4 Tips for Building an Expired Listings Sales Funnel

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, investment, or real estate advice. Before contacting owners of expired listings, ensure your outreach complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, as well as your local MLS rules. When in doubt, consult a qualified legal professional.

Quick Answer: Building an expired listing sales funnel involves four steps: identifying recently expired listings, reaching out with personalized messaging, following up consistently across multiple channels, and moving non-responsive prospects into a long-term nurture campaign. With the right aggregated data and automation, expired listings can become one of the most reliable lead sources for real estate agents.

If you’re looking for consistent leads, expired listings may be a good place to start.

What is an expired listing?

An expired listing is a property that did not sell before the listing agreement between the homeowner and their real estate agent ended.

These homes are pulled off the market because they didn’t sell before the owner’s contract with their broker expired. Although the sale fell through, these homeowners have already demonstrated an intent to sell, and many want to try again.

In fact, 45,000 homes delisted in 2025 went back on the market in January 2026—the highest start-of-the-year spike in relisted homes since 2016. For agents, this represents a growing pool of potential clients.

The key to tapping into this opportunity is creating a repeatable system for generating and nurturing leads. Read on for our top tips for creating a successful sales funnel for expired listings.

Key Takeaways:

Expired listings are on the rise, providing a reliable source of motivated seller leads for real estate agents.
Finding qualified expired listing leads starts with aggregated real estate data, such as PropStream’s Failed Listings Lead List.
Outreach should be quick, and follow-up should be consistent. Create a reliable lead-nurturing funnel to ensure leads don’t fall through the cracks.

1. Identify Leads with PropStream’s Expired Listings Filter

Manual Searching for Expired Leads vs. PropStream
Manual Search	PropStream
Search MLS individually	Nationwide database
Limited filters	Multiple lead filters
Time intensive	Minutes
Difficult to scale	Easy to scale

With modern technology, finding expired listings doesn’t have to take hours of manually combing through the MLS. Instead, agents can use aggregated real estate data software to quickly filter through millions of listings.

PropStream’s Failed Listings Lead List pulls up these properties in minutes. This Lead List includes homes with expired broker contracts as well as those that were voluntarily removed from the market.

Image showing PropStream's Failed Listings Leads list

To narrow down your search results even further to only display expired listings, apply the Expired filter under MLS Status.

This will help you focus on homeowners who have already made a concerted effort to sell and, as a result, are more likely to work with you.

Homeowners may be even more motivated to sell their property if it’s in disrepair or if they’re facing foreclosure. To find these sellers, use our PropStream Intelligence (PSI) datasets to quickly identify which properties need significant repairs and the likelihood they will go into pre-foreclosure.

2. Personalize Each Outreach Message To Stand Out Amongst the Noise

Once you have a list of highly qualified leads, your next step is to reach out.

The faster you act, the better. Many homeowners receive numerous agent calls within a few days of their listing expiring. You can quickly find leads’ contact information using PropStream’s skip tracing tool.*

Personilize each outreach message - an image showing personal messages delivered to an end user

Most agents send generic outreach messages to save time. To stand out from the competition, consider personalizing your communication.

Take a few minutes to look at the homeowner’s specific situation.

Is their home in need of renovations?
Are they facing financial hardship, such as pre-foreclosure, tax delinquency, or liens?
Are they going through a stressful life event, such as divorce or the death of the previous homeowner?
Are they long-term homeowners with high equity?

Each of these factors can influence a homeowner's decision to sell, allowing you to address that specific pain point in your initial text or phone call. You can also use these four scripts to demonstrate how you could help them reach their goal.

3. Follow Up Consistently to Ensure You Stay Top of Mind

If you only call once or send a single piece of direct mail, your time and energy will likely go to waste. Instead, make it your goal to follow up with leads regularly.

Exactly how often you want to reach out is up to you. Some agents call multiple times per day, while others limit outreach to twice a week. A good rule of thumb is to call or text once every 1 to 3 days for the first 2 weeks, then pull back to once a week.

Some leads may get fatigued with constant phone calls or text messages, so consider varying your outreach methods.

For example, your follow-up schedule might look like:

Call and send a personalized text.

Call and mail a postcard.

Send an email with extra value, such as a local market update or a few ideas to help them sell their home faster if they relist.

Send a follow-up text.

Call.

Week 3: Send an email with value.
Week 4: Send a text message.

4. Systemize Your Long-Term Lead Nurturing So No Prospects Fall Through the Cracks

If a lead hasn’t responded to you after several weeks of outreach, that doesn’t mean you should give up. At that point, simply move that prospect into your lead-nurturing funnel, a structured cadence of outreach designed to build trust over time.

propstream_blog_inline_image_4tipsforbuildingexpiredlistings_3_1252x834

To keep your system simple and consistent, be sure to use a CRM for lead tracking, reminders, and automated outreach.

You can also use PropStream Connect, a marketing bundle that combines:

Free skip tracing*
Built-in calling tools, such as click-to-dial and dialer campaigns
Lead automator that updates lead lists and outreach workflows
Discounted direct mail and postcards

Expired listings may not convert overnight, but with the right information, personalized outreach, and a consistent follow-up system, they can become one of your most reliable sources of motivated seller leads.

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Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQs)

How soon should you contact an expired listing?

The sooner, the better. Many homeowners receive calls from multiple agents within the first few days after their listing expires, so reaching out promptly can improve your chances of making a connection before they choose another agent.

Are expired listings worth pursuing?

Yes. Expired listings can be valuable leads because the homeowner has already shown an intent to sell. With the right approach, personalized communication, and consistent follow-up, many agents successfully turn expired listings into new clients.

Where do agents find expired listings?

Agents often find expired listings through the MLS, if permitted by their local MLS rules, or by using aggregated real estate data platforms like PropStream to quickly uncover insights into expired and failed listings and build out lead lists for future in-app outreach. These tools can also help identify additional property and homeowner insights to better qualify leads.

Why do listings expire?

Listings can expire for many reasons, including overpricing, poor marketing, limited buyer demand, property condition issues, or unrealistic seller expectations. In some cases, homeowners simply decide to pause their sale and try again later.

What should you say to an expired listing?

Keep your message empathetic and focused on the homeowner's goals rather than immediately pitching your services. Acknowledge that their home didn't sell, ask about their experience, and explain how your marketing strategy or local market knowledge could help them achieve a different outcome.

How many times should you follow up?

There's no universal rule, but consistency is key. Many agents follow up every 1 to 3 days during the first two weeks, then transition to weekly or biweekly outreach while providing helpful information until the homeowner is ready to make a decision.

Can you contact expired listings immediately?

In many markets, yes—but the rules vary depending on your local MLS policies and applicable federal, state, and local laws governing phone calls, text messages, email marketing, and other forms of outreach. Always verify the requirements in your area before contacting owners of expired listings.

What's the difference between an expired listing and a withdrawn listing?

An expired listing occurs when the listing agreement ends without the home being sold. A withdrawn listing is removed from the market before the listing agreement expires, often because the seller wants to pause the sale, make repairs, or address personal circumstances while remaining under contract with their agent.

*PropStream engages an independent third-party to perform skip tracing.