You send a text about a showing time. You email a question about an offer deadline. You call about the inspection report. Hours pass. Then a day. Then two.
If that sounds familiar, you are not alone. Slow communication is one of the most common frustrations buyers and sellers have during a transaction. So how slow is too slow, and what does it tell you?
A reasonable standard: one business day
Real estate runs on deadlines. Offers expire. Inspection and financing periods close. Other parties are waiting. In my view, a reasonable standard is that you hear back within a day, even if the reply is only “got it, working on it,” barring genuinely unusual circumstances. That is the standard I hold myself to.
Clients’ expectations are, if anything, faster. In the United Kingdom, a Street Group survey of 1,830 current and recent sellers found 85 percent expected an agent to respond to an enquiry about selling within 24 hours (“Agents with Poor Communications”), and a Zoopla-commissioned survey of 1,000 UK homeowners found two-thirds expected a response within four hours (Zoopla). Those are UK figures, but I doubt Florida sellers are more patient.
There are exceptions. If you and your agent have already agreed there is nothing new to report, a quiet stretch is normal. The problem is silence when there is an open question, an unresolved concern or a pending decision.
What repeated slow replies can signal
Agents juggle clients, showings, negotiations and paperwork. But busy is not the same as unavailable. A consistent pattern of slow replies can mean:
- Your file is not a priority. Other clients may be getting faster attention.
- Systems are missing. An agent with no process for tracking messages may be disorganized elsewhere in the transaction too.
- The agent is overextended. Too many clients at once leaves too little attention for a major financial transaction.
It is not only an issue mid-transaction. In a nationwide secret-shopper study, analyst Mike DelPrete found that nearly half of the inquiries his team sent to agents through listing sites and forms never received a response, and many of the replies that did come were automated with no human follow-up (DelPrete).
When silence is understandable
- Prior agreement. You have already discussed that there is nothing new to update.
- Weekends and holidays. A somewhat longer response time is reasonable.
- Waiting on someone else. The agent is waiting on the other agent, a lender or an attorney and has no new information yet.
The difference is communication about the silence itself. “I don’t have an update yet, but I’m following up and will let you know by tomorrow” changes everything. NAR’s Pathways to Professionalism, which is voluntary guidance rather than a rule, makes the same point: respond to inquiries promptly, and let people know if you will be delayed (National Association of Realtors).
Red flags
- No response for several days with no explanation
- You have to follow up repeatedly to get any reply
- Replies are vague or do not answer your question
- You learn important updates from other parties instead of your own agent
Reasonable delays
- You were told in advance there is nothing new
- The delay falls on a weekend or holiday
- Your agent tells you they are waiting on someone else
- They acknowledge your message even without a full answer
What you can do
- Set expectations early. Ask how quickly your agent usually responds and by which channel: text, email or phone.
- Say something. Some agents do not realize how their habits land. A direct conversation often fixes it.
- Ask about backup. Some agents have an assistant or colleague who can answer when they are tied up.
- Look at the pattern. One slow week in a busy season is different from a whole transaction of silence.
- Know your options. If it continues, read your listing or buyer agreement for how it can be ended, and raise the problem with the agent’s managing broker. In Florida your agreement is with the brokerage, and the broker can often fix the problem or reassign the file.
Final thoughts
Buying or selling a home is a major life event with tight deadlines and real money at stake. Occasional quiet periods are normal, especially when everything has been addressed. Chronic slow replies without explanation are a sign your time is not being prioritized. Communication is one of the clearest windows into how an agent works, and if it is slow when things are simple, ask yourself how it will be when things get complicated. In real estate, they usually do.