KGCI: Real Estate on Air - Convert Online Leads and Break into New Construction

Episode Date: March 17, 2025

Welcome back to another episode of the agent goldmine today. Shelby and I are interviewing Melissa Roybal. And you can find her on Instagram at Melissa Roybal Homes on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, all the shit. And Melissa's background, Melissa and I had known each other for three years now, I think. We met originally through investing stuff. And then we both got into heavier into real estate agent stuff together. So we've seen each other at conferences and all the things. Okay, Melissa, your background.

You got your real estate license back in 2004. That was after buying your home using seller financing and house hacking, which we've interviewed you on Investify. So listen to that episode on those specifics. And then you kind of got back into, you purchased a bunch of rental properties near and far. And you stopped being a full-time realtor. And instead, you went to.

pediatric nurse for 10 years while you were still investing. And then in 2021, you got back into real estate agent stuff. That was after, so you started a new career and you moved your entire family from the Bay Area to Folsom, which is where you are now. So today's topics that we're going to go deep dive into are how you're a boss at converting online leads. And the tips for first time homebuyers. So Melissa, I am stoked to have you. Welcome to the show. Thank you. I'm happy to be here. Dude. Okay, Melissa, so you have been in real estate for a long time and you recently got back into real estate. You mentioned with the intention of using your license for investing, but got sucked into being an agent again. I got sucked in big time.

Tell us about why did you get sucked in? Why did you allow yourself to get sucked back? I don't know. I just, I like doing all these things. I'm an entrepreneur at home. heart. So it's like, you know, and I always, I love the investing and I love doing that. But to be frank with you, I came up here. We moved up here. And I was still, my job allowed me to work, telehealth for a year. And then I started, you know, I was looking for jobs. And I'm like, oh, I don't really see anything that I'd like. I really liked my previous job. And we were like full on into real estate investing at that time. I think before that I had met Allie. But, you know, Ali, I was like all into it, going to conferences, doing all this stuff. And then actually,

I had a bad experience with one of my out-of-state rentals with an agent. And there was like no communication, nothing going on. And I was like, oh, then it just gave me the itch to get back into it. So here I am. And then I was like, well, I'm going to do it to connect with other investors and do all that stuff. And then I found myself starting to do the sales. And yep, I got sucked in. So here I am.

But it's a lot of fun. You sound thrilled. It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work. People think it's easy, you know, now with social media and everything, people think it's easy. But it's, you know, it's a lot of work. but it's good. Yeah. So when you first got licensed, well, the second time around,

were you doing more so online leads or what was your, what was your leads? What were your leads like? So when I started, because I was in a brand new place, so when I used to do real estate sales back in the Bay Area, like I grew up there, my dad's a retired police officer. Like we had all the connections. So I come up here, I know nobody, right? So I did, I started paying for Zillow leads and that that worked out really well. I stopped paying for them. I want to say eight months ago, but yeah, that that worked out really well. How much money did you? I was going to get asked. You guys are all about the, we want to know. We want to know it all. Yes. Yeah, for sure. So I was doing 20, $2,200 a month and then I dropped it till $1,600. So yeah, it was around $2,000 a month. And I, and I want to say from what I put in,

I think I got a four-time ROI on it. Wow. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So going from a higher, usually people, I think, do the opposite. Like they start slow and then they go, they increase. Yeah.

What was your, the decision making as far as either like zip codes or I only know a little bit about Zillow. What was it going from 2000 to less? Just because I felt like I was spending a lot on it. And I mean, I don't know if it was, I don't think it was like in the beginning, but you know, you're, you're getting people coming in on your leads. And then there's other stuff, right? So once you really start getting into the real estate sales, then you realize there's other stuff that I need to do or putting my systems in place. So you can't just be. And then with Zillow, like, you have to be on your phone.

You know, like you have to be there. Like nine o'clock at night, I remember I was like in a hotel with my kids and like the Zillow thing rings. And I'm like out in the hallway. Hey, you know, start talking. So I was kind of, I didn't want that to be my main lead source. You know, I wanted to switch it up. So I could have boundaries in my life and all that stuff. You know, I didn't want to be attached to my phone until, you know, all hours of the night. So I started kind of tapering back. But it does depend on zip code. So I didn't want to go.

Like I could have spent way less and gotten zip codes further away from me, but I wanted only the zip codes that were right where I live. I feel like with Zillow or any paid leads that are bringing in a bunch of leads. Also, there comes to a point where it's, I now don't need more. I just need to actually follow up with the ones that I. get or otherwise you know it's just you're flowing money and you're getting the hot leads and you're only chasing like the hot ones and not converting the ones you've already paid for for sure and out of one there was one my actually my first zillow lead turned into four transactions so that was really good what okay explain that yeah so i was working with him and his wife and i actually i didn't even think

they liked me when we first met you know they were like super weird and quiet i think they were scared you know, because they were making a huge purchase and had been in their house for 30 years. But we connected and stuff. He was actually a professor where I went to undergrad. So we connected on that level. But they ended up buying a house like a $1.8 million house. And then they wanted to move the mom. So I ended up doing all their families deals over the like the next few months.

