A real estate market update email shares a few local numbers from a source you name, usually your board’s monthly statistics, and a sentence or two on what they mean for buyers and sellers. Send it monthly, keep it to one screen, say which area and month the figures cover, and end with one next step.
Below is how to find the numbers, which ones to use, a simple structure, and three templates you can copy: a one-minute digest, a full monthly report and a neighbourhood report for homeowners. Replace everything in [square brackets] with your own details and figures.
Where the numbers come from
The most useful market update uses figures your readers could check for themselves. Start with the source closest to your clients:
- Your local board or association. In Canada, many real estate boards publish monthly statistics for their area, and many include a benchmark price from the MLS® Home Price Index alongside sales and listings. In the US, your local association of REALTORS® or your MLS usually publishes a monthly market report.
- Your MLS® system. For a neighbourhood or a single street, you can often run your own figures from sold data in your MLS® system. Say that you did, and over what period.
- National figures, sparingly. National statistics, such as those from CREA in Canada, make good context but say little about one neighbourhood. Lead with local numbers.
Three rules keep a market update trustworthy:
- Cite the source and the period in the email itself: “Source: [Board name], [Month Year], [area].”
- Never round up, estimate or invent a figure. If you don’t have a number for an area, leave it out rather than guessing.
- Check your board’s rules before republishing its statistics, charts or logos. Some boards restrict how members share their data, and advertising rules may apply to what you write about prices.
Which numbers to include
Pick three or four numbers that tell this month’s story, not every figure in the report. These are the ones readers understand most easily:
| Number | What it tells readers |
|---|---|
| Sales | How many homes sold in the month: a sign of how busy the market is. |
| New listings | How many homes came on the market: the new choice buyers had. |
| Active listings | How many homes were for sale at the end of the month: the total choice. |
| Benchmark, median or average price | What homes are selling for. A benchmark price tracks a typical home; the median is the middle sale; the average can be pulled up by a few expensive sales. Say which one you’re using. |
| Days on market | How long homes took to sell: a quick read on demand. |
| Sales-to-active-listings ratio or months of inventory | How sales compare with the supply of homes, which is how many boards describe whether conditions favour buyers or sellers. |
Compare like with like. A change from the same month last year (year over year) is usually more meaningful than a change from last month, because real estate is seasonal: spring is busier than December almost everywhere. If you show month-over-month figures, say so.
Split by property type when it changes the story. Detached houses, townhouses and condos (or single-family homes and condos in the US) often move differently, and a reader who owns a condo wants to know about condos.
A simple structure for every month
- Subject line with the area and month. “[Area] market update: [Month]” is clear, and readers learn to look for it.
- One headline number. The figure that best sums up the month, with its change from last year.
- Three or four supporting numbers, as text rather than only inside a chart image, because some email apps don’t show images until the reader allows them.
- What it means, in your words. Two or three sentences. This is the part readers can’t get anywhere else.
- One line for buyers and one for sellers. The same numbers mean different things to each.
- One next step, such as a home estimate, a list of homes that match, or a reply.
- The source line. Board or MLS®, area and period.
Your business details and an unsubscribe link belong in the footer of every email too, as with the rest of your marketing. Our article on CASL and CAN-SPAM for realtors explains who you can send a market update to.
Template 1: The one-minute digest
Best for: your whole database, every month. Length: under 150 words.
Hi [First name],
Here’s [Area] in one minute, for [Month]:
• [Benchmark or median] price: [figure], [up / down] [percentage] from [Month] last year
• Sales: [figure], [up / down] [percentage] year over year
• New listings: [figure]
• Homes for sale at month end: [figure]
What it means: [one or two sentences of your own view, for example whether buyers have more choice than a year ago].
Curious what this means for your home? Reply and I’ll send you a quick estimate.
[Your name], [Brokerage]
Source: [Board name], [Month Year], [area covered].
Preview text idea: “Prices, sales and listings for [Area] in [Month], in one minute.”
Template 2: The full monthly report
Best for: engaged readers, investors and anyone thinking about a move this year. Length: one screen on a laptop, with a table.
Hi [First name],
[Board name] has published its figures for [Month]. Here’s what stood out for [Area].
The headline: [one sentence, such as “sales were [up / down] [percentage] from a year ago, while prices were [steady / higher / lower]”].
By property type ([benchmark / median] price, change year over year):
Detached: [price], [change]
Townhouse: [price], [change]
Condo or apartment: [price], [change]
Supply: [figure] new listings and [figure] homes for sale at month end, compared with [figure] a year ago.
