sell and to buy. That rose to 72% for sellers who moved within 10 miles.

• List every past client with their closing date.
• Send a note on each home anniversary with nearby sales.
• Call, don’t just email. NAR found 72% of buyers valued personal calls, and only 7% valued an email newsletter.
• Ask plainly once a year: “Who do you know who might buy or sell this year?”

Example: a couple who bought a starter condo with you years ago now has a baby. One call can turn into a sale and a purchase.

Trap: going quiet for years, then calling only when you need a deal.

2. Your Sphere of Influence

Your sphere is everyone who knows you by name: family, friends, neighbors, old coworkers and other parents. It matters because, in NAR’s 2025 Profile, 43% of buyers and 37% of sellers found their agent through a friend, neighbor or relative. For first-time buyers it was 49%.

• Write down every name you can, from phone contacts to your kids’ school.
• Tell each person, one at a time, that you sell homes and where.
• Ask for help in plain words: “If you hear of anyone thinking of moving, would you give them my number?”
• Send something useful about once a month.

Example: your friends who rent today are next year’s first-time buyers. Ask what they would need to feel ready, and offer to walk them through the steps.

Don’t assume people know you’re an agent. A friend who hires someone else may simply have forgotten.

3. Agent-to-Agent Referrals and Relocation

Other agents send you clients when their clients move to your area. NAR’s 2025 survey found that 7% of buyers and 4% of sellers were referred by another agent.

• Tell agents you meet in other cities exactly which towns and price ranges you cover.
• Join your brokerage’s referral or relocation network, if it has one.
• Send your own clients who are leaving to a trusted agent in their new town.
• Update the referring agent at each step.

Example: a nurse moving to your city for a hospital job is sent to you by her hometown agent. You set up video tours before she flies in.

Trap: agreeing to a referral fee before you ask your broker how they are handled.

4. Referral Partners

Referral partners are local pros who meet people before they buy or sell. Think lenders, estate and divorce attorneys, builders, property managers, contractors and insurance agents.

• Pick five partners whose clients look like yours.
• Meet each one and ask who their ideal client is.
• Send them business first, and tell them when you do.
• Co-host a first-time buyer class with a lender.

Example: a property manager’s landlord client wants to sell a rental. You price it and plan around the tenant, and the manager may manage it for the next owner.

Watch out: paying a partner for each client sent. Ask your broker what your state and RESPA allow before any referral fee changes hands.

5. Open Houses

Open houses put you face to face with buyers who are already looking. NAR’s buyer survey shows 5% of buyers met their agent at an open house, and 6% of first-time buyers did. In NAR’s seller data, listing agents held open houses for 59% of sellers.

• Ask agents in your office if you can host their listings on weekends.
• Invite the neighbors an hour early. Some may be thinking of selling.
• Ask each visitor how long they have been looking.
• Follow up within a day with homes that match what they said.

Example: a new agent hosts a colleague’s listing on Sunday and meets a couple renting nearby. On Monday, she sends them three homes that match what they described.

For turnout, see our 12 tactics for more attendees.

6. Expired Listings

An expired listing is a home that was on the market with an agent and did not sell before the agreement ended.

Timing matters. REALTORS “shall not solicit a listing which is currently listed exclusively with another broker,” under Standard of Practice 16-4 of the NAR Code of Ethics. Our reading is that once a listing has truly expired and not been relisted, it is no longer under another broker’s exclusive agreement. Check first. The Code binds NAR members, and state law and MLS rules also apply.

• Confirm in the MLS that the listing expired and was not extended or relisted.
• Scrub the owner’s number against the National Do Not Call Registry before you call.
• Find why it didn’t sell, and bring one specific fix.

Example: a high-end home sat for months with dark photos. A note with a plan for daylight photos stands out from ten generic calls.

Trap: calling before it has expired, or using a robocall. The first can break NAR’s Code of Ethics, and the second can break federal call rules.

7. FSBO Sellers

FSBO sellers are owners selling without an agent. In NAR’s 2025 Profile, only 5% of sales were FSBO, an all-time low. For 30% of FSBO sellers, the main reason was that they sold to a relative, friend or neighbor. For 28%, it was not wanting to pay a commission or fee. Forty percent did not actively market their home, and 17% said getting the price right was the hardest step.

• Skip owners who are selling to someone they know. They don’t need you.
• Bring help, not a pitch, such as recent nearby sales.
• Ask if you can bring a buyer, and get any fee terms in writing.
• Check back every couple of weeks.

Example: an owner who priced from an online estimate gets no offers in a month. You bring the three closest sales, and they invite you back to talk.

Common mistake: thinking an in-person meeting makes the call exempt. The FTC says even then, callers must not ring numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry.

