How Do I Call an Expired Listing for an Appointment?

By Greg Harrelson

Greg Harrelson is the founder and leader of the largest Century 21 offices on the East Coast. With offices located throughout South and North Carolina, Greg coaches the top real estate talent in the Carolinas and also founded Real Estate Sales Solutions which has coaching programs like the Agent Success Academy.

If you’re like most real estate agents, you probably dread the thought of calling up an expired listing for an appointment. These are sellers who just experienced a major setback, and they’re probably getting flooded with calls from agents using smarmy scripts to take advantage of their situation. The last thing they want is another call from someone looking to sell their house, right? Unfortunately, while the housing market is set to bounce back a bit in 2025, there’s no denying that leads are harder to come by these days. You might not like it, but you might have to turn to expired listings to increase your bottom line.

The good news is that when everyone else is running a predatory playbook, you have a lane open to stand out as the helpful, knowledgeable expert. That’s why today, I’m sharing three tips to help you call expired listings, turn them into appointments, and get more business:

1. Differentiate yourself. When you call an expired listing, you should assume the homeowner has already received plenty of calls from other agents, most of whom will be running nearly identical scripts. If you want to stand out and build trust with the homeowner, you need to think outside the box. While there are tons of ways you could try to do this, one example is to suggest the client rent out their home instead of selling it. This positions you as someone trying to help, which will put you in stark contrast to less experienced agents who come across as salesy.

2. Provide value. Most agents calling expired listings are only asking for the homeowner’s business. If you want to build trust and stand out, you need to provide value upfront. One of the reasons why my previous example works is because it gives the homeowner another option they might not have thought about. This is the sort of value you want to provide the homeowner before asking anything from them.

3. Approach with empathy. When you call an expired listing, you need to acknowledge the frustration the homeowner is feeling. No one wants to fail, and they’ve probably already received plenty of calls from other agents. However, as I’ve mentioned previously, this can be a good thing. You likely have more experience and expertise than the other agents the homeowner has talked to. Be honest and upfront with the potential client and focus on building rapport, not selling yourself. If you can successfully build trust, you’ll be much more likely to earn their business.

At the end of the day, calling an expired listing comes down to being a professional: a trustworthy expert with the knowledge to help the homeowner succeed. If you want additional training on how to reach a high level of professionalism, or you just have questions about expired listings, please call or email me. I’d love to hear from you.