And then he bought a rental property also. So I think it turned. The thing is like with Zillow, I think it's good if you do it. let's say you don't have anything, right? Like you don't have a sphere. You don't have any of that. But then those people turn into your sphere, right? Like you're paying for that Zillow leap.

If you really keep in contact with them like you're supposed to over time, then they're part of your sphere, you know, so it turns into more deals. How long would you say the conversion is or has been with Zillow? I had, I mean, I've had two clients that we saw the property and like we made the offer. And that was it. And then I still have people that I'm talking to that, because I'm, I stopped paying for Zillow eight months ago, right? So I've been talking to some people for a year. Dang. Okay. For those that are-

They're more motivated. That you do feel that they're more motivated? Yeah, when they hit the Zillow button, yeah. Okay. Okay. What, what like advanced tips, strategies, techniques can you give for for people that are on Zillow now of what worked for you? I really think the best advice that I got was get the in-person appointment. Don't start with, let's do a buyer console, let's get your pre-approval, let's do all. And I know we should, but I will do one showing without a pre-approval. Because they don't know me from anybody. You know what I mean? I literally had a client who hit the Zillow button and was drunk. Okay. So he's what? You answered? He's, I'm drinking, you know, and I had run up again, right? I'm having dinner with my kids and I'm like,

the Zillow. Oh my God. You know, so I run upstairs and I want to be in the MLS, right? Because I want to see what they're looking at. And he's, I'm just drinking here with my wife. And, you know, I kept leave somebody answered, you know, so I was like, okay. And then right when you, I don't care what property it is, property it is, just try to meet up with them. You know, try to just schedule so you have an in person thing. Because once you're in person, then you could build that rapport really quick and then move forward. But that's my biggest tip is don't sit there and start saying, are you pre-approved? Do you have an agent? You know, of course you want to find that out when you talk to them in person. But I think the most important thing is that and then the follow up.

you have to like keep following up. And when you go meet a Zillow lead, make sure you have the other properties that are similar to that property. So you can be like, oh, well, this property is available too. So that kind of thing. Dude, Melissa, you know we're going to ask. We want to know exactly what you say on the phone. Can we do a little bit of a role play?

You know, because, okay, so when you do this Zillow, it's a handover, right? Like Zillow calls you. Let's what. Can you walk us through it? Yes. So Zillow says you're receiving a call. You have the end. try to get the name, but it's like a weird recording thing. They're like, you're, you're receiving a

call from who is interested in blah, blah, blah, one, two, three, Main Street, right? And then the, the thing will pop up on your phone, the address, the listing, right, through Zillow, but you still, like, I want to get in the MLS and be, you know, if I'm not, I'm not, like, I've answered it in the car before and I just make do, you know, but if I'm near my laptop or whatever and I can get in, then, you know, then they connect and I'm like, hey, you know, this is Melissa Roybal with Gateway properties. Like, how's it going? you know, I see that you're interested in touring. You usually get a request for a tour, right?

And I'm like, oh, you know, so you wanted to see this property and they're like, yeah. And then I try to, to be honest with you, I try to say it. So when do you want to see it, you know, whatever. I'm not even trying to what. And then I start asking them once I, if they booked the appointment, then I start asking them, you know, how long have you been looking? What do you like about this property? Is this kind of typically what you're looking for?

Are you open to looking at other properties? But I just keep it like short and, you know, I'll meet you there. So I really want to get the appointment. And then at the appointment, it's basically like a buyer console. You know, so as we're like walking around, I'm like asking them all kinds of questions. I want to know just everything about them. You know how they say when you ask like, why this, why that. I think that's the best way to do it because you're finding out about them because there's a lot of reasons why people are buying.

You know, it's not just, you know, they want the four, three or whatever. You know, they're moving. Their kids are moving, whatever. So I try to find out everything about them. And I'm a chatterbox. So it works. I love how in the beginning you were like, yeah, this couple was so weird. They were shy. I was trying to talk to them so much. I didn't even find out what they did till the third visit. I mean, they were so like, I really thought they were not going to call me back. I'm like they were so scared, but they were so scared to buy. They were so scared. And that's like the perfect. I always talk about this with with people where there, I feel like overall, very generally classifying, you know, categorizing, classifying.

They're people that want to be led and there are people that feel like they need to lead. And majority of the time, or at least those that I have worked with, they want to be led. They could not say a word. It's I have also been on conversations that are just pulling teeth. I'm like, oh my, do you guys even talk to each other? Do you guys say anything? Yeah. So it's all the more reason for somebody like you to be like, okay, come on, just jump on my back.

