Is It Worth It to Buy Real Estate Leads to Be a “Top Producer”?

At one of the brokerages we used to work in, there was an agent who spent thousands of dollars every month on real estate leads - mainly from Zillow.

His own rep came in to meet with him. From the outside, he looked very successful. Corporate awards, high sales volume, he was “crushing it.”

But on the inside, his business was an unorganized mess.

Some clients never even met him. Balls got dropped. He'd send his father at the last minute to show homes.

And the impact? It showed up in real ways.

More than once, we found ourselves stepping in to help his clients, not because it was our job - we weren't the managing brokers - but because the client experience mattered, and so did the brokerage's reputation.

One moment stood out clearly.

We were at the title company for one of our own closings. A clerk quietly pulled us aside. In the next room, a young first-time buyer was sitting alone - excited, anxious, and waiting to close on his first home.

His agent wasn’t there. Wasn’t answering. No explanation.

The clerk asked if we could help.

So we split up, one of us went into the room to sit beside that buyer, just to make sure he didn’t close on his first home alone.

Later, we found out the agent had been showing homes to another client and hadn’t bothered to let this buyer know he wouldn’t be there.

This wasn’t a one-time issue. This agent had a poor reputation, not just for being unreliable, but for being unkind. He was known for being a bully, to agents, to staff, to other industry professionals - even to clients. We’d had a falling-out with him a couple of years earlier and had stayed professional, but his behavior continued.

Despite ongoing issues, the brokerage tolerated it for a long time because of the numbers. The awards. The perceived value of his volume.

Eventually, it caught up to him. Complaints mounted. Ethics violations added up. He was let go.

But by then, the damage was done, to clients, to colleagues, and to the culture of the brokerage.

We’re not sharing this to gossip. We’re sharing it because this story stuck with us.

Buying leads doesn’t fix a broken business.

Even if you’re spending thousands a month…

If your clients don’t feel seen, respected, or understood…

If your systems are clunky…

If your follow-up is inconsistent…

You may grow by the numbers, but not in a way that lasts.

The industry loves to glamorize the “top producer” life.

But what good is it, if you’re constantly running, overwhelmed, stressed, and operating inefficiently… with a lot of overhead expenses and not much left over?

The agents and brokerages we work with now are looking for something different:

A business with structure

Systems that support their growth

Tools that save time instead of stealing it

Clients who feel taken care of

And a business they’re actually proud of

That’s why we created the S.V.O.L.T.A. Method™.

And why we wrote Build Your Own Leads Machine™.

Because we’ve seen what doesn’t work.

And we’ve learned - firsthand - what does.

Yes, leads are important.

But real sustainability comes from clarity, alignment, and consistency.

📘 Want to build smarter, not harder?

Get the book for just $7.95 → https://leadsmachine.svoltamarketing.com/

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