This article provides a step-by-step guide to starting an Insider negotiation. Starting a negotiation in Insider is straightforward: identify a suitable listing or client, send a negotiation request with your chosen specification, and wait for the other party’s response within 72 hours.
If you are unsure how negotiations work overall, we recommend first reading the Negotiations Between Agents in Insider article. This document focuses primarily on starting negotiations.
1. Overview
Starting a negotiation in Insider is done by sending a negotiation request to the other party’s agent. Requests can be initiated in two directions:
- From the seller’s agent to the buyer’s agent: when you know that a specific agent may have a suitable buyer for your listing
- From the buyer’s agent to the seller’s agent: when your client has found an interesting listing in Insider
1.1 Requirements for starting a negotiation
Before you can send a negotiation request, the following conditions must be met:
- Both you and the other party’s agent must have Insider enabled and its terms of use accepted.
- The listing must be published in Insider.
- The listing must have a defined asking price and commission details.
- You must be a different person from the other party’s agent (the same agent cannot negotiate with themselves).
Additionally:
- As the seller’s agent: sending a request requires access rights to the listing.
- As the buyer’s agent: sending a request requires access rights to the client.
2. When to start a negotiation
A negotiation should be started in situations where cooperation is realistically beneficial. The following are typical starting points:
2.1 As the buyer’s agent
- Your saved search alert returned a match for an Insider listing that suits your client.
- Your client is highly motivated to buy and a suitable listing has been found in Insider.
- You want additional information about the listing and want to confirm whether it meets your client’s needs.
- Your client has requested to attend a showing for an Insider listing.
2.2 As the seller’s agent
- You want to actively market the listing to a broader network of agents.
- A showing is being arranged for the listing and you want to notify potential buyer’s agents.
- You want to propose changes to the cooperation terms (e.g. commission split) before someone contacts you.
3. Sending a negotiation request as the seller’s agent
3.1 Open the listing’s negotiation section
In Insider, navigate to the listing card for which you want to start a negotiation. In the Negotiations section, you will see the button New negotiation or Start a new negotiation on behalf of another client if there are already ongoing negotiations for the listing.
3.2 Select the other party’s agent and buyer candidate
As the seller’s agent, you must specify who you want to send the request to. You can:
- Select an Insider user (another agent) from the list to receive the request
- Attach information about a buyer candidate to the request (for example, a client identified through a saved search alert match)
Good to know: Buyer candidate details are not disclosed to the other party in Insider. The other party will see the buyer under an anonymous identifier.
3.3 Select the request specification
Select one specification for the request, briefly describing the reason for the initiative. The specifications are listed in section 5 of this article.
3.4 Send the request
Review the details and send the request. The other party’s agent will receive an email notification and a notification inside Linear. The request remains valid for 72 hours. If no response is received, the request expires automatically, and you can send a new one if desired.
4. Sending a negotiation request as the buyer’s agent
4.1 Find an interesting listing
Browse Insider listings or make use of saved search alerts. Open the listing for which you want to create a negotiation request.
4.2 Click "Send negotiation request"
In the listing details, you will see a button labeled Send negotiation request to the listing agent (or similar text). Clicking it starts the process of creating a negotiation request.
4.3 Select a client
As the buyer’s agent, you must choose on behalf of which client the negotiation is being conducted. You can:
- Select an existing client from the list
- Use the client’s saved search alert if the match originated from it
Good to know: The client’s name and contact information are not disclosed to the other party in Insider. An anonymous identifier is attached to the request, allowing the other party to track communications.
4.4 Select the request specification
Select the reason for the negotiation request from the dropdown menu. The specifications are listed in section 5 of this article.
4.5 Accept Insider’s terms of use if required
If you are sending your first negotiation request, you will be asked to accept Insider’s terms of use. The same applies to the commitment to pay any potential service fee if a transaction is completed. Read the terms carefully before accepting them.
4.6 Send the request
The other party’s agent will receive a notification about the request and will see:
- Anonymous buyer identifier
- Request clarification
- Timestamp of when the request was sent
Good to know: The commission and commission split for the listing may be hidden until the negotiation stage. Make sure you are prepared to negotiate the commission if it is not yet visible.
