I get leads from lenders, attorneys, contractors, other investors, and people I meet while doing the work. Those relationships matter because I can't personally find every opportunity. When somebody hears about a property that needs a buyer, I want them to remember what my team does.
That takes more than attending an event or handing out a business card. People need to understand what you are looking for, and you need to keep the conversation going.
Tell people what you are actually looking for
"I'm in real estate" starts a conversation, but it leaves a lot for the other person to guess. Explain the kind of opportunity you want to hear about. A useful starting point is the property type, the market, and the situation you are willing to consider.
That is your buy box: the criteria you use to decide whether a property deserves a closer look. You can refine it as you learn. What matters is giving the people around you something more useful than a vague request for deals.
Start with the people already connected to property owners. A contractor, lender, attorney, or investor may come across a situation you would never hear about on your own. Listen to what they do, too. A relationship works better when you understand each other's business.
Give yourself a reason to talk at a meetup
I'm an introvert. I understand the temptation to sit through a presentation and leave without meeting anybody. The trouble is that the presentation isn't the only reason you went.
Set a small, specific goal before you arrive. Talk to five people. Exchange contact details with people you genuinely want to speak to again. Ask what they buy, where they work, or what kind of property problem they help solve. The number is a prompt to participate, not a performance target to force on every event.
You can look for events through Eventbrite, Meetup, local investor groups, and real estate communities. Check the organizer and current event details before you travel. Local events help you get to know your market; national events can expose you to people and approaches you haven't encountered.
Make the follow-up easier on yourself
I stay in touch through texts and emails so people remember that I'm a real estate investor. A conversation at an event is a beginning. It is much less useful if you get home and can't remember who you spoke to or what you promised to send.
Here is a simple note you can keep after a conversation. This is a practical worksheet, not a record from a particular deal.
| Record | Why it helps |
|---|---|
| Name, role, and market | Remember who the person is and where your work overlaps. |
| What each of you is looking for | Keep the relationship relevant in both directions. |
| The next agreed action | Know whether to send criteria, make an introduction, or follow up. |
| When to reconnect | Give the conversation a next step instead of letting it disappear. |
Keep follow-up relevant and respect the way someone has agreed to hear from you. The aim is to build a relationship, not turn every person you meet into a recipient of a generic blast.
Turn a relationship into a reviewable opportunity
- Explain your criteriaMake it clear what belongs in your pipeline.
- Keep in contactFollow through on useful conversations.
- Receive an opportunityAsk for the property and seller details you need.
- Evaluate the fitCheck the numbers and your criteria before moving forward.
The diagram is deliberately simple. More contacts do not automatically produce better deals. Each opportunity still needs to be evaluated. If a property doesn't fit your criteria, a good relationship is not a reason to make the numbers work on paper.
Where paying for leads fits
Networking uses your time. Paid sourcing uses money, another person's work, or both. In the lesson, I discuss virtual assistants, advertising, marketing companies, partnerships, and buying opportunities from wholesalers. I have bought deals from wholesalers myself.
The question is whether the opportunity still works after the sourcing cost. Paying somebody for a lead does not remove the need to evaluate the property, the assumptions, and the price. It also does not guarantee that the lead will become a purchase.
Use paid sourcing as a separate decision in your business, rather than as a substitute for knowing what you buy. The same idea runs through my lesson on learning from investing mistakes: what you learn needs to change the next decision.
