The short answer: turn on the Chase what I’m owed routine in alfred_. Every Monday at 8 AM it reads the emails you sent in the last 7 days, finds what you asked buyers for, such as a pre-approval letter, proof of funds or a signed buyer agreement, checks whether it came back, and emails you only what is still outstanding, oldest first, with a short follow-up suggestion for each. It sends nothing to buyers.
The letter that decides who gets the house
You’re a buyer’s agent with eight active clients. Three of them want to see a house this weekend that will have multiple offers by Monday. The listing agent has already told you: no showing without a pre-approval letter.
You asked all eight for their letter last Tuesday. Two sent it the same day. One sent a pre-qualification instead. One said “talking to the lender Thursday.” The rest went quiet. Now it’s Monday, the weekend’s showings need booking, and you’re scrolling Sent mail trying to remember who you asked and who answered.
The native ways, and where they stop
Your CRM. If you logged a task, “get pre-approval from the Parkers”, the CRM reminds you on the date. Most of these requests happen in a reply to a buyer’s question, and nobody logs them.
Sent mail search. Search Sent for “pre-approval” and you see who you asked. You still open each thread, and the buyer may have answered in a different thread or forwarded it from their lender.
Flags. Flag the email as you send it. That works for the requests you remember to flag, which are rarely the ones that slip.
Turn on Chase what I’m owed
- Connect your Gmail or Outlook to alfred_. Sign in with Google or Microsoft; your password stays with them.
- On your desktop, open Routines, then Chase what I’m owed.
- Press Turn it on.
It runs every Monday at 8 AM in your time zone and emails you the list; past lists are kept on the routine’s page. It reads the emails you sent in the last 7 days, finds the explicit requests for work, documents, a review, a confirmation, a decision or a payment, and checks later replies. Before it lists one, it also looks for a later answer in other threads from the same person, so a letter the lender sent separately doesn’t land on the list.
What Monday’s email looks like
What you’re still waiting on (3)
- Jordan and Kate Parker: pre-approval letter. Asked Oct 14. Kate replied Oct 15: “talking to the lender Thursday.” Nothing since. Suggestion: ask whether the lender has sent it, and mention the Saturday showing needs it by Friday.
- Marcus Lee: proof of funds for a cash offer. Asked Oct 15. No reply. Suggestion: a two-line note with the account statement as an example of what works.
- Sofia Grant: signed buyer agreement. Asked Oct 16. No reply. Suggestion: resend the signing link and offer to walk her through it by phone.
Illustrative example, not output from a real run. The buyers are invented, and the wording differs from run to run.
Where each step happens
- Desktop: turn it on from Routines and read past lists there.
- Email, Monday at 8 AM: the list lands before you book the weekend’s showings.
- Phone, any day: text “which buyers still haven’t sent their pre-approval?” for the same answer on the spot, or “nudge the Parkers about the letter” to have the follow-up written. It waits for your “send”.
The honest caveat
The ready-made routine looks back 7 days, so it suits a Monday habit; for longer, ask alfred_ or write your own routine with a wider window. It reads the inboxes you connect, so a letter the lender sent only to your transaction coordinator isn’t in your mail, and it reports what came back without judging whether a letter is strong enough. It reports; it doesn’t chase. alfred_ is a paid product, and routines run on the credits your plan includes; plans are on the pricing page.