Let's go. Yeah. They're probably grateful. Yeah. For the babbling. You know, just in general. Like the end, they're like, oh, I don't have to say anything, thank God. Yeah.

And I think for realtors, like at least advice for realtors, it's, you know, with the follow-up, I know a lot of people feel like, oh, I don't want to be salesy. I don't want a bug or whatever. But a lot of times, like I've heard from people like, oh, thanks for following up. Like, life is crazy, right? Life is crazy for everybody. So it's you just, you have to keep following up because, I mean, they don't, you're a stranger still, you know, so you have to build that report.

Okay. And then so once, so you build the report in person. Do you have any safer spouses or more than one person purchasing? Do you, on the first phone call, do you make sure that all parties are going to be there? Or is it just like first come, first serve, whoever you end up meeting with? Yeah, it's whoever I am meeting with. If it's, and we've talked about this, Allie, but if it's something else, yeah, for sure, that's my thing now where, hey, you know, everybody needs to be some weird stuff has happened.

I mean, people don't want to tell their wife this stuff. They don't want to, someone wants to buy with asking me, can they, buy on their own name. Just, you know, people need to, everybody needs to be there. But in the first visit, no, because sometimes it will be like, like that the guy that was drunk, right? He like went by himself, you know, and met me by himself. And he's, oh, I'm on my lunch, you know, and then I was like, okay, you're going to, do you like this part? He's like, yeah, my wife gets off. And then we'll come back, you know, so I do push it though. I do say, hey, you know, is your wife going to come back or whoever is buying with them? Sometimes it's like sister brother, whoever. But the first one, I won't. I just want to get there

and have them like me, basically. After that, you mentioned having other properties at the ready. So is that, that's like a just in case kind of? Yeah, for sure. Because I mean, a lot of times, I mean, I think I've had a few where it's like that property. And they walk in and they're like, I love this property, whatever. But a lot of times you'll have people that are just, you know, sometimes they're just starting their search.

So, you know, I think having the other properties just shows them, it makes you look more professional too. You're showing them that you know the market. So. Yeah. And if they have time after, let's go check out the other two properties that are somewhat similar. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, for sure, I'll make sure that they're like vacant on lockbox so I could go. So they're not like, oh, this is cool and you have to make an appointment, you know? So how with the follow up, with those that are not as instantaneous, what are the best strategies or what do you do for, for follow up for these online leads? Yeah. I need to know. So this is the problem, too.

Like my systems are like this is why I listen to your podcast all the time because I love this. Because that's what I need. I tell myself, I need to take two weeks off. And then of course someone wants to buy yourself, right? Right when you try to take off and you're like, I'm doing my systems. And yeah. So that's a mess. But so I have the time or I've had the time.

I think I have the time. But I literally just, I know like I have my whiteboard, right? like who is looking for this, that, and then I look for properties and I follow up with them. But I need, I definitely need, you know, system in place, even if it's like a drip or things like that. Yes, I put everybody on property alerts and stuff like that. But sometimes stuff comes up that people don't want to. So I still look. So I do spend a lot of time like, you know, looking for what people want and doing all of that.

And then I just know who they are and I'm calling them or following up with them. So it's all manual. I really need a better system for sure. For the follow-up, the fact that you're doing it, though, better than a lot. So I want to ask, like, when you are following up, can you take us through what that call or what that interaction looks like specifically? I do ask people, like, is it easier for you to text? Is it easier for a call, email?

You know, because some people get annoyed, right? Some people work outside of the home. Some people are at home. but basically especially the first week like i'm i'm sending them properties every day so every day i'm like i you know it's funny because i i in the morning like i get up super early and that's my time to do you know mLS looking at what's on the market this and that and then i start following up with everybody so in the beginning especially if they're super much and then i'm making sure they're getting pre-approved right away so on our first meeting i'm connecting them with the lender by

text. I'm like, I have this great lender. I'm going to put her on a text with you. So I don't go and deal with, you know, oh, I'll call them later or, you know, I'm going to email you their info. No, we just connect by text so that they can get on a phone call. Okay. So right away, you're connecting with the lender. And then for the first week, based on their criteria and what you learned about them through that walkthrough where you did essentially, you're questioning upon the walking. You've gathered that information. You were sending them properties essentially every single day for the first week. And then hypothetically, they like go colder or the right property doesn't come up.

Are you just at that point, whenever you catch their name on the whiteboard, like shooting them a text like, hey, I'm thinking about you today. Or is it, is your follow up process like always sending properties? I check in once a week for sure.

