An agent can spend months chasing the homeowner who happily chats for an hour, only to watch a quieter prospect list with someone else. In a slower market, knowing where to invest that time matters more, because the gap between thinking about selling and acting on it gets wider.
At OpenAgent, Australia’s #1 agent comparison platform¹, we’ve spent more than a decade developing our approach to qualification. A quarter of the homeowners we introduce to agents list within three months². That comes down to the work we do beforehand to understand their plans and establish whether they’re ready to speak with an agent.
The work behind a referral
The OpenAgent team has more than 9,000 conversations with potential sellers each month. Only 19 per cent of the leads we receive are ultimately introduced to agents.
We spend around 12 minutes on the phone, on average, before passing a referral on, discussing motivation, timing and what the homeowner wants from their agent.
OpenAgent’s Head of Sales, Grant Patrick, says he is hearing hesitation from homeowners who have the flexibility to wait in the current market’s softer conditions, while others still need to move because of their circumstances.
Understanding what’s holding someone back helps the team establish whether an agent’s advice could help them progress.
For those who need more time, we continue to nurture the relationship through follow-up conversations, emails and advertising. That gives homeowners room to work through their decisions before an agent introduction.
What a seller’s plans reveal
Willingness to meet an agent is the most obvious marker of readiness, but the signal Grant’s team listens for hardest is subtler than that: a homeowner who can talk in detail about what comes next.
“When someone can clearly articulate their future plans, it means that they’ve been seriously thinking about it,” Grant says.
Questions about property value and commission become more revealing when someone is using the figures to work out what they could afford next. Talking through the practicalities can also change their understanding of when to get started.
Grant describes homeowners saying it is too soon to speak with agents, then explaining that their plans are only three months away. Once preparation, agent meetings, photography and a campaign are considered, those months begin to look different.
As he puts it, “in property terms, weeks just evaporate”.
That conversation can bring an agent into the picture sooner than the homeowner expected, with a clear reason for making the introduction.
Why first impressions can mislead
Years of seller conversations have taught the team to recognise intent beyond the obvious signs of enthusiasm. Reviewing calls with homeowners who went on to list helped Grant identify how easily a reserved demeanour could obscure genuine intent.
“You would normally think that highly engaged, motivated, participating, they’re your winners. And that can be true,” he says. “But the ones that are quiet, withdrawn, not answering your questions, they are also sellers.”
“We have to approach every customer in the same way. And that is to assume everyone is a seller,” Grant says.
An unfamiliar caller needs to earn people’s trust, especially when a move involves a separation, a deceased estate or financial pressure.
“When you create a space for someone to talk and to talk safely, the ones and zeros turn into a very genuine story, and they turn into a very genuine problem to solve,” he says. “It just needs the right ear to hear it.”
A more informed first conversation
Before an introduction, the homeowner hears how local agents compare and agrees to have their details shared. The agent receives property information and context about the move, including motivation, timing and preferences.
When homeowners are hesitant, that preparation helps agents understand what the next conversation needs to address. It also means the first conversation can begin with more context around where the homeowner is in their decision, rather than starting from scratch.
More than a third of the homeowners we refer list within six months³. There is still a relationship to build and a listing to win, but the agent starts with valuable context — and a homeowner who has agreed to talk and is expecting the call.
“It’s not our job to make them sell their property. And we don’t want to make them sell their property,” Grant says.
“We just want to make sure that they’ve got good information and they have good options to go out there and consider their decision.”
¹ The claim of #1 Agent comparison site is made based on data from Similar Web which shows more visits to OpenAgent than other agent comparison websites for the period of 1/06/2024 to 30/5/2025.
² The claim “A quarter of the homeowners we introduce to agents list within three months,” is based on OpenAgent data. Between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, 26.1% of referred leads listed their property for sale within 3 months of introduction.
³ The claim “More than a third of the homeowners we refer list within six months,” is based on OpenAgent data. Between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025, 36.1% of referred leads listed their property for sale within 6 months of introduction.