Are you recruiting the right real estate agents? Experts share their best strategies

Think you need “more agents” to grow? Volume without fit slows you down. The teams winning right now treat recruiting as an always‑on system for culture, production, and retention—so that every new hire lifts the entire roster.

Because the heart of your real estate business isn’t the brand, the office address, or the billboards. It’s your team. And your agent recruiting strategy is step one.

Agent churn is inevitable in this business. No matter what your growth goals look like, you need to have an always-on agent recruitment system in place.

So how do you recruit strategically to retain your rockstars and add great fits? We asked top-performing team leaders for their proven approaches. Here are their best tactics.

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Build a recruiting system that compounds

Anyone who’s tried it can tell you, the “butts-in-seats” approach doesn’t work.

Because recruiting isn’t a one‑and‑done activity—it’s your pipeline for a healthy team and revenue stream. Instead of waiting to hire until things start to slip, plan to recruit about 15% of your roster annually.

That’s where a long‑term, always‑on recruiting system separates the “goods” from the “greats.”

And the best part? A strong agent recruiting system comes with a natural knock-on effect—one that can help boost agent performance and retention across the entire team.

Here are six simple strategies to help you move from planning to winning.

1. Create an ideal agent avatar

Like buyers with must‑haves, you need a clear checklist for your next agent.

“Start with who you're seeking to serve and what are the solutions you provide—and as a team leader, give yourself grace that it could change,” advises Renee Funk of The Funk Collection.

Start with these:

• New or experienced agents? If experienced, how experienced?
• How close should they live to your office?
• Minimum production in your target market? 
• Which current opportunities (e.g., “overage of listing leads in Windermere over the next 90 days”) are you hiring to backfill?
• What values are non‑negotiable to execute those solutions?
• What immediate support or training will you provide to help them capitalize on those opportunities?

Non‑negotiables narrow the pool and raise the fit, which means fewer fruitless conversations and less long-term churn.

Once you’ve nailed your core criteria, create a living “agent avatar” doc with links to outreach scripts and interview guides customized to each persona. Build avatars for new-to-industry, emerging producers, top producers, team switchers, or a specific specialty or niche. 

2. Make your values impossible to miss

Clear values attract aligned agents and repel poor fits. State what matters and make sure it’s impossible to miss across all your recruitment marketing material.

Start by creating your agent value prop. This can include:

• Outcome: What joining us delivers for agents (think: more human-to-human selling time).
• Evidence: Social proof to back it up—stories, metrics, and retention wins.
• What you get: Defined levels of support, lead flow, training cadence, coaching framework, and tools.
• Systems & guardrails: Clear AI/technology rules that help you sell better, not get sidelined.

Once you’ve drafted your agent value prop, consider distilling it into a single, punch-packing tagline for your team page.

For Eric and the team at Bramlett Residential, a dedicated ‘Join Bramlett page tells potential new agents everything they need to know in two simple sentences:

Big enough to back you. Small enough to know you.

Agents can clearly see that on Eric’s team, premium service and higher commissions go hand-in-hand. It’s the perfect message for growth-minded agents who want to know more.

3. Publish your playbook: training + systems

You probably already have some SOPs in place. But have you ever considered making your systems public? Crystal‑clear operating systems attract high performers and let candidates self‑assess fit.

“We're number one in our area, which is incredible,” says Tiffany Williamson, Owner and President of Navigate Realty. Not only are we recruiting at a high level, but we're able to retain the agents because our culture really does cater to wanting them to be successful. We provide the best tools, the best resources, the best lead gen platform so that our agents are successful and can make this the type of business they want it to be.”

Here are some simple steps to help get you started:

• Add a “What we’re solving now” snapshot: Include active service gaps you’re looking to close (e.g., listings in X neighborhood, buyer coverage on weekends, Spanish-speaking support).
• Create a written culture code: How we communicate, how we handle accountability, how we win together.
• Map the training path: Week‑by‑week milestones, resources, and who’s coaching along the way.

“The great news is that our agent services and systems typically work very well to attract the right kind of agents,” says Eric. “We document things really heavily, and everything is open for anyone inside or outside the brokerage to see it.” 

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The brokerage’s publicly available company guide gives an overview of their services, opportunities, and policies. That level of transparency consistently resonates with the right agents.

4. Start with a screening call

To make the best use of your recruiting time, start with a 15–20 minute “opportunity” call and cap the process at two conversations max.

Set a quick agenda upfront to keep the conversation focused: a few minutes to learn about them, a few minutes to share how your model works, and time for questions.

Ask one open-ended question to learn the most in the least time: “Walk me through your last 12 months in real estate and how it went.”

Focus your attention on culture fit, character, coachability. Then listen for the right clues:

• Red flags: Blame, “broker bashing,” or externalizing results with no personal accountability.
• Green flags: Lots of at‑bats, specific effort, willingness to try new approaches, and reflective ownership of outcomes.

