How do I get listings in 2026 without buying leads?
Updated October 2026. Figures as of August 2026.
Work your past clients and the people who can refer you. Among US sellers in NAR's newest public data, 38% found their agent by the route NAR calls "referred by (or is) a friend, neighbor or relative," 28% reused an agent they had worked with before, and 81% contacted only one agent (US, NAR, April 2025). Most sellers call one agent, so the job is to be the name they think of first.
Agents see the same pattern from their side: the typical REALTOR® got 28% of their 2025 business from repeat clients and another 22% from past clients' referrals (US, NAR, August 2026). The seller figures come from NAR's survey of transactions between July 2023 and June 2024 (US, NAR, April 2025). NAR's 2025 profile, covering July 2024 to June 2025, is in a full report that is free to NAR members (US, NAR, November 2025), so we use the newest seller figures NAR publishes openly.
Where do sellers find their agent?
NAR asks recent sellers how they found the agent they used. Two in three, 66%, used a referral or an agent they had worked with before (US, NAR, April 2025).
Websites, direct mail, signs and social media each came in at 4% or less (US, NAR, April 2025).
| How the seller found the agent | Share of sellers |
|---|---|
| Referred by (or is) a friend, neighbor or relative | 38% |
| Used agent previously to buy or sell a home | 28% |
| Website (without a specific reference) | 4% |
| Referred by another real estate agent or broker | 4% |
| Personal contact by agent (telephone, email, etc.) | 4% |
| Visited an open house and met agent | 3% |
| Direct mail (newsletter, flyer, postcard, etc.) | 2% |
| Saw contact information on a For Sale or Open House sign | 2% |
| Walked into or called office and agent was on duty | 1% |
| Referred through employer or relocation company | 1% |
| Saw the agent's social media page without a connection | 1% |
| Crowdsourcing through social media, or knew the person through social media | 1% |
| Advertising specialty (calendar, magnet, etc.) | 1% |
| Newspaper, Yellow Pages or home book ad | Less than 1% |
| Other | 11% |
How do I stay the agent past clients think of first?
Past clients don't sell often. The typical US seller had owned the home for 11 years before selling, an all-time high (US, NAR, November 2025). So a past client may not sell again for about a decade.
A past client also recommends you in between: the typical seller had recommended their agent twice since the sale, and 87% would definitely or probably recommend their agent (US, NAR, April 2025).
Our Reasons to Call session shows how to turn what your sphere posts each day into a reason to call, and the farming masterclass covers choosing a farm area and working it with newsletters and postcards.
Do social media and websites bring listings?
Agents rate social media highly: it was the technology most often named as the source of the most quality leads, by 39% of respondents (US, NAR, September 2025). Sellers describe how they found their agent differently: 1% through an agent's social media page with no connection and 1% through social media contacts, against 4% through a website (US, NAR, April 2025).
The two surveys ask different people different questions, so neither cancels the other. Read together, they point to one use for social media: staying in front of past clients and the people who can refer you, the two routes 66% of sellers came by (US, NAR, April 2025).
For comparison with what you spend now, 24% of US agents NAR surveyed spent less than $50 a month on lead generation over the past year, 27% spent $50 to $250, and 19% spent more than $500 (US, NAR, September 2025).
Get Found by AI is our hyperlocal content playbook, for when you want your name to come up as people search your area.
How do I win the listing once a seller calls?
Sellers told NAR they most wanted their agent to help market the home to buyers, price it competitively and sell it within a set time frame (US, NAR, November 2025).
Preparation is what two of our members' stories have in common. Yolanda Ames "had Claude research the seller the night before. He said 48 hours and called back in two" (Jumpstart member story, approved by the member, September 2026).
Adrian Bidulescu's story: "brand new, out-prepared agents with years more experience and won a Galveston listing" (Jumpstart member story, approved by the member, September 2026).
Which AI tools agents use has the rest of those stories and the survey data. Once the listing is live, Seller Portal helps you keep a seller informed if it sits.
Is there Canadian data on how sellers choose an agent?
Not that we could read. CREA, the Canadian Real Estate Association, has run consumer research with Nanos Research on why people work with a REALTOR®, and its findings sit in CREA's member library (CREA, January 2025). The NAR figures on this page are US only.
If you work in Canada, use the US pattern as a guide and test it against your own deals: list where each of your last listings came from.
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Common questions
- Where do most home sellers find their real estate agent?
- Mostly through referrals and past relationships. In NAR's newest public data, 38% of US sellers found their agent by the route NAR calls "referred by (or is) a friend, neighbor or relative" and 28% reused an agent they had worked with before (US, NAR, April 2025).
- How many agents do sellers talk to before listing?
- Most talk to one. 81% of US sellers contacted only one agent before choosing the agent who sold their home (US, NAR, April 2025).
- How often do past clients sell again?
- Not often. The typical US seller had owned the home for 11 years before selling, a record (US, NAR, November 2025).
- Do sellers find their agent through social media?
- Rarely, by their own account. 1% of US sellers found their agent through the agent's social media page with no connection, and another 1% through social media contacts (US, NAR, April 2025).
Sources
- National Association of REALTORS®, 2025 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report, April 2025
- National Association of REALTORS®, 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (highlights), November 2025
- National Association of REALTORS®, Highlights From the Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, November 2025
- National Association of REALTORS®, The Feature Sheet: 2026 Member Profile, August 2026
- National Association of REALTORS®, 2025 REALTORS® Technology Survey, September 2025
- The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), REALTOR® Resources: Popular Publications from CREA, January 2025
- Jumpstart Partners, Member story: Yolanda Ames, September 2026
- Jumpstart Partners, Member story: Adrian Bidulescu, September 2026