A seller whose listing expired last week has just spent months being told their house would sell, and it didn't. The agent who writes to them with something specific and unpushy has a better chance than the five who call with a script. These cold email templates for real estate agents cover three sellers you can find from public records: expired listings, for-sale-by-owner homeowners, and your own past clients.

The sample agent is Jordan Pell of Pell & Co Realty in Boise. The homes, owners and prices are invented. Real estate has its own rules on top of email law: your brokerage name must appear in advertising in most states, you shouldn't solicit a seller who is under an active listing agreement with another broker, and Fair Housing rules apply to everything you write. Check with your managing broker before you send any template.

Expired listings, for-sale-by-owner sellers and past clients

Start where there's an obvious need. Expired and withdrawn listings, which show up in your MLS. For-sale-by-owner listings on public sites, where the owner has chosen to be public. Your own past clients, who are the cheapest and most overlooked source of listings. A list of 20 to 30 of these is a week of work, and one listing is worth many times the effort. For the larger plan, getting clients as a real estate agent covers where else to look.

Emailing is not the same as calling. Phone calls to numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry are restricted, with limited exceptions, and the rules differ for expired listings and FSBOs, so most agents who prefer calls check the registry first. Email avoids that problem, but still has its own rules.

Email 1: the expired listing

Subject: What happened with 412 Alder Lane

Hi Pat,

I noticed your listing at 412 Alder Lane came off the market last week. I'm not writing to say anyone did anything wrong. Homes sometimes sit for reasons that have little to do with the home.

I'm Jordan Pell, an agent in Boise. I put together a one-page review of what's sold near you in the last 90 days and how long it took, and what I'd change about the approach. Would you like me to send it? No obligation. If you've already signed with someone else, ignore this.

Jordan Pell, Pell & Co Realty, 880 W Main St, Boise ID 83702. If you'd rather not hear from me, reply "stop."

Why it works: it acknowledges the frustration without blaming, offers something useful and specific, and gives a graceful exit. The last line also protects you if the owner has relisted. When to send: a few days after the listing expires, when the owner has had time to cool off but hasn't hired someone else. Before sending, check that the home isn't currently under another agreement. Prepare the one-page review before you write, because "yes, send it" arrives fast.

Email 2: the for-sale-by-owner seller

Subject: Your home on Pine Street

Hi Gary,

I saw your home on Pine Street is listed for sale by owner. Congratulations on getting it to market. Selling without an agent saves the commission, and some owners do it well.

I'm Jordan Pell with Pell & Co Realty. If it would help, I can send you the recent sales within half a mile and what they sold for, so you can check your price. No strings, and if you sell it yourself, great. Want me to send it?

Jordan Pell, Pell & Co Realty, 880 W Main St, Boise ID 83702. Reply "stop" and I won't write again.

Why it works: it respects his choice, doesn't criticize it, and offers data he actually needs for pricing. Owners who sell on their own are often proud of that, so a pitch that implies failure does worse. When to send: in the first two weeks of the listing, when pricing questions are fresh, and again around week five if the home hasn't sold. Be willing to send the data even if he never hires you. That's how you become the agent he calls if it doesn't sell.

Email 3: the past client

Most agents under-use this one. A past client doesn't need a pitch, just a reason to remember you.

Subject: Two years in the house on Orchard Way

Hi Mia and Chris,

It's been two years since you closed on Orchard Way. I looked at what's sold on your street since then, and thought you might like to know what a couple of nearby homes went for. Nothing to do with selling, just something I'd want to know in your place.

Happy to send the short version if you'd like it, and tell me if anything in the house needs a recommendation for a plumber or electrician.

Jordan Pell, Pell & Co Realty, 880 W Main St, Boise ID 83702. If you'd rather not hear from me, reply "stop."

Why it works: it is about them, with no ask. It keeps you in the picture for the day they sell or someone they know does. A referral is the likely outcome, not a listing. When to send: once a year around the closing date. Use only data from public records or your MLS in ways your rules allow.

The follow-up that offers a one-page review

Subject: Re: What happened with 412 Alder Lane

Hi Pat, I wanted to make sure the review offer got to you. It's one page and takes me an hour to prepare, and you're welcome to use it with any agent. If you've decided to relist yourself or wait, that's fine too. Jordan

The line "you're welcome to use it with any agent" is both honest and disarming. Send one more in a week and then stop. When a seller answers, move quickly and read outbound that answers replies for how to handle the first hour.

Subject lines that fit real estate agents

Use the street or the situation: "What happened with 412 Alder Lane," "Your home on Pine Street," "Two years in the house on Orchard Way." Avoid "Sell your home fast," "I have buyers waiting," "Free home valuation" and anything with all caps. "I have a buyer for your home" is a classic that is often not true, and it can violate advertising and solicitation rules.

What to keep out of a listing email

Leave out claims that you have a buyer unless you do, guarantees about price or time on market, anything about the neighborhood's residents or demographics (Fair Housing), the previous agent's name, and your full list of sales. Don't use language that tells the owner their home is overpriced. Don't include a home valuation number you haven't prepared. And remember that emailing someone whose home is under another broker's exclusive agreement can violate your professional rules.

CAN-SPAM, brokerage disclosures and Fair Housing

CAN-SPAM requires a truthful From line and subject, a postal address and an opt-out honored within 10 business days; the footers above cover it. Real estate rules sit on top. Most states require the brokerage name in advertising, many require your license number, and you generally advertise under your supervising broker's name. Fair Housing rules apply to every word you write about a property or a neighborhood. If a seller is under an exclusive listing agreement with another broker, don't solicit them. Ask your managing broker for the state specifics, and read cold email that is not spam for the email basics.

Sending with your brokerage name in the signature

Send from your own address with your brokerage name in the signature, and keep volume modest, 20 to 50 a day per inbox at most. Expired listings go stale fast, so work a fresh list within a day or two of the MLS update. Rocketship finds owners by area, shows the first 25 by name before you spend a credit, and sends from your own Gmail with follow-ups and reply handling; see what the AI workers do. If you also work with investors or landlords, cold email templates for contractors shows the property-manager version.

Agents also send referral work to insurance partners, and cold email templates for insurance agents shows how they ask about renewal dates.

Sellers are most open right when something has just changed. Rocketship finds the buyers, emails them from your own Gmail, follows up, and books the meeting on its own. Plans that get you customers start at $24.99 a month (Launch), and every monthly plan starts with a 7-day free trial, card required.