8. Geographic Farming

Farming means picking one neighborhood and showing up there again and again until owners think of you first. Direct mail on its own rarely finds you clients: in NAR’s survey, under 1% of buyers and 2% of sellers found their agent through direct mail. Farming works by repetition and local proof, not by one postcard.

• Pick an area you know, with enough sales each year and a size you can afford to reach every month.
• Send something useful each month, such as recent sales or a local event.
• Knock on doors or host a small event a few times a year.
• Sponsor or volunteer at one local event a year, and show up in neighborhood groups as a neighbor, not an ad.

NAR’s Code of Ethics allows general mailings to every home in an area, even if some owners are listed with another REALTOR, under Standard of Practice 16-2.

Example: you pick the subdivision where you live, mail a sales update each month, and host a spring yard sale day.

Judge a farm after a year, not after the first few mailings.

9. Just-Listed and Just-Sold Outreach

When you list or sell a home, the neighbors want to know. Tell them in person or by note, and you start talks with people who may sell next. This is circle prospecting.

• The day a listing goes live, leave a note at the nearest few dozen homes.
• After closing, share what you can about the sale, with your seller’s okay.
• Ask each neighbor: “Do you know anyone who wants to live on this street?”

If you call instead, the same Do Not Call rules apply. And never share your client’s price or reasons for moving before they agree.

10. Google Business Profile and Reviews

A Google Business Profile puts your name, reviews and phone number on Google Maps and search. As of October 2026, Google’s guidelines name real estate agents as individual practitioners who can have their own profile. Google says a practitioner “shouldn’t have multiple Business Profiles to cover all of their specializations,” and a virtual office isn’t eligible.

• Create or claim your profile, using your own name.
• Get your review link: in your profile, select Read reviews, then Get more reviews, then Copy, per Google’s help page.
• Send it to every client after closing, or print the QR code, which Google says you make on a computer browser.

Google’s review tips call incentives for reviews “fake & misleading content” and ban them. Google’s content policy also bars asking only happy clients, and reviews from family can count as a conflict of interest.

11. Your Own Website and Neighborhood Guides

Your website is where people check you out after a friend mentions your name. NAR found that 29% of buyers said it mattered that their agent had a website. Fewer found their agent through one: 6% of buyers and 4% of sellers.

The useful part is local: guides to neighborhoods, schools and recent sales that a buyer moving from out of town can read before calling you. Our guide to a personal brand site versus your brokerage page covers which to build and how it gets found. To see how your website, reviews and neighborhood content work together, see our real estate marketing page.

12. Video and YouTube

Video lets people get to know you before you ever meet. NAR’s 2026 Member Profile reporting found 31% of REALTORS use YouTube for work. A simple way to start:

• Film a one-minute tour of each neighborhood you farm.
• Answer one question a past client asked you, on camera.
• Post on the same day each week.
• Add each video to your website’s neighborhood guide, so people can still find it later.

Our post on YouTube as a lead engine for REALTORS covers what to film and how often.

13. Social Media to Stay in Front of Your Sphere

Social media keeps you in front of people who already know you. NAR’s 2026 Member Profile reporting found 76% of REALTORS use Facebook for work. Yet only 1% of buyers in NAR’s buyer survey found their agent through a social page without a connection. In our reading, social works through people you know, not strangers.

• Post your real life and your town, not just listings.
• Share client stories, with their okay.
• Message friends when they mention a move.

Skip: chasing views from strangers who will never call.

14. Portal Leads: Zillow Premier Agent and Zillow Preferred

Portal leads are buyers who asked about a home on a site like Zillow and were sent to a paying agent. As of October 2026, Zillow’s 10-K for 2025 describes two models. Zillow Premier Agent sells “share of voice”: agents prepay a monthly spend in a ZIP code, and leads are split by each agent’s share of that spend. Zillow says it does not promise any minimum or maximum share of leads.

Zillow Preferred, formerly Flex, is invite-only and “pay-when-you-close” for top agent teams. Agents pay a fee when a deal with one of its leads closes.

Speed likely matters most here. NAR’s buyer survey shows buyers typically reached out only once before making contact with an agent, so the first agent to answer often gets the chance. Track your cost per lead and your cost per closing, not just lead count.

Trap: buying a ZIP code before you can answer every lead within minutes.

15. Paid Ads on Facebook and Google

Paid ads reach people you don’t know yet, such as homeowners who want a value estimate. On Meta, housing ads run in a Special Ad Category. As of October 2026, Meta’s developer docs fix ages at 18 to 65+ and rule out gender, ZIP code and lookalike targeting. US locations need at least a 15-mile radius.

Ads need a landing page, retargeting and fast follow-up to pay off, so don’t start until someone is ready to call every lead. Our paid ads service and real estate lead generation page cover the setup.

How Do Real Estate Agents Get Listings?

If you want to know how to get listings as a real estate agent, start with people who already trust you. Most sellers hire someone they know or were sent to, and NAR found that 80% contacted only one agent. The goal is to be the first name a seller thinks of.

