When the seller says "we already have an agent"
When a seller says they already have an agent, respect it. If they have signed a listing agreement with another brokerage, thank them, wish them well and end the call. Do not try to change their mind. If nothing is signed and they mean someone they plan to call, ask about their plans, never about the other agent.
Read the transcript
- Thanks, we already have an agent.
- We used someone a few years back, and we're planning to call her again.
- Her? Honestly, I'd be careful.
- A lot of agents like that take the listing and disappear.
- What is she charging you?
- After every practice call, your card arrives: what worked, and the one thing to fix.
- The call trains four moves. Respect it.
- Ask where things stand. If they have signed, end well.
- If nothing is signed, ask about their plans.
- We already have an agent means one of two things: a signed agreement you respect,
- or an owner still choosing.
- An owner choosing an agent wants to be understood, not sold.
- Practice it 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 26, 2026. También en español.
What is really being said
"We already have an agent" means one of two things. Either the owner has signed a listing agreement with another brokerage, or they have someone in mind and nothing is signed. The first is a condition you respect.
The second is an owner still choosing. You need to know which one before you say anything else.
The shape of a good answer
- Respect it. Say you are glad they have help. Mean it.
- Ask where things stand. One plain question about whether they have already signed. No pressure in your voice.
- If they have signed, end well. Thank them, wish them a good sale, and let them go. Do not ask about the other agent, the price or the terms.
- If nothing is signed, ask about their plans. Where they are going, when, and what matters most to them in whoever they choose.
- Keep the next step small. If they want to talk to more than one agent, offer a short meeting at a time that suits them.
Make it about the owner. An owner choosing an agent wants to be understood, not sold. Your questions about their goals say more about you than anything you could say about yourself.
What not to do
Do not try to talk an owner out of a signed agreement. Do not criticize the other agent, ever. Do not ask what the other agent charges.
Do not call again hoping the agreement has changed unless the listing has actually expired, and check its status first. The page on cancelled or withdrawn listings covers why that matters.
Your license rules, your state's law and your broker's policy apply on every call. This page is not legal advice.
When the agent is a friend or relative
That is a different conversation. It is about a relationship, not an agreement, and it has its own page: when the seller has a friend in the business. If the owner is meeting several agents, see when a seller is interviewing other agents.
How to practice it
Have a partner play it three ways: an owner who has signed, an owner who has someone in mind and an owner who is meeting three agents next week. Your goal is to find out which one you are talking to with one respectful question, then follow the right path. Listen back for any sentence about the other agent.
There should be none.
Respecting another agent's agreement is part of how owners decide who to trust next time.
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.