Where the leads come from — and what they cost
If you have been paying for real estate leads in California — portal advertising by zip code, shared leads sold to several agents at once, referral fees at closing — Nalren works differently. Nobody buys a territory, no request is resold, and there is no fee when a deal closes. A client reaches you one of four ways: browsing the Real Estate category by city and service, searching for a specialty you listed, reading a Nalren guide that links to real agents, or opening a listing page that shows your name. Every one of those paths ends the same way: a consultation request sent to you, with the screening answers you asked for, at no cost to either side.
What decides how many requests you get is the profile itself: the cities you list as service areas, the services and specialties you name, the intro a stranger reads, and whether your calendar is actually open. The rest of this guide is that setup, step by step.
What a Nalren profile is for an agent
Clients open your profile and book a consultation from your real availability. It shows your brokerage and DRE number under your name, your service areas, your services and specialties, and — once your license is verified — the active listings you represent. Messaging starts from a booked consultation, so every conversation begins with a real request, not a cold DM.
Nalren Corp. is itself a licensed California brokerage (DRE #02423715), but your profile is yours: it displays your own brokerage, and Nalren has no part in your representation agreements, your commission, or your escrow. If you would rather hang your license with Nalren, that is a separate path — see Become an Agent.
Step 1 — The Licensed account type
On the “What best describes you?” screen choose Licensed. When your title is Real Estate Agent, Realtor, or Salesperson, Nalren requires a California Real Estate Salesperson license; the title Real Estate Broker requires a Broker license. You may add a Notary Public, NMLS mortgage loan originator, or insurance license as additional credentials, but none of them substitutes for the DRE license — and you cannot get around the requirement by picking a different account type (how the account types work).
Step 2 — Title, location, and the intro that gets you booked
- “What do you do?” — up to three titles. Lead with Real Estate Agent (or Broker); add a second only if you genuinely offer it (Notary Public, Property Manager, Mortgage Loan Originator).
- “Where are you based?” — pick your city from the suggestions, then add every city you actually farm as a service area. Clients search locally; a Glendale agent who also works Burbank and Pasadena should list all three.
- Your intro — two or three sentences a stranger would trust: the neighborhoods you know, who you serve (first-time buyers, investors, sellers downsizing), languages, and years in the business. Skip the superlatives; DRE advertising rules still apply to your profile, so keep it accurate and keep your brokerage name in it.
- “What do you offer?” — services such as buyer representation, listing and marketing, leasing and tenant placement, relocation, investment property, probate sales; skills such as negotiation, staging guidance, 1031 exchanges, specific languages. Specific entries match specific searches.
Step 3 — Your DRE license
On “Any licenses or certifications?” add your Real Estate Salesperson or Broker license: the license number, the state (California), status, and expiration date, plus a photo or PDF of the license if you have it handy. This is what unlocks the verified badge, and it is the number Nalren uses to connect MLS listings to your profile. Enter it exactly as the DRE shows it — a typo means no listings match.
Step 4 — “How do you like to charge?” — for most agents, you don't
This screen exists for professionals who sell their time. As an agent you are paid by commission at closing, outside Nalren, so the right answer here is usually: hourly rate off, no packages. Leaving it empty is a valid, complete profile — clients will see “Book a consultation,” which is exactly what you want.
The one exception: if you want to charge for a defined block of advice (a paid buyer-strategy session, an investor consultation), create a package with that name and price. Packages are the only thing a client can pay for through Nalren, and they stay hidden until your identity is verified and payouts are connected. Nothing about a package obligates you to run transactions through the platform.
What's free and what isn't
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Account, profile, appearing in search and directories | Free |
| Consultations booked from your profile | Free — for you and the client |
| Commission, referral fee, or any share of a transaction | None. Never through Nalren. |
| A paid consultation package (optional) | Client pays your price; Nalren's 10% service fee applies, and you choose whether the client pays it, you absorb it, or you split it |
| Promotions (optional) | Paid placement; never required to be visible |
Step 5 — Finish onboarding and get approved
Add a real headshot on “Make your profile recognizable,” decide what to show on “How can clients reach you?”, and accept the Service Agreement. Professional profiles are submitted for review; once approved you appear in search. Verify your email right away — nothing can be booked until you do.
Step 6 — Your calendar: the consultation-first setup
The booking-calendar guide calls this style the Screener, and it fits agents exactly: every client is different, there is no menu of services, and you want a conversation before you commit time. In the app, Bookings → Calendar:
- Working hours — enable the days you take calls and showings, and set an appointment length (30 minutes is typical for a first call).
- Consultations & approval — consultations on, direct booking off. Leave approval on so you confirm each request.
- Pre-qualification questions — up to five. The ones that save the most time: buying, selling, or both (choice); timeline (choice — mark “just curious, 12+ months” disqualifying if you only want active clients); price range (a number question with a floor you set); pre-approved or cash (yes/no); the area they are looking in (text). Clients answer before they can pick a time, and you receive the answers with the request.
- Notice needed — at least a day, so a consult can't land in the middle of a showing.
- Calendar sync — connect the calendar you already live in so showings and escrows block your Nalren slots.
Your listings on your profile
Nalren matches MLS listings to verified agents by DRE number. Once your license is verified, the active listings where you are the listing agent appear on your profile's Listings tab with the address, days on market, and your brokerage from the MLS record; sold and closed listings are not shown as active. There is nothing to upload or maintain — the feed keeps it current. If a listing is missing, the first thing to check is that the DRE number on your profile matches the one on the listing exactly.
Habits that keep an agent profile working
- Answer requests the same day. A consultation request that sits for days is the one signal a client reads as “not interested.”
- Keep your brokerage current. If you move, update the brokerage name on your profile the same day.
- Treat pre-qualification answers as intake, not advertising. They are visible to you only, and they never disqualify anyone silently — a client who fails a question sees your message and can requalify if something changes.
- Identity verification is not a background check. Nalren verifies that a real person owns the account; it does not vet clients (or you) beyond that.
- Fair-housing language applies everywhere — your intro, your services, your screening questions. Screen on timeline, price range, and readiness, never on who the client is.