5. Negotiation request clarifications
A request always requires one clarification to be selected. The clarification helps the other agent understand why the negotiation is being initiated.
5.1 Buyer’s agent clarifications
When sending a request to the seller’s agent, the available clarifications are:
- No clarification
- I have a motivated buyer
- I have a buyer representation agreement with a potential buyer
- My client would like to view this listing
- My client is ready to negotiate and I wanted to get in touch
- I wanted to confirm whether the listing matches the buyer’s needs
- I propose changes to the cooperation terms
- I would like to ask additional questions about the listing or the client
- I would like to schedule a time to connect
5.2 Seller’s agent clarifications
When sending a request to the buyer’s agent, the available clarifications are:
- No clarification
- I wanted to share additional information about the listing that is not included in the advertisement
- There is an upcoming showing for the listing and I wanted to let you know
- I would like to ask additional questions about the listing or the client
- I would like to schedule a time to connect
- I propose changes to the cooperation terms
Tip: A descriptive clarification makes the other party more interested in your request. “Motivated buyer” or “upcoming showing” clearly communicates that there is a concrete reason behind the contact.
6. How the other party can respond to a request
After you send a request, the other agent has 72 hours to respond. They can:
6.1 Accept the request
Accepting the request moves the negotiation to the Negotiation in progress state. Both agents’ contact details become visible to each other, and the negotiation remains active for 30 days at a time. The buyer’s agent also gains access to more detailed listing information.
6.2 Reject the request
Rejecting a request requires selecting one reason:
- No specific reason
- Not suitable for my client
- Not relevant right now
- The cooperation terms are not suitable
- The listing is no longer available
- The listing is currently under negotiation
The other party will receive a notification about the rejection and can send a new request later if needed.
6.3 Leave the request unanswered
If 72 hours pass without a response, the request moves to the Negotiation request expired state. You will receive a notification about the expiration and can send a new request if it is still relevant.
7. Cancelling or rejecting a request
7.1 Cancelling your own request
You can cancel your own request as long as it is in the Negotiation proposed state (72 hours). Cancelling:
- Removes the request from the other party’s view
- Does not send a separate notification to the other party
- Allows you to send a new request immediately
Tip: If you notice after sending the request that the clarification was incorrect or you selected the wrong buyer/client, cancel the request and send a new one.
7.2 Rejecting the other party’s request
If you receive a request you do not want to proceed with, select a reason for rejection and confirm it. A rejection is not final: the other party may send a new request later.
8. If something goes wrong
8.1 I cannot send a request
The most common reasons are:
- You or the other party do not have Insider enabled or the terms of use have not been accepted
- The listing is missing sale price or commission information
- You do not have access rights to the listing (as the seller’s agent) or the client (as the buyer’s agent)
Go to the Insider settings to accept the terms of use and make sure the listing’s publication information is complete.
8.2 I received the error message “the same agent cannot have both roles”
The system prevents situations where the same user attempts to act as both the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent in the same negotiation. Make sure that the agent assigned to the listing is a different person than you, or that the client is managed by another agent.
8.3 I do not know which clarification is the most suitable
Select the clarification that best describes the reason for your request. If none of the predefined clarifications feel suitable, select No clarification and agree on the details directly with the other party.
8.4 My request expired, but I still want to continue
You can send a new request for the same listing. The previous request will remain in the history, but the new request will be handled independently. If necessary, you can also try contacting the other party by phone or email if the agent’s contact information is available through other channels.
8.5 I only wanted to ask for a small piece of additional information, but I do not want to start a full negotiation
In Insider, negotiation is the only structured way for agents to discuss a listing with each other. You can use the clarification I would like to ask additional questions about the listing or the client or I would like to schedule a time to connect to start a lighter discussion. Communication can then continue directly by phone or email.
8.6 I cannot find the Insider listing that received a match
Check that the listing is still active. If the listing has already been reserved or sold, it will be removed from Insider and no new negotiations can be started for it.