Commercial real estate brokers seeking off-market deals are abandoning the traditional cold-calling marathon in favor of a more surgical approach, according to Dan Mosher, co-founder and CEO of DealGround, an AI-powered commercial real estate intelligence platform. Mosher argues that the sheer scale of off-market inventory makes broad outreach futile and that success lies in targeted, data-informed prospecting.
"Off-market is any building that’s not currently being listed. You have about 160 million properties in the United States right now, and the number of properties that are currently being listed is a small, small subset of that. So almost every property is technically off-market," Mosher said. With 160 million potential targets, calling every owner in a zip code is not only impractical but also counterproductive. Mosher criticizes the "carpet bombing" approach, saying, "I think that’s the biggest mistake, you go too broad and too generic, and that becomes off-putting to an owner, that it creates a low probability of success."
Instead, Mosher champions a "sniper-like approach," where brokers target a specific set of properties based on a buyer’s requirements and approach owners with relevant information. "We really believe in more of a sniper-like approach, whereby you’re targeting a specific set of properties because you have a buyer, you have a situation that you can help, and you are targeting owners with great information you have about them," he said. This method, he contends, yields better outcomes by focusing on quality over quantity.
The alternative to cold outreach begins with creating precise filters and search parameters that match a buyer’s criteria. "Off-market sourcing is creating a set of filters and search parameters that fit your specific needs as either a principal or a broker who’s looking to find a deal for a buyer," Mosher explained. Once armed with a filtered list, brokers can engage owners with compelling, property-specific information. "When you reach out to that owner, you have a story that is compelling. You know the details about the owner’s property. You have a buyer, or you are a buyer, that’s got a certain philosophy and a buy box, and that property fits within that philosophy. That is not cold outreach. That’s more of a warm lead," Mosher said.
DealGround aims to facilitate this shift by providing an AI-powered platform that transforms fragmented property, tenant, ownership, and market data into structured, actionable deal intelligence. The platform helps brokers generate qualified leads and move faster from prospecting to closed deals. Brokers interested in seeing how this targeted sourcing works can review the process on DealGround’s how it works page.
The implication for the commercial real estate industry is significant. As brokers adopt more precise, data-driven strategies, the volume-based cold-calling model may become obsolete. This shift could lead to more efficient deal-making, stronger relationships with property owners, and ultimately, a higher success rate in sourcing off-market deals. For brokers still relying on volume calling, the takeaway is clear: more calls do not necessarily mean more deals. A smaller, better-informed list usually beats a longer, generic one.
