Where I Found My First 50 Real Estate Clients

Real estate is a tough business to get into. I never planned to turn it into a career. Back in 2013, my friend/roommate and I decided to get our real estate licenses together for fun. What was a hobby for 5-6 years had now turned into a fulfilling and rewarding business and career.

One of the biggest obstacles for newbie agents is finding your first client. You need someone to trust you with a large financial transaction even though you have no experience! How do you get experience when you have no experience? If you’re serious about getting into real estate, it’s best to learn under another agent/mentor. Don’t go it alone! You won’t earn as much, but use your first year to learn, learn, learn.

I had a great mentor at Keller Williams who connected me with 3 or 4 buyers to work with. He taught me how to work with clients and handle the paperwork. He also gave me other tips and tricks learned from years of experience. I closed 4 transactions in my first year as an agent before moving over to Samson Properties. I had a full-time job, and I was practicing real estate as a hobby. I did about the same in volume for the next 5 years with my friend/partner, closing on average just 3-5 transactions per year.

Things started to change in 2020. I joined a team called The K Group and learned that I should stop being a “secret” agent. I put myself out there more on social media (@realtordannylee), and my past clients started asking me to help them sell/buy and started sending me referrals. In 2020-2022, things really started to snowball and my production went from around $2M/yr to $7M/yr in 2020 to $15M/yr in 2021. I’m on track for over $11M for the first half of 2022.

There are many ways to find new clients, but here’s what has worked for me:
-maintaining good relationships
-genuinely caring about people
-having an online presence (my blog, Zillow profile, Google Business profile, etc.)
-posting consistently on social media (ig, fb, TikTok)
-doing a good job for clients (repeat clients and referrals)
-being responsive
-being reliable and dependable
-being knowledgeable and competent
-leads from my listings
-leads that find me online
-connecting over common interests

On the flip side, here’s what hasn’t really worked for me:
-leads from lists or other services
-mailers (although I’ve only done this once or twice; I may try this again)
-paid ads (I put an ad in the Fair Lakes magazine for fun)
-open houses (I only did a few in my early years; I have other agents do them for my listings now)

I’m not naturally an outgoing person, but I’ve found that I enjoy connecting with people and being able to help them. Everyone’s SOI (sphere of influence) will look a little different depending on their lifestyle, life stage, and interests.

As I think back on where I found my clients, it’s amazing to see how a small connection can turn into multiple transactions. Here are some examples:
-I met a couple at a wedding. We were sitting at the same table. I helped them buy a TH. Years later, I helped them sell that TH and buy a new SFH. They referred their cousin to me, and I helped them buy a condo. (4 transactions)
-A connection from church (friends of friends). They asked me to help list their TH and buy a SFH. A neighbor saw my listing, and asked me to sell their TH. The original buyer of the first TH had to relocate and asked me to list their TH. The neighbor sent me a referral for a SFH listing. (5 transactions, all over $1M)
-Friend from a table tennis league I was in for a year. He asked to list his condo. A neighbor asked me to list their condo and help them buy a SFH. Another neighbor asked me to help them sell her condo. (3 transactions, possibly 4).
-Visited a dog park with my daughter (without a dog). Met someone and connected over our love of Jindo dogs (I had one as a kid). Helping them sell/buy, and they already referred their friends. (2 transactions, possibly 3).

My point here is you can meet clients anywhere. I try to establish a genuine connection and usually don’t mention that I’m a real estate agent unless the topic comes up naturally.

As I was thinking about the past few years, I wanted to take a look at where I found my first 50 clients (or how they found me). Here’s a detailed list (not including my first year where I served my mentor’s clients):

1. Personal purchase
2. Friend of friend
3. Personal sale
4. Same church
5. Same church
6. Friend
7. Met at wedding (sat at same table)
8. Same church
9. Personal purchase
10. Repeat client
11. Friend’s brother
12. Same church
13. Personal sale
14. Repeat client
15. Referral from client 7
16. Repeat client (client 7)
17. Repeat client (client 7)
18. Same church
19. Referral from past client
20. Same church and followed my blog
21. Personal purchase
22. Used to go to same church and followed my blog
23. Repeat client
24. Referral from former partner (he moved to CA)
25. Family member purchase
26. Referral from former partner
27. Neighbor of client (listing lead)
28. Repeat client
29. Found me online
30. Friend / same church
31. Found me online (from CA)
32. Buyer of my listing had to relocate and asked me to list
33. Referral from loan officer
34. Family purchase
35. Found me online
36. Referral from former partner
37. Used to go to same church
38. Met in a table tennis league
39. Referral from loan officer
40. Used to go to same church
41. Same church
42. Used to go to same church
43. Repeat client
44. Family member purchase
45. Used to go to same church
46. Same church / softball team
47. Repeat client
48. Used to go to same church
49. Repeat client
50. Personal sale

Here are some more, just to keep track.
51. Referral from friend
52. Same church
53. Friend
54. Neighbor (listing lead)
55. Friend and used to go to same church
56. Used to go to same church and followed my blog
57. Listing lead
58. Referral from past client
59. Met at dog park
60. Repeat client

As you can see, once business gets rolling, you’ll get a lot more repeat clients and referrals. Also, as you get more listings, buyers and sellers will start to call.

I used to be very involved with serving in church when I didn’t have kids. I met a lot of people and made a lot of connections through serving. Also, common interests such as softball, table tennis, and even personal finance has helped me connect with people.

Taking a look and reflecting on this was insightful to me. I officially became a mentor at Samson Properties and am hoping to spend some time this summer writing some content that may help newer agents understand this business better.

I am a licensed real estate agent in northern Virginia. If you have any real estate questions or need help buying or selling, please contact me at realtordannylee@gmail.com.