How Top Agents Find Opportunities in the Slower Winter Season

Disclaimer: PropStream does not offer investment or legal advice. This article is for informational purposes only. Consult a financial and/or legal professional before recommending real estate deals to investors.

As temperatures drop during winter, real estate activity tends to follow suit. But tempered buyer activity and low inventory don’t have to bring your business to a halt. The colder months can be the perfect time to find off-season real estate opportunities, including motivated sellers, and prepare your business for the warmer, busier seasons. 

PropStream recently spoke with two accomplished agents who have discovered their own strategies to keep deals moving and their sales pipeline full. Below, you’ll hear from “the Real Estate Guy” Chris Dunham, an Arizona Realtor with 26 years of experience, and Liz Walker, a RE/MAX Realtor who has served the Central Wisconsin market for nine years. 

Q: How does your business strategy change during the winter months?

Dunham:  I shift my focus from reacting to the market to owning my visibility. I double down on blogging, posting daily across all social media platforms, and staying consistently in front of my audience with valuable, relevant content. That consistency keeps my pipeline warm, even when activity slows.

On the lead-generation side, I leverage targeted tools like Adwerx, Nextdoor, and Meta advertising to stay hyper-local and top-of-mind with homeowners and buyers in the communities I serve. Instead of waiting for the phone to ring, I create opportunities by educating, engaging, and staying visible, so when the market heats back up, I’m already positioned as the trusted expert.

Walker: Slowing down your marketing in the colder months is a big mistake. You have to continue to work the market just as you do in the summer months in order to set yourself up for a steady business. Buyers often drop out of the market to wait for spring, but now is the time to reach out to them and point out properties that might be perfect for them. That personal call can get them back into the buying mood. 

Q: How do you decide which homeowners to contact when inventory is limited?

Dunham: When inventory is low, I prioritize homeowners based on data and likelihood to move, not mass outreach. I use my title company to generate lists of owners who have lived in these communities for at least 10 years, have good equity, and are more likely to move. I focus first on the length of ownership and equity, since owners with strong equity have more flexibility.

I also look at neighborhood turnover, property condition trends, and life-cycle signals that suggest a home may no longer fit the owner’s needs. Finally, I pay close attention to engagement data—homeowners interacting with market updates or home value content are often in the early decision phase.

It’s about relevance over volume. I’ve found that targeted, informed outreach leads to better conversations and better listings.

Walker: I think of it as the 5 D's—Diapers, Diplomas, Downsizing, Divorce, Death. I'm always on the lookout for these events within my client base by keeping an eye on them on social media. I reach out to congratulate, offer sympathy, or simply say, “How can I assist you?” I also send out an updated price valuation to previous clients in the winter months to stay top of mind in case they are thinking of moving.

Q: How does your outreach messaging change during the winter months?

Dunham: During the winter months, my messaging becomes more relationship-based and informational, not urgent or sales-driven. People are distracted by holidays and year-end planning, so the focus shifts to market clarity, home equity awareness, and planting seeds for early spring rather than pushing immediate decisions.

In terms of channels, social media and email perform best this time of year because they’re low-pressure and easy to consume. I stay highly consistent with daily social content and market updates. Direct mail and Next Door also perform well in winter because homeowners are at home more often and pay closer attention to local information.

Cold calls are less effective seasonally, whereas targeted ads and warm conversations via social media and email tend to convert better and set up strong Q1 momentum.

Walker: When it comes to outreach methods, social media and personal calls work best for me during the winter months.

Q: What advice would you give newer agents trying to build traction during the off-season?

Dunham: When business slows down, agents sometimes put all their eggs in one basket, pull back instead of leaning in, and fail to follow up consistently. Momentum is lost when outreach becomes sporadic or when agents wait for leads instead of creating them. It takes 30 minutes a day to engage with friends’ and followers’ social media posts.

My advice is to build a foundation of daily routines centered around income-producing activities—posting consistently, writing blogs, creating reels, and following up every single day. Traction isn’t built in busy markets; it’s built in the off-season by showing up when others disappear.

Walker: Most agents forget that life events still happen regardless of the weather. You have to check your business daily to keep it flowing. If you don't, you miss opportunities. Create a routine to revisit your database and touch base with leads. For instance, you could set a goal of five contacts a day, whether it’s a text, a direct message on social media, or a personal phone call.

Don’t Let Winter Slow Down Your Business

It’s easy to get discouraged during the sluggish winter months. But as Dunham and Walker prove, this season doesn’t have to spell disaster for your marketing momentum. With hard work and the right tools, you can stand out even more as competition lags.

Use PropStream to uncover off-market properties and motivated sellers to fill up your pipeline and keep your business growing all year long.

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