PropStream Pros: How Loida Velasquez Built a Real Estate Career Through Expired Listings and FSBOs

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In real estate, some lead sources are known for being especially difficult. Expired listings and FSBOs (For Sale By Owners) often come with rejection, frustrated homeowners, and constant objections — but for Loida Velasquez, those challenges became the foundation of a thriving business.

In the Season 3 opener of the PropStream Pros Podcast, host Burton sits down with Loida Velasquez to discuss how persistence, discipline, and a passion for helping homeowners shaped her 11-year journey in real estate. From navigating rejection in expired listings and FSBO prospecting to building a business that transformed her family’s life, Loida shares the mindset, lessons, and strategies that helped her succeed across two of the nation’s largest real estate markets.

Watch the full episode below.

The Leap From Corporate Life Into Real Estate

Before real estate, Loida spent nearly 8 years working in marketing and advertising. While she enjoyed the work itself, the pressure, constant travel, and unhealthy work environment eventually pushed her to rethink her career path.

She explained how the stress started following her home every day, affecting her attitude, energy, and overall happiness. Eventually, she realized she wanted a career where her income reflected the work she put in and where she had more control over her life and time.

That decision led her to real estate in 2015.

Even after being warned that “real estate is not for everyone,” Loida leaned into the challenge instead of backing away from it. Her competitive background in sports played a major role in shaping that mindset.

“I almost take it as a challenge. Let me show you that I can actually be very good at this,” Loida says.

Why Loida Chose to Focus on Expired Listings and FSBOs

Early in her real estate career, Loida Velasquez realized that “if you want to last, you have to list.” While many agents avoided expired listings and FSBOs because of the rejection and objections involved, Loida saw an opportunity.

“The expired, they’re the lowest hanging fruit. They have already raised their hand that they want to sell,” says Loida Velasquez.

In many cases, Loida believed these homeowners were either overlooked entirely or approached the wrong way by agents who focused too heavily on securing the listing instead of understanding the seller’s actual situation.

Instead of focusing solely on securing appointments, Loida approached conversations as a problem-solver, focusing on understanding the homeowner’s situation and motivation. That mindset helped her build trust with frustrated homeowners and separate herself from agents simply chasing commissions.

The Power of Listening Instead of Selling

Throughout the conversation, Loida repeatedly stressed the importance of listening.

Her approach centers around asking open-ended questions and letting homeowners explain their frustrations.

Questions like:

• “What happened?”

• “Why were you trying to sell?”

• “How have your plans changed now that the home came off the market?”

These questions create space for real conversations rather than scripted sales pitches.

She also shared that frustrated homeowners are not necessarily bad leads. In many cases, emotional sellers are highly motivated sellers.

“The more frustrated someone is over the phone, it’s probably because they were very motivated to sell.”

That shift in perspective became one of her biggest competitive advantages.

Advice for Real Estate Agents Prospecting Expired Listings and FSBOs

For agents and REALTORS® looking to break into expired listings or FSBO prospecting, Loida offered several practical takeaways throughout the episode.

1. Stop Taking Rejection Personally

Loida explained that learning emotional control was one of the most important skills she developed early in her career.

“I can only control how I respond,” says Loida

Cold calling difficult lead sources means hearing objections, frustration, and sometimes even anger. According to her, successful prospectors learn to separate emotions from the process.

Want to improve your cold calling confidence and move beyond scripted conversations?
Read: How AI Helps You Move Beyond Cold Calling Scripts

2. Practice Objection Handling Constantly

Loida Velasquez credits much of her phone confidence to relentless role-playing and repetition. Early in her career, she spent hours practicing different objection scenarios with agents from across the country to better understand different personalities, communication styles, and seller reactions.

“You need to have at least four to five different objection handlers for every one objection that you hear,” says Loida.

She specifically shared how role-playing with agents in New York helped sharpen her communication skills because, as Loida explained, “East Coast people are very different from West Coast.” Learning how to adapt to different personalities, speaking speeds, and tonalities ultimately helped her become more confident and flexible during difficult conversations.

3. Stay Consistent With a Strict Schedule

Rather than chasing quick wins, Loida explained that creating a realistic daily schedule and sticking to it is what ultimately builds momentum over time.

Early in her career, Loida committed herself to having at least 30 real conversations every single day. Even during difficult stretches where homeowners were hanging up or rejecting her calls, she stayed committed to that routine. One of her favorite deals came from call number 30 on a day when she almost stopped prospecting after a string of negative conversations.

Watch the full PropStream Pros episode to hear how that single phone call eventually became Loida’s very first listing and one of the most memorable deals of her career.

The Biggest Takeaway From Loida’s Journey

At its core, Loida Velasquez’s journey is proof that some of the biggest opportunities in real estate live on the other side of uncomfortable conversations. While most agents avoided expired listings and FSBOs, Loida leaned into them — one phone call, one objection, and one conversation at a time.

Her story is a reminder that consistency compounds, rejection is part of the process, and growth often starts where most people quit. Along the way, real estate became more than just sales and commissions for Loida — it became a vehicle for freedom, impact, and giving back, earning her the “Wonder Woman” nickname from those who have followed her journey.

Follow Loida’s journey:

YouTube: @LoidaVelasquez
Instagram: @loidavelas