A complete guide to understanding pocket listings

According to BatchService and ResiClub Analytics, there were approximately 1.2 million “pocket listings” or off-market real estate sales in the United States in 2024, with the vast majority happening in Texas and Florida. Pocket listings are more common in some areas of the country than others, yet it’s important to be familiar with them no matter where you’re located.

In this article, we’ll cover the definition of a pocket listing, the pros and cons for both agents and sellers, and how to transact off-market legally and ethically. Plus, we’ll give you marketing ideas for promoting your pocket listings.

What is a pocket listing in real estate?

A pocket listing — also known as a quiet listing, off-MLS or off-market listing — is a real estate property that is for sale but not listed on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Instead, the property is marketed privately through the listing agent’s network, direct contacts or exclusive platforms.

Over the years, the term “pocket listing” has developed a negative connotation, as people sometimes think this is just a strategy used by sleazy agents to double-side a transaction and not get the highest price for the seller. While I’m sure there are instances where this is unfortunately the case, there are legitimate reasons why selling off-market is in the seller’s best interest.

The pros & cons of pocket listings for agents

• Potential to double-side. The likelihood of the listing agent selling a pocket listing to a direct buyer without their own agent increases greatly with pocket listings. This could translate to a higher commission, depending on how your contract with the seller is written. 
• A reason to call your buyer leads. An off-market listing is a great excuse to call all those buyer leads in your database. Selling a pocket listing positions you as a successful agent with valuable information these buyers would not otherwise have access to.

• More work. The inability to leverage the reach of the MLS and all the aggregator websites to promote a pocket listing means it’s up to you, as the listing agent, to spread the word. We will give you ideas of how to do this in a later section. It certainly can be done, but it’s a heavier lift than a traditional sale.
• Fewer marketing opportunities. One major benefit to agents of working with sellers is the incredible marketing opportunities that come with each listing: a sign in the yard, open houses, social media content, door knocking in the neighborhood — these are just a few of the many ways to leverage your MLS listings to find more clients. Most, if not all, of those opportunities are lost with pocket listings.

The pros & cons of pocket listings for sellers

• Convenience: For an occupied property especially, it’s more convenient to have fewer buyers coming through the house — fewer times the sellers will need to get the property “show-ready.”
• Privacy. Some sellers don’t want their neighbors to know they are selling. One seller asked me to park down the street during our first appointment so his neighbors wouldn’t see my car in his driveway and ask him if he was selling. This can be especially true for luxury homeowners who don’t want looky-loos seeing the inside of their home published across the internet.
• Celebrity-friendly. Selling as a pocket listing is a popular choice for athletes and celebrities who need a higher level of discretion, often using LLCs instead of their names to buy and sell property.
• Health. Since there aren’t typically weekends of open houses and dozens of private showings on pocket listings, there will be fewer buyer germs walking into the house. For some sellers, this is a significant concern, and selling off-market may make sense.

• Lower selling price (potentially). There’s the risk that sellers may leave money on the table since they aren’t maximizing their property’s exposure to the most buyers possible. Typically, the more buyers who see a property, the more offers the sellers will receive and the higher those offers will be. Of course, this is not always the case, yet sellers considering a pocket listing do need to be aware of this. 
• Longer timeframe to sell. Because pocket listings are not publicized through MLS or syndicated to the top real estate websites, they usually take longer to sell. It takes longer to get the property in front of enough buyers to find the right one willing to offer the right price.

How to market your pocket listings

Marketing pocket listings comes with a unique set of challenges compared to a traditional listing. You will not have the leverage of syndication and broad reach to every buyer match in your MLS, so you will need to get creative. Here are our top ideas for how to market your pocket listings:

• Start with the buyers you already have. Maybe your new pocket listing is a match for one of your existing buyers who’s been searching for the perfect home for months. If so, excellent! Just be sure to follow your local guidelines about dual agency. 
• Pick up the phone. Yes, it’s old school. Yes, it works. And yes, I have done it myself. For those of you who dread making phone calls, let me assure you: these are the easiest calls to make. Other agents will be very appreciative that you’re telling them about a new piece of inventory they can share with their buyers, especially if you’re in a strong seller’s market with low inventory. Other agents are your most likely source for finding a buyer for your off-market listing.