My take: [two or three sentences: what you’re seeing at showings and in offers, and what you expect to watch next month].
If you’re buying: [one sentence].
If you’re selling: [one sentence].
Want the numbers for your street or building? Reply with your address and I’ll put them together.
[Your name], [Brokerage] · [Phone]
Source: [Board name], [Month Year], [area covered]. Figures are for the whole area; individual homes vary.
The “Stats & Price Table” and “Stats & Chart” designs in the market update templates are laid out for exactly this: four headline stats, then a price table by property type or a chart.
Template 3: The neighbourhood report for homeowners
Best for: homeowners in one area, including past clients. Length: short, with a valuation offer.
Hi [First name],
Here’s what happened near you in [Month or period], from [source]:
• [Address or block]: sold for [price] after [days] days
• [Address or block]: sold for [price] after [days] days
• [Address or block]: sold for [price] after [days] days
Across [Neighbourhood], the [benchmark / median] price for a [property type] was [figure], [up / down] [percentage] from a year ago.
Every home is different, so these aren’t a price for yours. If you’d like an estimate based on your home’s features and these sales, it takes me a day or two: [Valuation link]
[Your name], [Brokerage]
Before you name an address or a sale price, check your board’s rules on advertising sold data and when you’re allowed to share it. Listing only the block, or the street without the house number, is a common compromise.
Mistakes to avoid
- Too many numbers. Ten statistics without a sentence of meaning is a spreadsheet, not an email.
- Mixing areas or periods. A citywide price beside a neighbourhood sales count confuses readers. Keep every figure to the same area and month, or label each one.
- Picking only the good news. If prices fell, say so, and explain what it means. Readers trust the agent who tells them both.
- Sending stale figures. Send within a few days of your board publishing, so your update isn’t the third one readers see.
- Hype words. “The market is on fire” tells readers less than “homes sold in [figure] days on average, [figure] fewer than last year”.
- Every month the same. Rotate the extra: a mortgage rate note one month, a seasonal checklist the next. Our 52 real estate newsletter ideas have a topic for every week of the year.
Send your market update in OneHive Mail
- Start from a market update design. There are layouts for four stats and a chart, four stats and a price table, one headline number, a one-minute digest, a full statistics report and a postal code report, plus spring, summer, fall and winter updates and a mortgage rate update. Your name, photo, logo and contact details fill in automatically.
- Type the numbers as text. Put the key figures in text blocks so they show even when images don’t, and add the source line under them.
- Choose who gets it. Send the citywide digest to everyone subscribed, and the neighbourhood report to a segment such as “city is [City] AND has tag Homeowner”, or a tag you use for the neighbourhood.
- Test the subject line. A/B testing sends two subject lines to part of your list and the one more people opened or clicked to everyone else. Our list of real estate email subject lines has a set for market updates.
- Schedule it for the same day each month. Pick the date, time and timezone, and it sends itself.
- Follow the clicks. Mark your valuation link as a hot link, so everyone who clicks it appears in Hot leads, and use the campaign report to filter to the people who clicked and call them first.
The real estate newsletter service page covers the rest of the newsletter tools, and every plan includes them; see pricing, or start a free trial and send your first update this month.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I send a real estate market update?
Monthly suits many agents, a few days after your board publishes its figures. A quarterly or seasonal update works if your market moves slowly or you already send a monthly newsletter.
Where do I get statistics for a market update email?
From your local real estate board or association, which often publishes monthly figures, or from sold data in your MLS® system for a smaller area. Name the source, the area and the period in the email, and check your board’s rules on sharing its data.
What should a market update email include?
One headline number, three or four supporting figures with their change from last year, a short explanation in your own words, a line each for buyers and sellers, one next step and a source line.
Should I use the average or median price?
Use whichever your source publishes, and say which it is. A benchmark or median price usually describes a typical home better than an average, which a few expensive sales can pull up.
Can I send a market update to my whole database?
Send it to contacts who agreed to hear from you, or whose implied consent is still valid. A market update promotes you as an agent, so it’s commercial email under CASL in Canada and needs your identification and an unsubscribe link in both countries.
What’s the difference between a market update and a newsletter?
A market update focuses on the numbers and what they mean. A newsletter mixes local news, home tips, listings and a market snapshot. Many agents send a short market update inside a monthly newsletter.