Real estate farming: Strategies to become the go-to agent in your area

PRO TIP

Consistency is key. Be patient and persistent; your efforts will help cultivate a strong presence within your chosen real estate farming area.

Example:

• 475 homes sold over the past 12 months in my city of Newton, MA.
• 475 divided by 12 equals 39.58.
• Therefore, an average of 39 homes sold each month over the past year 
• There are currently 120 active listings in Newton
• 39 divided by 120 equals 0.325
• Absorption rate = 32.5%

Why real estate farming is so effective?

Real estate farming works so well because it’s easier, not to mention much more affordable, to gain repeated exposure in a small geographic area. The well-established rule of seven explains that consumers typically must encounter a brand’s marketing messages at least seven times before making a purchase decision. While buyers and sellers may not be actively looking for your services now, real estate farming ensures that you stay top-of-mind until they’re ready to make a move. After winning business in a small geographic area, your referral business begins to build upon your success.

Postcards

This is the core of most agents’ geo-farming strategy. A monthly postcard is a cost-effective way to get your name out there and build your reputation over time in your farm area. It can also save you a ton of time if you choose to hire a company to label and mail them for you! If your budget allows, I’d recommend opting for a larger postcard — one that will stand out in the recipient’s mailbox.

We love Wise Pelican for sending letters and postcards that’ll get noticed. Their oversized postcards are beautifully designed and printed in full color (on both sides) on high-gloss, heavy card stock. Pricing varies by quantity, but 500 printed postcards shipped to you are just 46 cents each. The same quantity of printed, inserted, stamped, and mailed letters are $1.38 each.

In terms of content, mix it up. Hyper-local market stats, such as any recently sold properties in the neighborhood, are always valuable and interesting. But I’d also include a real estate postcard with a testimonial from a happy client, one promoting a local community event, and one requesting donations to a local charity. 

Brochures

Mailing a full-color brochure is a great way to promote all your new listings and just-sold listings in the area. This will show potential sellers on your farm how successful you are and encourage them to work with you when they need to sell. 

Handwritten notes

This one is tedious and time-consuming but worth it. When was the last time you received a handwritten note? Chances are, it was highly memorable because it’s such a rare occurrence. It’s more natural to do this with your own neighborhood because you can simply introduce yourself as their neighborhood real estate agent and include your business card.

If the personal touch appeals to you, you can easily outsource to Handwrytten, a company that sends automated handwritten notes for busy agents! You can order them in bulk — delivered directly to you or to your farm area!

Holiday cards

I love a good holiday card! People are in a festive mood already, and it’s a super easy, non-sales-y touch. To stand out from the rest of the cards they’re receiving (and to avoid mistakenly sending a card for a holiday someone may not celebrate), I’d opt for an end-of-the-year “Happy New Year” card instead of a Christmas or Hanukkah card. You could also send a New Year calendar (we love fridge magnets) featuring your branding to keep you top-of-mind all year long. 

PRO TIP

Tri-fold your flyers and pop them in a brightly colored envelope to increase your open rate.

Block parties 

Who doesn’t love a block party? If you’re able to close down the street, even better! Hosting a block party in your farm area provides an opportunity to meet some of your farm’s homeowners face-to-face and positions you as a community leader. And, of course, this is much easier and more natural to do in your neighborhood or in an area you’ve been farming for a while.

There are many other types of community events you could host if block parties aren’t your thing. You could organize a neighborhood garage sale, collect donations for a local charity, and offer to pick up the donations from people’s homes to make it easier for them. Organize a fun trick-or-treating event for Halloween.

I’ve even heard of agents renting horse-drawn carriages and providing sleigh rides through the neighborhood during the holidays. Each event gives you multiple opportunities to reach out to everyone in your farm area, and imagine the photo ops, too! Get creative with it, and have fun! 

Exclusive open houses

You may have heard about doing a neighbor preview before an open house, as a way to meet other homeowners in the area. Incorporating this strategy into your overall farming plan is an excellent idea because it gives you an extra touch when you invite them to the event AND an opportunity to meet them in person if they show up. You could also use it as a way to collect attendees’ email addresses by having them enter to win a gift card to a local restaurant. 

Door knocking

Think of door knocking as the “how” to the previous ideas. This is the best way to spread the word about any upcoming event you’re hosting. Yes, it can be a little intimidating, but most people are generally friendly. The key is to come bearing gifts, as the saying goes, meaning you should invite them to something rather than showing up on their doorstep asking for business.

PRO TIP

Come prepared with something tangible to leave behind in case they’re not home. It could be a flyer in a plastic bag that loops around a doorknob or even a door hanger with a loop already cut into it.

Every city or town seems to have multiple Facebook groups, from general community groups to garage sale groups to “free stuff” groups to moms groups. Definitely join every group you can and get involved! Comment with helpful advice or recommendations on other people’s posts. Post about any events you’re hosting that would be relevant to the community.

