What's actually happening
Every inquiry gets treated the same, because there's no fast way to tell them apart and it feels rude to try. Somebody calls, they sound pleasant, they're interested, and you're a professional, so you go look at it, measure it, think about it, and write it up properly.
Some of those people were never buyers. They were budgeting. Or comparing. Or getting a number for an insurance claim. Or arguing with a spouse about whether to do it at all. None of them told you, because you didn't ask, because asking felt like an accusation.
What it costs you
Your quoting time is finite and it is completely unpaid. Every hour spent on a quote that was never going to close is an hour not spent on one that was, and worse, it's an hour that made the real buyer wait.
Politeness feels free. It isn't. It's the most expensive thing on this page, because it costs you at both ends: the time you spend, and the job you lose while you're spending it.
What it looks like
Three questions you didn't ask, in order of what they'd have saved you: Have you had other estimates?, Is there a date you need this done by?, Is anyone else involved in deciding?
Two minutes on the phone. You'd have known.
Where I'd start
Qualifying isn't interrogating. It's a short, ordinary conversation before you invest hours.
- Three questions, asked every time, before anything gets measured or written.
- A rough number given early, a range is fine, so nobody wastes a week discovering they're in the wrong neighborhood.
- Permission to say "I don't think we're the right fit" out loud. Most owners never say it once.