So if they're not ready to buy, a lot of them are kind of ready to buy, especially when they hit the Zillow button, I've noticed that. But if they're not like the people that I've been talking to for a year, like once a week I'll check in and I will randomly be like hey you know what's going on how's it going I don't want to be like oh here's like a robot right here's your properties all the time so if I don't have properties to send them you know I'll be like oh how's your kids how's the you know I send

people happy Thanksgiving you know how's it going whatever so just random things like that but I do make sure it's once a week curious about how many leads did that two grand or the $600 in Zillow produce like per month. Per month, I mean. Or total. Whatever, whatever number you can pull out and toss my way. I'm ready to say we were getting. I mean, I think it's a hot zip code because I at least, I want to say I was getting like

two a week, maybe, two or three a week. Yeah, dude. I feel like that's, I mean, that's sick. And especially if they're ready to buy. Yeah, because some people were like, oh, no, Zillow sucks. Like you only get, you know, you hardly get any. And we were, I was getting calls. But then they said, too, that's why that zip code was more expensive.

So yeah, at five pillars retreat, I sat down with a guy that's focused on Zillow leads because I know nothing about Zillow leads. And there's a whole strategy. You know, like this, it's not just throw money and here you go. It's like the zip code and you want to make sure that you're number one. Otherwise, if you're number three, it's not even worth the money. I'm like seeing all that like behind the scenes, you know, in person, you know, I was like, whoa, this is because, because Melissa, I don't even know if I told you, I am moving. I don't know when yet, but like sometime in 2024, I'm moving to Minneapolis.

And so I'm like, being that I don't know anybody except for the in-laws, do I buy Zillow leads? So, right. Yeah, sitting down with this kid, I was like, holy crap. This is a whole, like, strategy thing. Is there anything else that we haven't covered about online leads or Zillow? I think you brought up just rang a bell too, because if you update the call in their CRM,

there's these things you can do to get points. So you come up better. And the Zillow reps are really good. And they even have like Zillow classes that you can take. You know, so you can get all into it and know how to, because you want to be best of Zillow. Your conversion rate needs to be a certain amount. But it's a whole thing. So yeah.

But I think honestly, if you do Zillow, take advantage of the resources and and, you know, do everything you can to learn about it. Wow. Zillow classes. Are those free? Yeah, they have Zillow Academy or something. And they have some good tips, you know. but if you use their CRM inside to kind of double doing work,

and then if you answer your calls all the time, you know, and then your conversion rate, stuff like that will bring you up higher. Classic Allie, her first responses, is it free? I mean, if I'm paying $2,000 a $1,000, it better be free. Shut up, Shelby. Well, it's just funny because it's like during, we had a DiPillars like weekly Team Sync earlier today, and Allie was doing like her business breakdown.

And I was like reading like the, amount of money that she made from all these closings and like killed it out the gate in this industry. And then at the end, I was like, but she's also still the very cheapest person that I know. That's why, right? That's awesome. I love that. We do need to be mindful about our money. Melissa, so you, you've, you know, grabbed these people, the Zillow leads as they come in. You get them to the appointment and you charm with your personality. And then some of them may or may not be new homebuyers. And the reason why I'm framing it this way is because your tool for the agent goldmine, your golden nugget, if you would, which everyone can get at theagentgoldmine.com, is 20 tips when working with new homebuyers. So could you talk us through your process of working with new homebuyers?

Sure. Yeah. So this is for new construction homes. So, sorry, I'm trying to move. Perfect. Oh, new home buyers. I don't think we've ever gone deep on this. I don't have.

That's why I did it. because I was like, because I listened to your podcast and I was like, this will, because I don't want to do, oh, you know, some same thing. So I was like, this is exciting. A website guy. So, okay, this totally makes sense. It's new home tips, not who. Not new home buyer, new home buyer.

Yeah. Also, I can't read. This is like. This depends on where you live. So like I grew up and I have lived forever in the San Francisco Bay area. There's hardly any new homes, you know, everything's old. Like my newest home before I moved up here was built in, you know, like 1945 or whatever. So I came up here and we bought newer home. And so I'm in the middle of a bunch

of new home communities being built up. So like if, if, you know, anybody's a realtor that's near new home communities, it's really good to spend some time on it. I mean, I put, you know, I don't know if you want me to go through all of the tips or whichever ones are like the most important. Yeah. So I think like you really have to hone it down and get, you know, even get a binder going and know every single new home build in the community, you know? And of course, like, we don't want to work for free, right? So know which ones actually cooperate with realtors, you know, because you can find that out.

