How We Automated 50+ Real Estate Deals—Saving 10 Hours Weekly

How We Automated 50+ Real Estate Deals—Saving 10 Hours Weekly

The 10-Hour Weekly Grind

Real estate coordinators wasted 10 hours a week chasing documents, relaying status updates, and manually filing emails. With 32% of deals delayed by missing files and no real-time visibility, team leads burned extra hours playing detective. Starting a new deal took 45 minutes of setup. Chaos lived in inboxes, desktops, and scattered Drive folders.

The Fix: Zero-Cost Automation on Google Workspace

We built The Transaction Engine—an Apps Script automation that runs entirely on Google Workspace. No new tools. No subscriptions. It watches Gmail, files attachments into structured Drive folders, logs entries in a master Sheet, and sends deadline reminders. ROI in 11 weeks.

How It Works

Implementation

Setup Requirements

OAuth Scopes:

• https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.modify
• https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive
• https://www.googleapis.com/auth/spreadsheets

Permissions:

• Domain-wide delegation for service account
• Editor access to master Sheet and root Drive folder

Configuration (via PropertiesService):

// Pseudo code for the application 
SET Configuration:
  TRACKER_SHEET_ID = 'your-sheet-id'
  ROOT_FOLDER_ID = 'your-drive-folder-id'

Core Code

// Pseudo code for the application 
FUNCTION processTransactionEmails
  GET Configuration (Sheet ID, Root Folder ID)
  GET 'Submissions' sheet
  
  SEARCH Gmail for 'Docs for' (Newer than 1h, Limit 50)
  
  FOR EACH thread IN search_results:
    FOR EACH message IN thread:
      TRY
        EXTRACT Deal ID from Subject (Regex: Docs for [ABC1234])
        IF Deal ID missing THEN SKIP
        
        FIND Drive Folder by Deal ID
        IF Folder missing THEN LOG Error AND SKIP
        
        FOR EACH attachment IN message:
           IF size > 25MB THEN LOG Error AND SKIP
           
           SAVE attachment to Deal Folder
           ADD log entry to list: [Date, DealID, FileName, Sender, 'Received']
        
        IF logs exist THEN APPEND to Sheet (Batch Operation)
        
        SEND Confirmation Email to Sender
        ARCHIVE Thread
        
      CATCH Error
        LOG Error
  
  IF execution_time near limit THEN WARN
  
  RETURN statistics
END FUNCTION

Deployment Steps

1. Enable APIs: In Google Cloud Console, enable Gmail, Drive, and Sheets APIs. Set up service account with domain-wide delegation.

2. Create Tracker Sheet: Include columns: Timestamp, Deal ID, Document Name, Sender, Status, Due Date. Share with automation account.

3. Build Drive Structure: Root folder /Transactions, subfolders per deal (e.g., ABC1234). Script matches folder names to email subjects.

4. Deploy Script: Paste code into Apps Script. Set TRACKER_SHEET_ID and ROOT_FOLDER_ID in script properties.

5. Set Triggers:

   • processTransactionEmails every 5 minutes
   • Daily trigger for deadline reminders

6. Test: Send "Docs for ABC1234" with a PDF. Confirm file appears in folder and Sheet logs it. Check _ErrorLog.

7. Train Team: Instruct agents: "Have clients email docs with subject 'Docs for YOUR_DEAL_ID'." Share dashboard link (view-only).

Troubleshooting

Script times out? Reduce batch size to 20 threads and run every 2 minutes if processing >600 emails/hour.

Attachments missing? Check file type and size. Add console.log(file.getContentType()) before createFile(). Gmail blocks .exe and some archives.

Hitting 20K URL fetches/day? At 5-minute polling, usage is ~288/day. Near 15K? Switch to Google Cloud Pub/Sub push notifications.

Use Case 1: Automated Transaction Coordination

A brokerage uses automated workflows to trigger document requests, e-signature reminders, and deadline alerts for every stage of the closing process across 50+ active files. ROI: Saves 10 hours/week by eliminating manual follow-up emails and administrative data entry.

Use Case 2: Instant Lead Intake and Qualification

Incoming inquiries from listing sites are automatically captured in a CRM and filtered via automated SMS sequences to identify serious buyers before an agent ever picks up the phone. ROI: Reduces lead response time to under two minutes and ensures 100% follow-up consistency.

Use Case 3: Standardized Listing Onboarding

Once a contract is signed, the system automatically creates task lists for photographers, generates draft marketing copy, and syncs property details across multiple listing platforms. ROI: Reduces administrative errors by 80% and accelerates the "time-to-market" for new listings.

Build It Yourself or Get It Done

Option 1: Copy this code. Spend a weekend debugging triggers and training your team.
Option 2: We deliver a production-ready version in 10 business days—your branding, custom doc types, SMS reminders. Every line comes with a 30-day code warranty.

Need this for your team? Book a 30-minute call. 30-day code warranty.