Reaching Owners of MLS Listed Homes

[Doug P.]

Hey BP!

Does anyone have ideas they'd like to share on ways to get in contact with the owners of homes on the MLS? I've got 4 ways and they each have their pros and cons. If you have another way I'd love to hear it!

Method #1: Contact the Listing Agent

PROS

Relatively easy. Most agents (although not all) have their contact info on the listing. Or you can hire your own buyer's agent.

CONS
Agents are either hard or impossible to deal with.

Method #2: Knock on the Door or Personally Leave Your Contact Info

PROS

Very easy to do.
Gets the highest response.
Cheap.

CONS

How far are you willing to drive?
If the house is vacant your info might not reach the owner.
Not really scalable.

Method #3: Direct Mail

PROS

Very scalable.

CONS

Fairly expensive here in Canada.

Method #4: Cold Call

PROS

Cheap.
Easy.
Scalable.

CONS

Hard to get accurate phone numbers.

[Christopher Phillips]

@Doug P.

Agent rules require that any and all written offers be presented to the seller based on the instructions that the seller gives to the agent. They might want the offers right away, or they might want to pile them up and review them while spread out over a table. It's up to the seller. Verbal offers have zero legal standing. At least for real estate. So, they have to be in writing. And, the seller has no obligation to respond.

There is a rule that an agent can request a signed form stating that the offer was presented to the seller. But, it's rarely asked for.

There's no reason to hold off on offers. The offers are either good or they aren't. And it's not about the highest price. It's usually more about which one has the best chance to make it to the closing. Of course, this makes it really tough for buyers that are putting down the minimum amount of money in a competitive market.