And they'll tell you, you know, because they all the new home builds, they have the sales offices. They have realtors there, right? But the realtor, and if you walk in without a realtor, so if you walk in without a realtor, that's it. Like you cannot get representation usually. That's their rule, right? You have to bring your realtor.

trying your first visit. Or else they're helping you. And a lot of people have the misconception that if they go in, they're going to get help by then. They work for the builder. They're not going to tell you that the builder is going to give you 30k and seller credits towards interest rate buy down. Right. They're not going to tell you that they'll throw in the washer dryer and, you know, window coverings, right? So you do need a realtor. And a lot of people don't know about that, but you do. So that's the first thing. It's if you have anybody that comes in and sometimes Zillol leads will in that are looking for brand new homes. So you need to tell them like, hey, you know, if you need representation, I need to go with you. So you need to hammer that in on the buyer consultation and be like,

you know, you need to take me with you when we go to the new home. But you really should be, if you're going to be doing new homes, you really should be on top of like special assessment taxes because those are all in California. If you're in a new home build, you have special assessment taxes. We have to have solar. So you need to, solar is included and you're going to pay for it. you're either going to buy it or you're going to lease it. So you need to know things like that. You know, you should know the options. You should know the floor plans and visit the model homes. Like it's a good social media thing too. Like they'll let you just go in and do video and it's pretty, right? So it looks good when you're on, you know, doing a reel on Instagram and you have a nice model home.

So do and then you're talking to the realtors there. Because if you get to know them good enough, like they'll know when you come in and, you know, try to help your client out. They're helping you to try to help sell the client because they want to make their commission too, right? And then just, you know, you could run Facebook ads and capture new home leads too and just set the parameters, you know, to anything built, I don't know, 20, 22 and above or whatnot. And then you could get new home leads like that, you know, know the neighborhood. It's easier if you like live near that kind of neighborhood. But yeah, just having, I think having like a central thing where, you know, you know all of the sales agent. quick-moving homes have more negotiating rooms. So if it's already built, those are good when you have clients.

You can be like, hey, this home is already built. You know, they're more willing. They want to get it off their books. Melissa, okay, there's, there's, you just said so many things that I know nothing about. So clearly I know nothing about like new construction. I think I've sold one ever. And it was like already a built. It was probably one of those quick move-ins.

So can you tell me when you're like the builders, they won't tell you the things? Yeah. Can we like, real quick, at least go through and list the things that they won't tell you that you should know even exist? Can we like, real quick, at least go through and list the things that they won't tell you that you should know even exist? Yeah, and they've told me that too. I mean, I even have friends that used to do new home builds, right?

And they're like, it's not like we're trying to screw anybody. We're just like, we work for the builder. We're not going to go start giving away money, you know? So I'll give you an example. So I did a new home build for these first-time home buyers. And we were like, and then another good thing to know is that they don't want to go down on price because they don't want to lower the comps for the neighborhood. Right. So they're willing to throw in a bunch of stuff.

So we went in. We asked for price reduction. I mean, it was ridiculous. We totally low-balled them. We asked for price reduction. We asked for give us everything, you know, give us a credit, pay the solar, pay the washer dryer, pay the window coverings, pay the whole thing. and they're like, no. So then, you know, we let them stew for two weeks, you know,

and then came back and basically asked for the same thing, and they did give it up because it was just sitting there, you know. So what you can ask for is you can ask for anything, right? You can ask for solar. You can, if they have HOA, you can ask them to prepay a year. You can ask for the appliance package. You can ask for window coverings. There's certain things.

Of course, the closing costs and the rate buy down, especially right now. That's the big thing. So they're not, you know, basically they'll say, we can give you $35,000, right, for seller credits. And then you choose, you know, if there's leftovers from the closing cost, then, okay, I want this or that. So yeah, basically that's, that's pretty much, you know, there's a lot of negotiating room. And right now they're doing a lot of the interest rate buy down. So it kind of gets sucked up by that, the seller credits. That is so good.

that oh this is so so good i wish that i had listened and been a part of this podcast before i purchased this new bill but um okay solar super quick because not everyone that's listening is in california solar is mandatory in california or the new builds yeah they don't put it's not going to cover your whole bill because they put there's a minimum and they'll put the minimum amount of panels but it does it does help right but it's either you can purchase it or you can lease it and it's kind of one of those things kind of like a buy down where you need to run the numbers because do you really if you buy it for 30,000 or 20,000 or whatever it's going to be, are you really going to stay there long enough to make it worth it, you know, when you could lease

it for a hundred a month or I forget what we pay. I think it's 110 a month or something, you know. Dude, is this like, so I recently talked to someone who was talking about the utilities in California being like insane astronomical. Is that, so. So I know nothing about this. Is this making them mandatory for purchase or lease is this in an effort to, or do you know the reason behind it? I think they're just trying to be more energy efficient, but it does vary on. It's a big deal, the solar thing, because we have, I'm in Sacramento County and we have a different,

we don't have PG&E for electric, but you go over one county and people's utility bills could be up $10,000 a month, right? So I had this one client where it was full solar for a 5,000 square foot house. And that was a big selling point that they bought that. And they were able, they were in that county that was really expensive. And they had no utility bill whatsoever. So it's a selling point. If you have, you know, if you can say, oh, I own the solar or whatnot, you know, it is,

it is a selling point. So it's worth it. But for California, they made that thing. And it's, it doesn't cover everything. It's team panels or something. Okay. You mentioned special assessment taxes earlier. And I have a little bit of experience with special assessments from a sewer, the city and putting a sewer line and then, you know, doing a special assessment back to the owners.

