How do I practice cold calls for real estate?
Practice cold calls in two parts: the first ten seconds alone, until you can say who you are and why you called plainly without reading, and the whole call with a partner who plays a real prospect and mostly says no.
Read the transcript
- Hello? Who is this?
- Look, I get these calls all the time, and I'm not thinking about selling.
- So what's this about?
- Hi there! How are you doing today?
- I was just curious, how long have you lived on Elm Street?
- Have you noticed how many homes on your street are changing hands?
- After every practice call, your card arrives: what worked, and the one thing to fix.
- Say who you are, where you are from, and why you called, first.
- Offer a real no in the first breath.
- Ask what is behind the no, and answer it.
- Leave something useful on the call, and a date for the next touch.
- A stranger decides whether to hang up in about the time it takes to say your name.
- That is not rudeness. They have learned to end calls that hide the reason.
- A prospect who knows what the call is about can decide to stay.
- One who is being warmed up cannot.
- Practice this seller until it sounds like you.
- Each call runs as long as the conversation needs,
- and you can make as many as you want.
- Practice free at 10before10.com/try.
Drafted with AI by the 10before10 team, reviewed and approved by Grant Freer and Gia Freer, licensed Florida real estate brokers. Updated October 25, 2026.
What is really being said
When a stranger answers a cold call, the only question in their head is whether to hang up. They decide in about the time it takes you to say your name. That is not rudeness.
They have had calls that hid the reason for calling behind a friendly question, and they have learned to end those fast. So the first ten seconds have one job: say who you are, where you are from, and why you called, in that order, plainly. A prospect who knows what the call is about can decide to stay.
A prospect who is being warmed up cannot.
That is also where the rules live. Your state's rules and the do-not-call lists say who you may call, how you must identify yourself, and when to stop. Know them before you dial and follow them without being asked.
Compliance is part of serving the person on the line, not a hurdle before the real call starts. Nothing here is legal advice; check your state's rules and your broker's policy.
What to say
These are examples in plain words, not a script. Say them the way you talk.
"Hi, this is Dana, a licensed agent with your brokerage here in the area. I am calling because the house on Elm sold last month, and I am checking whether anyone on the street has wondered what that means for their own place."
Who, where from, and why, in one breath. There is nothing to discover later that would make the prospect feel tricked, which is the test every opener has to pass.
"I know this is out of the blue. If it is a bad time, say so and I will let you go. If you have a minute, I have one question and then I will get out of your way."
This offers a real no in the first breath. People who are handed the exit often take the minute instead, because the minute is clearly theirs to refuse.
"So you are not thinking about selling, and that is fine. Would it be useful if I sent you what the two sales on your street closed for, with the dates? I ask because it is worth knowing even if you stay put."
This leaves something useful on a call that ended in no, and it earns the next touch: something to send and a date to send it. The purpose is stated, so the offer does not sound like a hook.
What not to do
Do not hide the reason for the call. A question about the street before you have said why you are calling feels like a trick the moment the reason comes out. Say it first.
On a cold call a “no” is a reflex more often than a condition. Ask what is behind it, answer it, and close again with two day-and-time choices. If it is a real condition, they are not selling, name it, offer something useful, and set the follow-up call to a day and a time.
Do not read. A prospect can hear paper. If you need the card in front of you, you are not ready to dial.
Practice the opener until it is yours and then put the card away.
How to practice it
Two drills. Alone: say the first ten seconds out loud, standing, without looking at anything, and keep going until it sounds like you talking. Change the reason for the call every few tries: a sale nearby, a listing that expired, an owner who might rent it out.
With a partner: run full calls where the partner says no inside the first minute on most of them and stays on for the rest. Your job on every call is to identify plainly, ask one question, answer what is behind the no, and close again with two day-and-time choices. Record and listen to the first ten seconds; that is what 10before10™'s card listens to first on the cold-call drill.
Honest answers
Related answers
Make one practice call. See your card.
A prospect who sounds real raises this exact moment. Ten minutes, in the browser, no account. The scorecard tells you the one thing to fix.