If you think there’s a need for a community group, by all means, start your own! Facebook groups or community websites can provide consistent value and become a go-to resource for nearby residents.

Be sure to avoid coming off as sales-y or overzealous. You want to build your reputation as a helpful neighbor and community leader. And, it goes without saying,  stay far away from conversations about politics. Instead, post an invitation to the neighborhood garage sale you put together for your farm to increase attendance and make it such a success people will want to repeat it every year!

Hyper-local Instagram page

This is something you could create if it doesn’t already exist. The idea here is to create a community for just your farm area. If your farm is a neighborhood that already has a name, even better — simply use that name for your IG page. I used to live on a street called Marvin Avenue, and everyone who lived there called it Marvin Gardens. At some point, someone created a group online just for the residents of our street. It was tiny but helped to create an even closer-knit community. Why not try this for your farm?

Invite friends and other community group members to join your new group or to follow your Facebook page or Instagram channel. We love Coffee & Contracts for its affordable monthly subscription fee, which gives you access to done-for-you, polished, and consistently branded social media posts for all your social channels. You get a ton of social post ideas created for you in beautifully designed templates that you can customize with your own brand colors and fonts.

Using friends lists on Facebook

You can create different lists of friends on Facebook and share content to just those lists. To create a list, go to “Friends” then click “Custom Lists” then create your list, name it, and add some of your existing Facebook friends to it. Setting it up is time-consuming, but once you have it started, you can post about community events, and only those friends will see it.

You can add to the list at any time, so as you meet new people in your farm, you can incorporate them into your “farm friends” list. The beauty of this is that your audience is unaware of your strategy — they just know that you’re creating valuable content for them.

I’d highly suggest including a page on your website where you highlight local events in your farm. This adds a level of credibility to you as a business owner and as a local expert. You could also include a QR code directing people to your web page on all your printed marketing materials and social media posts. 

Tenure farming

What it is: Tenure farming means marketing to homeowners who have been in their homes for at least 30-40 years and who are likely to want to (or need to) downsize soon. There’s no exact science behind the number, but pull the metrics for the areas you’re considering and see what makes sense. You may find very few homeowners who’ve been in their homes that long in your target area. In that case, you’d have to decide if you want to target a different area or change the metric to 20 years. Check your state’s public record database to find this information.

Dumpster farming

This strategy comes from Ryan Smith, a real estate agent in Ontario, Canada. Ryan runs a Facebook group designed to help real estate agents build and grow their farm business. Check it out here.

“When you notice a dumpster or storage container outside a home, it’s often a sign that the homeowners are preparing for a move, doing a renovation, or decluttering. This creates a great opportunity to connect with potential sellers. By reaching out, offering a home evaluation, or even providing a simple after-renovation market assessment, you can position yourself as a resource during their transition. For homeowners who aren’t home, you can leave a prepared marketing piece tailored specifically for this situation. This simple yet powerful strategy helps uncover leads with minimal effort and creates long-term follow-up opportunities for your database.”

Ryan Smith, Real Estate Agent

Garage sale farming

We recently stumbled upon this method from an agent named Michelle Williams in a Facebook group. She said that one of her favorite ways to generate new leads in her neighborhood is by going to garage sales with her family.

“It’s an approach that combines spending time with loved ones and building connections in the community,” said Williams. “I’ve seen incredible results. When I visit garage sale, I start conversations with the hosts and casually ask why they decided to have the sale.”

Williams claims that out of 32 garages sales she’s visited, 17 hosts were thinking about selling their home. An additional four were renters who were considering a move.

Why it works:  Williams feels that the reason this strategy works is because it creates an instant connection while also humanizing her as a parent and spouse. “The key is not to immediately reveal that I’m an agent. Instead, I focus on adding value. If they mention they’re thinking of selling, I offer them a goodie bag I keep in my car.”

Williams’ goodie bag includes simple items like cleaning supplies or moving boxes, a quick guide on ways to increase their home’s value, and a card with a QR code that reads, “What’s My Home Worth?”.

Success story: Michelle Williams claims that her garage sale farming method has resulted in four closed deals between May and September. “For those who aren’t quite ready to list, I ask if they’re open to off-market offers and where I can market their property to our team’s buyers.” Then she circle prospects around their home.

Michelle Williams, Real Estate Agent

Rental farming

This is a great strategy specifically for real estate agents who specialize in working with first-time buyers.

How to do it: Send mailers to luxury apartment buildings, inviting renters to attend a first-time buyer class (bribe them with food and drinks). Usually, a friendly lender will pull the address list for you and may even split the cost of the mailer and the class with you. 

Absentee owner-investor farming

You can pull absentee owner lists from public records and reach out to them, offering to help them sell their investment properties or do a 1031 exchange for for another investment property. Many absentee owners are content in their situations, but many are frustrated with managing property from far away and looking to make a change. In this case, a letter explaining how you can help solve their problem is the most effective content to send.