Choosing one neighborhood and showing up for it — by mail, in person and online — until you're the agent people there think of first.
Quick answer
Usually a year or more of consistent presence before it carries real weight. Farming means picking a neighborhood with enough turnover, mailing something useful on a fixed schedule, and showing up in person often enough to be recognized. It's paid, patient and durable: once a neighborhood knows you, it keeps sending business.
You choose an area — a few hundred to a couple of thousand homes — and commit to it. Monthly mail with real local information, regular presence at events and open houses there, and a deep knowledge of what sells, for how much, and why. Over time you become the neighborhood's agent.
Money: printing and postage every month for the number of homes you choose — the biggest line in this lane. Time: a few hours a month to prepare the mail, plus presence in the area. Patience: a year before judging it.
Long horizon. Early calls may come in months; the lane carries weight after a year of unbroken presence.
Stopping at month six. Most of a farm's cost is paid before it returns anything; quitting early keeps the cost and loses the return.
If you can fund twelve months of mail and want to be known for one place, this is a strong long-term lane — pair it with Open houses or Door-knocking in the same area. If the budget isn't there, start with Local search and reviews.
As big as you can mail and visit consistently for a year, and no bigger. A smaller area worked every month beats a large one worked twice.
Agents who want the plan built with them start with PREB Coaching, or build it inside My Home Connection by REAL Broker LLC.