The account
From January 2022 to February 2024 I ran Facebook lead ads for High Cash Offer, a cash home buyer in California. The goal was leads from owners who wanted to sell a house. In February 2024 the owner emailed me: “Great work so far with the FB ads!” The full email is further down this page.
In late August and September 2026 I also ran Google Ads for real‑estate and home‑construction clients in the US, through a US agency. They stay unnamed. One account spent $931.92 from 31 Aug to 14 Sep 2026. Another spent $5,797.08 from 1 to 24 Sep 2026.
The problem in this niche
For a cash home buyer, many people who fill in a form are not ready to sell. Some only want to know what their house is worth. Real sellers often contact several cash buyers, so a slow reply can lose the deal.
Meta treats these ads as housing ads, so there is no age, gender or ZIP code targeting. The ad and the form have to screen people instead. On Google, real‑estate searches also bring clicks from renters and people looking for an agent.
What I did
- Tested Facebook lead ad sets built on different interests: mortgage, home buyers, home improvement and relocation, and real estate.
- Ran a copy of one ad set beside the original, and switched off the ad set that brought no leads.
- Judged each ad set on its cost per lead, not on reach or impressions.
- On one Google account, moved budget toward the campaigns that brought conversions.
What changed
1,686 on‑Facebook leads across four campaigns
High Cash Offer · Ads Manager totals row · screenshot undated
28 leads at $9.75 each on $273.00, in a five‑ad‑set test
High Cash Offer · $2.52 to $13.89 per lead by ad set · screenshot undated
10 conversions on $931.92 of Google Ads spend
31 Aug–14 Sep 2026 · 571 clicks · a real‑estate client · Google reports 9.98; rounded
26 conversions on $5,797.08 in a second Google Ads account
1–24 Sep 2026 · 1,678 clicks · real estate and home construction · Google reports 26.47; rounded
From my resume: 500+ motivated‑seller leads at about $10 average cost per lead
2022–2024 · Facebook lead ads for High Cash Offer · no screenshot of this figure
The Facebook screenshots print no dates. The two Google accounts are separate, so their figures are not added together. The last line comes from my resume, not from a screenshot.
What the client wrote
“Great work so far with the FB ads! Attached is a link with more variant videos. Please feel free to reach out with any ideas or content requests. Thank you!”
The original email, address and link hidden.
More screenshots
See the full account (6 more screenshots)
Meta Ads Manager campaigns for High Cash Offer, no date shown: the totals row reads 1,686 on‑Facebook leads from 4 campaigns, and the “New Leads campaign REAL ESTATE” row shows 349. Nothing hidden.
No date or spend is printed. The grey “Activate Windows” text was on the original screen.
Meta Leads Center for High Cash Offer, no date shown: 296 leads in the Intake stage; the cards shown are tagged Paid and Complete form. Lead names and initials hidden.
296 is the count in one stage on the day of the screenshot, not a total.
Meta Ads Manager ads for High Cash Offer, no date shown: one “New Leads ad” brought 15 leads from a reach of 1,652. Nothing hidden.
Image ads; two carry “We buy houses” headlines and one is named “Distressed house”. No spend is printed.
Google Ads overview, 31 Aug–14 Sep 2026: 571 clicks, 10 conversions, 6,935 impressions, $931.92 cost. Client name not shown.
An unnamed real‑estate client, through a US agency. Google reports fractional conversions (9.98); rounded.
Google Ads campaign table, same account, no date shown: four campaigns; two converted (5.00 at $99.36 each and 4.98 at $70.96 each), two had none. Client name not shown.
Its first total row, 9.98 conversions at $93.36 each, matches the overview above. Google counts fractional conversions.
Google Ads overview, 1–24 Sep 2026: 1,678 clicks, 26 conversions, 13,046 impressions, $5,797.08 cost. Client name not shown.
A second account, for a real‑estate and home‑construction client. Google reports fractional conversions (26.47); rounded.
For an agency
If your client buys houses for cash, Meta’s housing rules remove age, gender and ZIP code targeting, so the ads and the lead form have to screen people. I test several lead ad sets and judge each on its cost per lead, and on Google I move budget to the campaigns that bring conversions.