Is that what can you tell us about what is the special assessment for this area? How much does it cost? Sure. I'm just curious. Yeah. So it's called mellow ruse over here. So every new home community is going to have mellow ruse. So what they do is they put this.

It's called the community facilities. district together and then it's going to fund, you know, the parks, the schools, the fire station, all that stuff, the trails, whatnot. And they all have it and it varies, you know, and it has to be disclosed to mandatory disclosure, you know, when you're selling the home. But for instance, I have a listing coming up next week, right? And they're still in the, you know, have the mellow Roos because it lasts for 25 years when you buy the new home. So theirs is $330 a month. And like here you can actually go in. As a buyer, I do tell people like there's a link where you could go into the assessor's office for Sacramento County and you can look at people's tax bills. And it'll stay right there.

I help them to look at, you know, what it is that adds up to the mellow roos. But it's a big deal. I mean, it's a factor where some people are like, I'm going to move to the other side because there's, you know, no mellow roos. I mean, so there's pros and cons. about it. Yeah, dude, that's something I wouldn't know to ask about and I would be pissed. You know, I didn't know about it. Yeah. So if you don't know, I mean, that's the thing. Like you, you should, if you're selling those new homes, you definitely should know that because you're then you're, I mean, the new home build is going to tell you. But if we're getting paid, you know, you don't want to be like, I'm just bringing you here and, you know, here you go.

And now I'm getting, you know, 10, 15,000 dollars just to, you know, sit here and walk you in. So you should have, you know, be providing value for sure. For those that want to get into new construction, how would you recommend that they first talk to builders, agents that represent the builders to get that relationship going? Yeah, I mean, I think it's going in for, and it's a lot. Like, right? If you have a lot of like new build communities, like, I mean,

it takes time to start knowing like everybody and what's going on and stuff. I mean, I suggest people go in once a week, you know, I should be better about it too. And especially if you could do social media, right? You can go in there and be like, hey, you know, and I tell them like, oh, I'm in a video, you know, they're like, yeah, whatever, go ahead. But then you ask them like, what's your, what's on them? What's your inventory right now? What's your, they have what's called like a hot list or whatever.

And it gives you like what's available. You know, they have their map, you know, and they're happy to talk to you about it, you know, I don't know, bring them something, bring them some cookies or something, you know. but just yeah and then and then ask them like you know what's and they'll talk to you know especially a lot of them that like to talk it they'll tell you what's going on they'll tell you too because I'll ask if you have any room on price and they'll be honest like on the quick movements they'll be like I think the most we could do is like 30,000 off of the price. So you start asking questions and and you know but I think really getting your face in there and going in there you know weekly if not twice a month is really helpful and then you know it's not not everything is on the MLS. So it's really hard to find. And you don't want to be caught with, you know, your client saying, hey, Taylor Morrison down there has, you know, these two properties for $850. Why are you showing me

this one that's, you know, 900. It's not as nice. And then you're like, oh, you know, so, yeah, knowing the inventory is super important. And I think I've, I've tried every other way. Like, I try going on their websites. And I'm telling the only way to know is to go in there. Yeah. It's, that's the most up to date information. Melissa, you mentioned Facebook ads earlier, which like a fun little trigger for me lately. I'm like, oh, I want to know more. Can you talk about how you've used Facebook ads in your business? Apple listeners, this short pause is to ask you for a review. Here's how to do it. Back out of the specific episode. Go to the page where you see all the episodes. Scroll down. Keep scrolling. Perfect. Now, tap those five stars. Thank you so much.

Back to the show. Yeah, like I was paying this company for Facebook ads a while ago. And I know how to do the Facebook ads. So I don't, I could do it on my own. And we have someone in our brokers that does it for us when we do, when we have listings and stuff. But you could run Facebook ads targeted to. And I think, I think you guys could do it in KV core, actually. Like I've run some Facebook ads in KV core where you're able to put, so you can put basically do a search for anything up to, you know, 2003 or let's say anything built in 2021 and newer, right? So you'll put those search parameters. And those are kind of like people that are looking for new homes. So then if they come in, then you kind of know, you're like,

hey, are you looking for a new home? And then, you know, you get the leads, you know, they do like the one time. Like you can have them look like they have to put in their information after only looking one time. Do you want to share? We don't have to. We can also edit this part out of the company that you, if you, whether you recommend them or not.