Spark excitement by explaining how your leads–training–support actually work in practice—explain the “how,” not just the “what.”

If there’s alignment, invite them to a single 45‑minute follow‑up (ideally in person) for deeper Q&A and specifics. If not, keep the relationship warm for when your needs change.

End the call with clear next steps and calendar the second conversation on the spot.

5. Interview on real scenarios, not gimmicks

“Culture fit is the most important thing,” says Becky Garcia, Founder and CEO of The Garcia Group. “I would rather take a lower-producing agent that is a perfect culture fit versus a very high-producing agent that is just not a culture fit for the team.”

For a healthy, high‑output culture, hire for chops and values. Use these strategies:

• Lead with great questions: Use these proven agent interview questions to surface mindset, grit, and teamwork.
• Screen for core values: Ask yourself, is this person a team player, driven, and willing to be held accountable?
• Test the fit live: Invite candidates to a team meeting during your agent recruiting process and watch how they engage with the group.

The way Becky sees it, hiring is a team sport. “We have them come to one of our team meetings and get an idea of what the vibe is with everyone else that’s there, and see how they react to other people as well,” she explains.

Strong team dynamics start with trust. Her number one question for assessing culture fit:

“With the proper training, is this somebody I am going to trust with my top-tier level clients?”

When it comes to evaluating intangibles like problem‑solving, communication, and fit, the classic “sell me this pen” example won’t cut it. Skip the gimmicks and ask candidates how they’d tackle your real issues.

Go back to your “What we’re solving now” snapshot and frame these problems in terms of immediate solutions and client needs: “We have X listing leads with Y timelines in Z neighborhoods—walk me through your plan to convert appointments and secure agreements in the first six weeks.”

6. Learn as much as you can about your new agent

Culture can’t be faked, but it can be misunderstood.

“Your vibe attracts your tribe,” says Dylan Nonaka of The Agency Team. “We're very clear on who we are and what we do. The people who want to be a part of that come to us and the people who don't, don't.”

Get to know each agent’s true character:

• Ask about their current environment—what they enjoy, what they don’t—and identify how you’ll improve their working life.
• Show active interest to demonstrate strong leadership and surface where you can add the most value.
• Translate what you learn into a personalized agent onboarding plan (territory, lead type, training path, first‑six‑week milestones).

Helping potential agents understand specific ways you’ll make their working lives better will position you ahead of the competition and give them even more of an incentive to make the switch.

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Recruit the right agents and help them win

You’ve defined who you want. Now make it easy to find, engage, and onboard them.

With Follow Up Boss, you can organize potential new agents with recruiting stages and tags, build targeted smart lists, and automate follow-up with Action Plans and batch emails. Capture key intel in notes and custom fields, then measure conversions with a separate recruiting Deals pipeline so you know what’s working.

As your team grows, FUB keeps everyone on track with clear next steps, activity tracking, and reports that guide coaching and accountability.

Make recruiting a competitive advantage. Get started with Follow Up Boss—free for 14 days.

FAQs

Should I outsource to a recruiter?

Outsourcing can be a good idea when you have a high volume of open roles, or when you need top talent quickly. Executive search is ideal for leadership hires and rainmakers because it adds structured vetting, discrete outreach, and talent acquisition discipline you may not have in‑house. A recruiting firm can expand reach and provide staffing support, but you should still own culture fit, the value prop, and final selection. Before you engage, finalize your agent onboarding plan and scorecard (time‑to‑offer, 90‑day performance, candidate NPS) so the partnership is measurable.

How do I find qualified candidates and top agents in my local markets?

Start where local real estate professionals are most active. Review your brand presence and job boards mix and refresh your job postings. Share them through social media and LinkedIn, and connect with qualified candidates in-person via real estate industry associations and meetups. Warm referrals from your sphere often surface the right people faster than cold outreach.

What onboarding and mentoring is best for helping new agents reach the next level?

There’s no one way to onboard new agents. The key is giving them a structured roadmap they can follow. Start by mapping week‑by‑week goals tied to lead flow, appointments, and signed agreements, then add daily role‑play, shadowing with top agents, and a clear training cadence. Personalize plans for new, emerging, and experienced real estate talent so each hire has milestones that match their starting point. Effective recruitment doesn’t end at the offer—it’s proven when structured onboarding drives production and retention.

What metrics prove your recruiting is working?

Measure source quality (share of qualified candidates from LinkedIn, job boards, and referrals), speed (time‑to‑first interview, time‑to‑offer, time‑to‑first closing), and fit (30/60/90‑day ramp, 6‑ and 12‑month retention). Track process health—interview completion rates, vetting notes quality, referral volume—and use the data to double down on channels that deliver top candidates while fixing bottlenecks that keep the right people from moving forward.