Sometimes people have a personal situation and buying a house drops off the list or isn't a priority at the moment.

Could they be cheating on you with another realtor?  Sure.  It happens.  

If you have them on an email drip and you see that they're still accessing the emails, try turning it off for a short time.  That often generates a phone call from the client and you can get to the bottom of the situation. 

Paul S. Henderson, Realtor, Tacoma Washington Write them off when they tell you to stop calling or when they change their email address, and phone number. I would put them in a drip campaign. They may call again.

Probably one more attempt at a contact and ask them the reason for the disappearing act. If nothing move on and if they contact you again it is a total bonus.

When feelings of stalking start to surface....pull-out

Don't lose touch.

Acknowledge you have noticed a change in their engagment, inquire, but don't cut them lose.

Keep the personal touch goiing,,

• I trust things are better for you
• Now may be a better time
• This house made me think of you
• Did you get the (whatever)

Seometimes two years after going dark they call and say, "We're ready."

My answer comes from a Brian Tracy recording I heard when I first got int he business 12 years ago.  He  told a story about a new young insurance sales man who wouldn't leave a prospect alone.  The prospect asked the salesman "When will you leave me alone?"  The salesman's answer, "When one of us dies."  I have gone by that philosophy my entire career.  

Sometimes, extremely urgent matters arise and buying a property moves down to the bottom of the priority list.  This includes responding to communications or even looking at emails.  In such cases, only "must handle" issues are dealt with while handling the urgent matters.

Perhaps drop them a holiday note, expressing best wishes for great new year and let them know to contact you, should they be interested in you helping them with their real estate needs.  If they don't contact you,  you have the answer!

If they just disappear, I'd try to find out what have happened. 

I'll never understand why not to be honest and just explain a professional who worked for you closely what have happened. 

I've never had this happen to me, but it does happen.  I think you just have to let them go and move on to the next.

Yes,

It has...you just move on.  One time we found out our client had fallen off the roof he was clieaning and died...his brother called us.  Otherwise we would not have known.  A

They would get bumped down a notch in my CRM program. Nevertheless, I would still communicate with them until they flat out told me to stop. That's the difference between real estate agents who sell 10 homes a year vs. those that sell over 100 homes a year. The low production agents give up way too easily.

I've not had that happen with an actual client, but I have had it happen with what I thought was a solid prospect with whom I've had quite a bit of communciation. I will try to touch base for a month. After that, it's up to them to come back to me.

I would email them asking if it is ok to send information if I come across a great buy. If they say no, I move on.

 Good Wednesday morning Paul. I have had that happen often with real estate agents. It makes me wonder . . .

I write them off when I get told off

Hello Paul.  Guess I have a mean streak.  I will continue calling for months at least once a week if I have spent any time with me at all.  Not because I expect business but because I want to irritate the heck out of them, with nice, since they do no have what it takes to 'man up' and return my calls...no matter the reason.  Just seems rude.  So I have my fun with it.  lol  Mark

Call, Text & Email for about 6 Months then get them on the monthly newsletter and move on.

I'd say, Paul,  just move on.  Or keep calling every other week with a drip campaign. 

Yes and I even had a buyer brokerage.  I continued to call but after 6 months I figured he dropped me.

this may be the biggest mystery.i really dislike it, i wish they would say go jump in a lake or something. personally i TRY to forget them, move on, and when they resurface, i TRY not to work with them. if they dont have the common decency to respond. you can almost bet they will do it again when you least expect it. they may call you when they get into REAL ESTATE trouble with a deal..then i say..now you need me.

I will keep trying. I have a seller I am working with and hadn't heard from him in about 3 weeks. We were supposed to have his home on the market the first of November and he has put me off and doesn't respond. Every few days I reached out and finally got a response yesterday that his plans had changed and he won't be moving as soon as he thought. So now we are on for the spring.

I like Jill Murty's answer

I usually check in once a week, probably for 2 to 3 weeks, and then let them contact me.   I may try and contact again (if there had been good conversation) in 6 months.

Paul,
Not quite that dramatic. I wouldn’t write them off. I would try to check on them through a mutual friend or drop an email of concern expressing that even if they have changed their minds I would like to be a friend and resource.

I give them a few solid trys, if no further response, I block them from accessing my website. If I still don't get a response, I hunt them down and steal their hubcaps.

I would leave them on the email list to receive current listings. You never know what is happening in the lives of others.

In the auto business it is until they buy or die!

I just keep calling, texting and email once a month until they say no!

Paul - Well after a couple of weeks, I would say you did your due diligence. I would place them on a drip campaign and continue to contact them until, well forever. After all, it won't cost you anything, and prospects do resurface sometimes.

Its a mystery but some people will literally drop off the edge of the earth and try as you may you are wasting your time trying to find them.  Best to just move on if you can.

Yes it has happened.

As far as writing them off -- the answer as is often case here is "it depends".

If you have enough person and don't have a personal connection or reason to maintain a relationship, you may move on.

If your business is good buyer-deficient you may likely to let them linger.

If you maintain a drip campaign system -- they may re-surface.

Stuff happens.

It's nice to have choices.

Never...  We had one resurface 4 years later - just kept the emails dripping...

Happens often, then they all of a sudden resurface and buy. 

Yes, its happened a couple of times and there is usually a reason, mostly related to geography e.g. looking in a different state for a vacation home (mountain vs lakes or ocean vs lakes) or job transfer.

I think it happens to everyone.  I usually just reach out to them one final time letting them know I am there to help or I'll send them an email asking if everything is okay.  If I don't hear back, then I continue to send them listings, but do not continue calling.  Most of the time they call back after a little while and act like nothing ever happened, or tell me what did.

I persist with out being a pest. Weekly or every other week I send an email or call. After several months they would go on my drip campaign if I haven't heard form them. Never had that happen though.

Good morning Paul. Probably one last email that says, if I don't hear from you by _______________then I would write them off.