It was, yeah, it was Whitley. And I think they're good. I just, it was like, oh, you know, like it's a hundred. I'm like I really should. I should be more like Allie, right? I should be on checking my five. I'm like, I want to pay for everything. Right. I'm like, oh, yeah, this is great. This is great. You know, but yeah, it was Whitley. And I think they're, I think they're good, you know, but I was like, well, you know, I got a bunch of leads and some are good, some are not, you know. So then I was like, well, I could do it myself. And then I so I, and I have been thinking of running a new home

ad again just to, you know, since we have so many people here. But I know like street text does seller leads like seller Facebook ads to capture sellers. So I've thought of looking into them. But again, it's another. I think it's like 100 a month, which it's, you know, if you get even one deal, it's worth it. Yeah. And so specifically the ad that you're running,

is it a photo of one specific house? Or is it like, hey, homebuyers that are looking in this neighborhood. Okay, it's up one house. Yeah, they had me give them a photo of an example. I, it was a while back, but they had me give them a photo and then they had me give them like my like IDX thing, you know, where I could, they could set up the search or whatever. So it was basic. And then after that, I was like, I think I did a couple through K. Like we, we just moved to Boomtown, but we were doing KV Cor. So we did a couple where I did a, I tried to finagle it through KV core, but then I had to advertise it. You know what I mean? Okay. I'm going to sound dumb.

Maybe. But wait, so is this like you're boosting a listing? No. No, this is an actual ad. Yes. Yeah. Okay. Okay. It's an actual ad. Yeah. Yeah. How long do you run it for? You can run it for however. I heard it takes a while to like ramp up. So like I'm doing a Facebook ad for my listing that's coming up and we're going to put it up on, I'm putting it on the market on Wednesday. But I think we're going to do it takes a while. You know, like some people are. are saying like they're getting leads even, you know, let's say it sells fast. You know, you run it for two weeks. So initially you should run it for two weeks, but even if it sells, you'll still be getting leads coming in. And you could do five bucks a day, 10 bucks a day. And the more money you put, the more leads you get. Okay. I've never really run. I actually, I've never run Facebook ads. So I don't even know what questions to ask. What is there, is there anything that we haven't covered? Well, that's and and the thing is it's right. Like I'm trying to figure out what is the best money, right? Do you want to pay $2,000 for Zillow? Or if you spent,

you know, 300 a month on Facebook ads, right? So that's kind of where I'm going right now. I don't know. I think I'm going to start trying to see what happens if I run a couple Facebook ads and I'll definitely let you guys know. But yeah. And thank you. And how are you tracking the difference between like which system, which leads are most beneficial for you? I think, I mean, honestly, I have, I've done a lot of open house clients this year. Like one third of my business has been honestly open houses, you know? So I, I just, I hesitate to do them because I don't want to be like, you know, it's my weekend. You know what I mean?

But yeah. So I am like, you know, I'll look to see whoever's clothes, like, where do they come from and stuff. But I am interested in. I do want to say the Zillel leads. I think we're more like I want to buy right now, you know, versus when I've done the Facebook ads. It's kind of like, oh, you know, I'll get a couple. But I also haven't, when the Facebook ads, I feel like you need a good system because the Zillow leads were not, like the Facebook ads, a lot will come in and you, you do need a good system, a follow-up.

So I feel like I should have an equal system because I feel like I've been better about following up with Zillow leads. So maybe that's why I've converted them better. So, but Zillow platform is easy that when they put it in and they have to, the notes and the call recorded. So yeah. Yeah, done for you. There's a lot of hate for Zillow, but you know. Had to get what you pay for a little bit.

Yeah. And we'll have to have you come back on once you've gone through this debate. Once I have my system. And then we can pick your brain better. And Allie and I will do research in the meantime and figure out what to ask, what to ask. And actually, listeners of any of you out there are like, Facebook ads is your thing. You know about it.

Or you know someone who does. Hit us up. you know, the agent gold mine on the Graham or Allie the agent or the Shelby Show and let us know so we can get those people on there. But Melissa, what did we not talk about that you want, that you wanted to hit on today? I don't, you know, the only thing I would say with agents is like just, you know, keep going. Get your systems in place. You know, don't give up. Like just keep going and going because I think, you know, I'm sure you guys have seen it too where you just, you know, keep doing the same thing eventually you're going to get results, you know. And then to leverage,

know I know we didn't talk about that, but I'm really at the point where I think my one goal for 2024 is to get an assistant. You know, it's, it's too much. You can't scale by yourself, you know, and Ali, I should have done it way back when, when, I mean, it's been what, two years when you were telling me about it. And I, I should have done it back then because I, you know, hold off. But then you're spending on all these other things, right? So, you know, last night I was doing, I was up till two, doing my marketing for my list. I really don't need to be doing this, you know? So, yeah. Oh my gosh. Leverage as soon as you can. get your systems in place.