What sellers weigh tells you what to show. In NAR’s 2025 Profile, reputation was the top factor for 35% of sellers. Trust and honesty came next at 22%, and being a friend or relative at 15%. Commission was the top factor for only 4%.

Past clients, your sphere, expireds, FSBOs and just-sold neighbors (sources 1, 2, 6, 7 and 9 above) are where seller conversations start. Turning one into a signed listing comes down to four steps:

1. Offer a home value review Give a clear price range from recent nearby sales, in person or by mail.
2. Build a comparative market analysis Pick the closest recent sales, active listings and expireds, and explain why each one is higher or lower.
3. Send a pre-listing package Before the meeting, send your reviews, past sales and a marketing plan. That is how a seller sees your reputation before you arrive.
4. Run the listing appointment Walk the home and ask about the seller’s timing and next move. Agree on a price range, and show what you will do in the first two weeks.

NAR’s seller data also shows what listing agents do: they put homes on the MLS for 85% of sellers and used yard signs for 67%.

How Can You Get Real Estate Clients Without Cold Calling?

You can get real estate clients without cold calling by working the sources that start with trust. That means sources 1 to 5 and 8 to 13 above. In NAR’s 2025 Profile, only 4% of buyers and 5% of sellers found their agent because the agent reached out first.

A simple week without cold calls:

• Call or message five past clients or sphere contacts.
• Host one open house, yours or a colleague’s.
• Meet one referral partner for coffee.
• Send your review link to every client who closed this month.
• Drop notes at the homes around your latest listing or sale.

Is It Legal to Cold Call Expired Listings and FSBOs?

Generally yes, in our reading of the federal rules, if you follow the Do Not Call and calling rules below and your state’s rules. The Telemarketing Sales Rule from the Federal Trade Commission and rules from the Federal Communications Commission cover sales calls and texts. In short, as of October 2026:

• Scrub your list. The FTC’s guide to the rule says callers must remove numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry “at least every 31 days.”
• Call in hours. Calls to homes must fall between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. local time, unless the person agreed otherwise.
• Know who you can call. Live calls to registered numbers are allowed for 18 months after a deal with you, or three months after someone asks about your services. Neither applies if they asked you not to call. Someone who agreed in writing can be called too, if the agreement names the number and is signed.
• No robocalls without consent. Prerecorded sales calls need the person’s prior signed, written agreement.
• Texts count. The FCC says autodialed calls or texts to a cell phone need consent, commercial texts need written consent, and AI-voice calls are illegal without consent.
• Check state lists. The FCC notes that many states now have their own do-not-call lists.

The seller, meaning the business the calls are for, pays for registry access by area code. As of October 2026, the FTC charges sellers $85 per area code a year beyond the first five, capped at $23,425 for all area codes. The same FTC guide says violators face civil penalties of up to $53,088 for each violation, as of October 2026. If you work under a brokerage, ask your broker whether it already handles registry access.

Our reading of the rule, not the FTC’s words: an expired or FSBO owner who never asked you about anything has no business relationship with you, so the Do Not Call rules apply. This is a summary, not legal advice. Check with your broker before you start.

Before you call an expired or FSBO owner, check each of these:

• The listing shows as expired in the MLS, not extended or relisted.
• The number was checked against the National Do Not Call Registry within the last 31 days.
• The number was checked against your state’s do-not-call list, if it has one.
• The number is not on your brokerage’s own do-not-call list.
• You are calling between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the owner’s time zone.
• A live person is dialing, with no prerecorded message or AI voice.
• Your caller ID shows your real name or number.
• You will add anyone who asks to your do-not-call list right away.

How Do New Real Estate Agents Get Clients?

New real estate agents get clients by borrowing trust while they build their own. Here is a practical plan for your first 90 days.

1. Tell your sphere. Contact every person on your list and say how they can help.
2. Host other agents’ open houses. Each one gives you buyers to follow up with.
3. Ask your broker for floor time or overflow leads. Some offices pass on calls or leads that busy agents can’t handle.
4. Join a team or a mentor program. You learn faster, and some teams share leads in return for part of the fee.
5. Pick one farm or niche. Choose a neighborhood, or a group you know well, such as first-time buyers, relocating nurses or small investors, and start a monthly touch.
6. Pick one content channel. Choose Facebook, Instagram or YouTube, and post every week.

The NAR 2026 Member Profile says the typical agent had nine transaction sides in 2025. Doing the math helps you see how many talks it takes to get there.

What to Do First

Three steps, in this order:

1. Build your list Put every past client and sphere contact in one place, with how you know them.
2. Ask and review Call five past clients this week. Ask how they are, who they know, and send your review link.
3. Add one active source Host an open house or pick a farm, and stick with it for months.

How to Get Real Estate Clients: Common Questions