7 Types of Leads Real Estate Pros Need To Know About
Leads are the life blood of real estate. What types of leads are available, and where do you find them?
Whether you are a real estate investor, business owner, agent, or mortgage broker, it is all about the leads. Leads drive your business. You can’t live without them. The more you have, and the better they are, the more deals you can do, and the better your income. Check out these seven types of real estate leads, and see which you might be wise to add to your business.
- Motivated Seller Leads
Realtors and investors need to be connecting with motivated sellers on a daily basis. These are the ripe home seller leads who are really ready to take action. There are a wide variety of reasons these sellers can be motivated. It could be relocating for work, a relationship breakup, unexpected bills, the changing real estate market, foreclosure, or something else. You may spot these leads by driving local neighborhoods, putting out signs for them to call on, running ad campaigns, or by acquiring hot lists of motivated sellers from.
- Cash Buyers
Real estate agents and investors also need buyers. Whether you have listings, or you are wholesaling or rehabbing and flipping houses, you need someone to sell those deals to. Cash buyers are ideal. You don’t have to worry about them qualifying for a loan, or many of the other glitches that can come up when financing real estate. Marketing for cash buyers can be challenging. For example; if you post a house ad on Craigslist, the chances of connecting with a cash buyer may be slim. However, there are databases of active cash buyers that agents and investors can tap into to save time and resources.
- Private Lender Leads
While Realtytrac reports that more house flippers are financing their deals, and many lenders are targeting rental property owners who have purchased properties with cash or lines of credit, traditional lending and mortgage sources still aren’t anywhere near what they were back in 2005. Both savers and borrowers have lost faith in main street banks, and are wary of using them, even if they qualify. Private lenders have been stepping up to fill this void. They know they can get better returns by lending directly to real estate investors themselves. Borrowers win because they find easier processes and often better terms and rates. Everyone should have a list of private lenders in their pocket to use to fund their deals, finance rehab work, and to aid in optimizing their debt.
- Direct Mail Leads
Direct mail may not be as trendy as Snapchat, but it still works. There is a reason that with all of their big data and research departments, and ability to test and track marketing campaigns, that big banks and lenders still use direct mail. It works. Some top producers in real estate swear that it is the only form of lead generation they need. Keep building your direct mail lists, and keep mailing as a part of your monthly campaigns.
- Probate Leads
Probate leads are one of the most underrated and misunderstood of all real estate leads. Eventually most properties will end up as inherited property or in probate. Often, they’ll wind up in that situation multiple times. This is one of the largest and fastest growing types of property in America. It is also often one of the toughest to crack for Realtors and investors, as they really don’t know how to source them in volume consistently, or how to stand out as the right buyers for them. The REWW Academy is adding a new Probate Specialist tactical training and certification course, and it could hold the keys to finding truly valuable off-market deals for many professionals.
- Referral Leads
Referrals are awesome. They are easier deals to close, and they are more profitable than other types of leads. They also say a lot about you, and make you feel like a trusted and appreciated professional. Referral leads can be generated by building strategic partnerships, asking current and past clients for them, getting out to network, and even tapping into professional referral networks.
- Partner Leads
The really big successful investors and organizations almost invariably partner to grow. That includes Warren Buffet, Apple, IBM, Google, Uber, and Louis Vuitton. To secure more partnerships look for business leads, ways to connect with other local professionals, and for connectors who love introducing people.