• Share your pocket listings with your office. Most brokerages have a place to promote off-market listings internally (ours is a Facebook group exclusively for our agents). 
• Share them with other local offices. It may feel a little strange, but you can absolutely call or stop by other brokerages with the information about your pocket listing and ask the manager/receptionist to share it with their agents. 
• Host a broker open house. Invite all the agents you talk to; this will give your listing more exposure while staying off the public MLS. Of course, you will need your sellers’ approval and blessing for this.
• Post your pocket listings in as many local off-market agent-to-agent Facebook groups as you can find. In my market, there are at least four groups where I post all of our off-market listings, as well as all of our “coming soon” listings. If your market doesn’t have groups like this, create your own! 

Are pocket listings legal and ethical?

Yes, when done correctly. Make sure you cover all your bases and are on the same page with your seller about every aspect of marketing. For instance, confirm that they do not want a sign in the yard or postcards going out to their neighborhood. Every situation and seller is different, so have these conversations up front to set expectations.

As long as you are 100% transparent with your seller about the pros and cons of pocket listings, you can rest assured that you’re acting ethically. Ultimately, it’s up to the seller to decide how they choose to direct you to market their property. Just as there’s nothing unethical about a seller buying a For Sale sign at Home Depot and sticking it in the yard themselves, there’s nothing unethical about sellers directing you to market their listing privately.

While pocket listings are technically legal in all 50 states, the nuances and rules around pocket listings vary from state to state and MLS to MLS. Back in 2020, NAR banned pocket listings, requiring all listings be entered into MLS within 24 hours of signing the listing agreement. However, there are workarounds for sellers who truly do not want to list publicly.

In the Boston area where I’m based, we have a one-page document sellers sign in addition to the listing agreement paperwork, saying they acknowledge their listing will not be entered into MLS — we call it a Non-MLS form. Check with your broker and ensure you follow the law and your brokerage’s guidelines.

How to find pocket listings

You might be wondering how to find pocket listings. For the uninitiated, I’ll explain. Pocket listings aren’t necessarily something we pursue as agents; rather, they’re a helpful tool or offering you can present to your seller clients if the situation calls for it. There really aren’t any specific ways to target sellers who’d prefer selling off-market — apart from networking with ultra-high-net-worth clients. If you’re already a luxury broker, then you probably have a disproportionate number of clients who would be interested in pocket listings.

However, providing this path to selling a home might be an enticing conversion tool — a unique service you could offer to convert a seller lead into a client — pocket listings aren’t meant as a way to generate leads. Ideally, you’ll want to give every listing as much exposure to sunlight (and potential buyers) as possible — unless the unique circumstances I’ve described in this article call for a different approach.

The full picture

While pocket listings are not the best choice for every seller and come with their own set of obstacles for the agent, knowing how to talk about them and market them are helpful tools in your real estate toolbox. You can suggest this as an option when you meet a seller for whom a pocket listing sale would make sense.

As much as entities like your local MLS or REALTOR board may try to ban pocket listings, there will always be seller situations that are best served by a more private sale. I do not see pocket listings disappearing for good anytime soon. Stay transparent, do what’s right for your client and follow local guidelines — that’s what matters most.

About Ashley Harwood

Ashley Harwood began her real estate career in 2013 and built a six-figure business as a solo agent before launching Move Over Extroverts in 2018. She developed training materials, classes, and coaching programs for her fellow introverts. Beginning in 2020, Ashley served as Director of Agent Growth for three Keller Williams offices in the Boston metro area. She’s now the Lead Listing agent for the Fleet Homes team in Massachusetts and a regular contributor to Vetted by HousingWire. She created The Quiet Success curriculum and has taught thousands of real estate agents nationwide. She has also been a guest speaker at top industry events and has been named a leading real estate coach by prominent industry publications.

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