Skip to content Quick Links:
This graph represents the most overlooked opportunity in real estate today. While agents battle for fresh expired listings in a feeding frenzy of rejection, a fortune in old expired leads sits completely untouched.
When a listing expires, it triggers twenty to fifty agent calls in the first 48 hours. Scripts are recited. Promises are made. Sellers build walls of resistance after the tenth call of the day.
But something remarkable happens after 30 days: agent persistence falls off a cliff. By day 60, calls have completely stopped. By month six, these sellers might as well be invisible.
This creates an extraordinary opportunity that top-producing agents have quietly exploited for years. The data tells the story: 65% of expired listings will relist within two years. Yet virtually no agents are contacting them after the six-month mark.
Why 6-Month-Old Expired Leads Convert Better
Let’s talk about conversion rates—the metric that actually puts money in your pocket. While fresh expired listings are an obvious opportunity, they have dense competition. If you’re wanting to avoid some competition on your leads, it might be worth waiting a few months (or calling older expired leads today).
Old expired listings (6+ months) convert at a rate of one in every 25 contacts made, compared to just 3-5% for sphere of influence leads. And while online leads convert at a dismal 0.5-1%, these forgotten sellers are 10x more responsive.
Why such a dramatic difference? Industry veterans like Tom Ferry have discovered that old expired leads are “warmer, friendlier calls to make” because homeowners aren’t defensive from constant agent harassment.
When you’re the only agent calling in months, you become a consultant.
The 10-Week Formula That Converts Old Expireds
“I’ve been going back three or four years because those people want a little break when they first list their home for sale,” says Zak Klinedinst, who specializes in old expired listings. “Even if it’s six months to a year, it’s still good ’cause nobody else is calling them.”
The psychology is simple. As Zak explains, “People always have their guard up when you first call them. But with old expireds, it’s easier to get past that guard because they’re not getting blown up by other agents at this point.”
This is confirmed by Ricky Carruth, who demonstrated the power of old expired listings in a live call session. When calling a seller whose listing expired 7 months earlier, the owner immediately noticed the difference: “Where were you at when my house was listed last time? Two months ago? Six months ago?”
Joshua Smith, who’s been using an expired listing strategy for over 16 years, explains the crucial timeline most agents miss: “90% of expireds do not relist their homes in the first 90 days. They’re re-listing at about that four-month mark to about that two-year mark.”
The Psychology Of The Forgotten Seller
Understanding why sellers with 6+ month expired listings still want to sell reveals the true opportunity. Behavioral research shows that homeowners experience loss aversion at 2.5x the rate of potential gains—meaning the pain of an unsold home intensifies over time rather than diminishing.
The life circumstances driving their decision haven’t changed. The job transfer still happened. The growing family still needs more space. The mortgage is still too expensive.
What has changed is their emotional state. The initial disappointment has faded. Market conditions may have improved. And most importantly, they’re no longer being bombarded by desperate agents.
They’re in what psychologists call a “readiness window”—prepared to try again with the right approach. One proven script: “Hi, I noticed you listed your home back in [year]. A lot has changed since then and property values have also changed. Have you re-explored the idea of selling your home?
For more old expired scripts, check out this blog on what to say to old expireds, or this blog post on how to prospect traditional expired listings.
Master The Three Critical Objections for Old Expired Leads
When contacting old expireds, you’ll encounter three specific objections. According to The Close, your success depends on how you handle them:
Objection 1: “We’re taking our home off the market.” Response: “I understand your frustration. Many of my clients felt the same way. Would you feel differently if I told you I had potential buyers ready to bring offers based on today’s improved market?”
Objection 2: “I want to stay with my agent.” Response: “I respect your loyalty. If you were feeling sick and your doctor couldn’t figure out the problem, wouldn’t you get a second opinion? I’ve helped many sellers in your exact situation with a fresh approach.”
Objection 3: “It’s a bad time to sell.” Response: “Actually, homes in your neighborhood have appreciated by X% since you were last on the market. Your home might now sell for significantly more than your original list price.”
The REDX Advantage: Tools to Prospect Old Expireds
What separates successful old expired prospectors from everyone else? A systematic approach powered by the right technology.
How to Get Old Expired Listings
REDX’s Expired Leads tool provides skip-traced contact information for every expired listing in your market—not just new ones. At $60/month, you gain access to a complete database of old expireds that other agents have forgotten.
The Power Dialer enables you to call efficiently, with built-in SMART Number Technology preventing spam flags. This means you can efficiently work through lists of old expireds during the golden hours of 4-6 PM when connection rates peak.
But calling is just one method. REDX’s Ad Builder ($49.99/month plus ad spend) allows you to target your expired lead database directly on Facebook and Instagram, warming up cold leads before the first call. Successful agents report that when they finally call, homeowners recognize their face and name from social media, dramatically increasing receptivity.
The key to managing it all? Vortex LMS (free with any lead subscription) lets you organize old expireds by age brackets: 3-6 months, 6-12 months, and 12+ months, each requiring different psychological approaches.
