“I’ve Got Buyers”—One of Real Estate’s Most Persistent Myths

When sellers are choosing someone to sell their property, they often hear the familiar pitch: “List with me—I’ve got buyers.” It makes buyers sound like a private collection kept securely in the corner of the agent’s office. But is that really how people buy property today?

Buyers don’t belong to agents. Most buyers are already looking. They search Trade Me Property, realestate.co.nz and other property websites. They receive instant alerts, follow particular suburbs, attend open homes and watch for new listings.

Agents no longer hold the keys to the property cupboard.

So what does “I’ve got buyers” actually mean?

Usually, it means the agent has a database of people who have previously made enquiries, attended open homes or mentioned that they might buy something one day.

Weka has a large client base too. As property lawyers who sell real estate, we regularly act for people buying and selling homes. But we don’t pretend those people belong to us—or that we are their only way into the property market.

The real questions are:

Will the people on that database want your property?

Would they have found it online anyway?

Does access to a list of names justify charging a seller tens of thousands of dollars?

After all, what’s a phone call worth?

The internet has transformed the way buyers and properties meet.

I believe it is time to transform how sellers pay for real estate services too.