You know, I talked to somebody that wants to become an agent and she got licensed. And I was like, if you have the money, start off, you know, do all these things to get all your stuff in place. Okay. So, Melissa, what's next for you? I just think of the same. And then one. I know. I just need to scale.

Obviously, I don't want to be doing this forever, you know, but it's more. I just want to do it to know I can do it. You know what I mean? I don't know. I don't have some. big wire, whatever, you know, it's, I just, I know that I can do it. So, you know, I just want to scale and get everything in place. So, but not in a, in a crazy way. I feel like so many realtors run around and right, we're like tied to our phone, you know, people are calling us and you're just like,

oh my gosh, I can't do this. So I think really, I want to be at the point where, you know, I have like an assistant. I have a good video editor that, you know, that I have a system with, you know, because that's a whole other thing. But yeah, I, I think. that's, I probably have, you know, another five years with this. And then I want to continue to invest in properties. So that's another thing. I think I've spent a lot of time just because, you know, being back in only a year and a half, you know how it is. Like when you're trying to build the business, it's like a lot. It's a whole, it's a whole grind. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, Melissa, we're heading to our wrap up questions. Question number one, what is your favorite app or tool?

Oh, I want to say for sure, I love Opus Clip. Thank you, Allie. You are the one that mentioned that. That is so good. But I'm going to give two because the MLS, okay, the MLS, especially I don't think a lot of people like I do like my weekly market update and I do my monthly market update and stuff. And I've had realtors in my city be like, oh, did you do that yourself? And I'm like, yes, there's a trends button. There's a whole, you know, you can run whatever stat. And I still don't even think our MLS is like, the greatest one, but you can go in there and run anything and you should. You know, you should know your market for sure. So yeah, MLS and Opus clip because you could get long form video and have 10 reels out of it. Yeah. What, what MLS do you use? Is it flex by chance? No, it's MetroList. It covers like big Sacramento area. But I mean, you go into the trends and stats. Like I run the stuff really quick. People think it takes me a long time and it's really fast, you know? And the more you run it, the more off the top of your head, you can have these conversations with your clients.

So. Yeah, and it's useful information for them. Like I see your market updates and their actual important information as opposed to some other. I'll stop talking. Yeah. People ask stuff all the time. Yeah. They ask stuff all the time.

So. Yeah. Okay. Next question. What events are we seeing each other at this year? Or what events are you going to? Right. Definitely Tom Ferry again.

In August, I already have the Omni booked. Hell yeah. Otherwise, yeah, I've kind of been wondering what else is going on for the next year. I try not to do, I haven't got, I didn't, I did BPCon the year before last, but I don't know. We'll see what's going on this year. Maybe something to do a video. Allie and I have a whole list.

We are doing an entire 2024 planning session so we can be roomies at a ton of conferences and wear our agent goldmine like shirts. Yeah, it's going to be great. So we can send you the whole list if you like to join. Okay. Perfect. Okay. Next question is how can we and listeners help you in your business? I think just, you know, I'm here in Folsom. It's in the Sacramento area. So, you know, I'm happy to help anybody, anybody that's relocating.

Yeah. And I'm happy to connect. I'm happy to connect with other realtors too. I love talking other people and, you know, masterminding and stuff. And like they say you're always, you know, if you're around people that are trying to do the same thing and you get good ideas. Yeah. I'm really glad that you and I connected through that investing thing. Yeah. Yeah. I was like, did this?

This is legit. So I like you a lot. Totally. Yeah. It was awesome. We didn't, we room together. We hadn't even met. And then we were like, wait, we haven't met yet.

And then we room together at the conference. It was so fun. I love. Yeah. And it was like. as if we had known each other. Like, you're one of those people that like, as soon as we meet, it's just we're friends, you know, like there is no walking on eggshells.

Okay, Fulsome for referrals. And I will say firsthandly that you are one of the best referral agents. You keep me updated and it's off. It's so, there's no having to check in, you know, it's like, make you more money. So, yeah, for any referrals, anybody that you know, PCS, I'm moving to Folsom, hit up Melissa Roybal. So where can people find you when they want to send you a referral? Yeah, at Melissa Roybal Holmes on Instagram. My Facebook, I'm on TikTok, but Instagram is kind of like where I'm at mostly. And then my, you know, my link tree is there with my phone number and all that stuff.

But yeah, I'm happy to connect with anybody, you know. The Graham, the place to be. I know. So, oh my God. Yeah, listeners go hang with Melissa, follow her, show her all the love in the world. and if you want to hang out with me and Ali, we are Ali, the agent, A-L-I, and the Shelby show on the gram. Thanks so much for listening, dude. If you want the golden nugget that this guest provided, see the show notes or just go straight to theagentgoldmine.com. That's where we keep all our resources for you.

Until next time.