With higher interest rates and extremely tight inventory, many existing homeowners are not moving forward with plans to upsize, downsize or change their address for any number of reasons, meaning fewer customers and transactions for real estate agents and title companies. As a result, real estate agents and title companies are both seeking strategies to identify homeowners that may be on the verge of deciding to sell their home, and thus becoming buyers as well. This common goal – to find these hidden prospects – creates a relationship-building opportunity for title companies and real estate agents to find new sources of business together.

So, what’s the best way to find these hidden prospects? Many real estate agents rely on broad-based traditional advertising and direct marketing, for instance. But savvy title companies can offer real estate agents a more targeted, data-driven approach to identify potential real estate prospects and help their referral sources get ahead of the competition. 

Increasingly, real estate agents are leveraging data-driven technology to identify homeowners who are, or will soon be, likely to put their home up for sale. They’re using what are called “farming” techniques, property and owner searches fueled by detailed data to develop targeted lists that are used to nurture and grow business. While some real estate agents have access to relevant data, many are relying on their title company partners, who have access to more robust data sources, like TitleFlex® from DataTrace.

TitleFlex combines property profile data with farm/list-building capabilities, using dozens of filters and qualifiers to identify potential prospects. Not just single-family homeowners, but also renters who may be looking to buy, or real estate investors looking to buy additional properties or sell their newly renovated fix-and-flips. Data can be mined to filter lists by geography, length of ownership, equity levels, neighborhood sales activity, recently deceased spouse, rate conversion or refinance, and distressed properties, for example. The level of detailed data available is impressive and, when combined with innovative marketing, can help convert homeowners into potential sellers and buyers. 

For instance, the move-up farm filter within TitleFlex can identify homeowners who meet a real estate agent’s ideal profile. The filter can be set to specific equity levels, purchase dates and square footage. A homeowner with say 20% to 50% equity and a 1,500-square-foot home that was purchased more than five years ago would fit the profile of a potential seller and move-up buyer.

The TitleFlex absentee-owner farm filters can identify owners who live out of state, allowing real estate agents to cultivate a relationship and be top of mind when the owner is ready to sell. The empty nester farm filters can identify larger homes with longer-term owners who may be ready to downsize. 

There are more than 120 different farm filters in TitleFlex. With data covering 100% of U.S. housing stock, a multitude of data filters that can be combined to create targeted farm lists that title companies and real estate agents can use to reach viable prospects, build relationships, and establish themselves as the go-to source for prospective sellers. 

If market conditions are preventing homeowners from selling their homes, TitleFlex and its sophisticated set of farm filters can help real estate agents identify hidden prospects that can be convinced now is the time to sell. The more robust and comprehensive the data is on the front end, the stronger and more productive the farm list. 

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