Outsiders to the real estate industry may assume that the tight market has real estate agents hanging up their hats. In reality, today’s agents are seizing the market and feeling confident.
Real estate agents are still confident in the industry and the market. Even as the housing market comes down from its COVID-19 pandemic highs, there are houses to be sold and deals to be made. And, AceableAgent — an online real estate agent licensing firm — recently compiled a survey to answer the question, “Is now a good time to be a real estate agent?”
The answer is undeniable. Yes!
Agent satisfaction by the numbers
“An impressive 88% of agents surveyed reported being satisfied (or very satisfied) with their careers in real estate,” said the report.
This satisfaction comes from many sources, flexibility, control, income potential and ease of entry are all cited by agents as the factors that make them enjoy their jobs so much. These factors even outweigh the current lack of listings and longer wait times on commission checks.
“[Some] 58% of respondents feel positive about the current real estate market,” said the report. A large part of these feelings could be due to the fact that, per the report, the tight market comes with positive changes too.
For veteran agents, tight markets often mean the removal of “fair-weathered” agents, those who got in the game during a high and won’t wait out the lows. There are also more opportunities to go to bat for your buyers and be seen as a valuable resource. Or, for those agents who really hit it big during the 2020 and 2021 boom years, now may be the perfect time to slow down business and strategize for the future.
“In the go-go-go market of the last few years, many agents were simply rushing from one client to the next with little time for strategizing to maximize workflow efficiencies. Now that things are slowing down, you can take a beat to reevaluate business strategies like marketing, branding, and operations,” said the report.
The housing market by the numbers
According to the latest, national data from Altos Research, the housing market may be approaching a soft landing. So, for those 83% of agents that said the market would improve in the next 6 months, the light at the end of the tunnel may be closer than they think.
As of mid-July 2022, the average cost of a single-family home in the U.S. was $450,000. According to Altos Research, that data is basically unchanged from 2022. And, inventory is on the rise — slowly. There were 470,000 single-family homes for sale in the U.S. during the same time period. That trend increased by 1% from the week prior.
“Since January, homebuyers have defied all expectations. Sellers have not materialized and buyers have been buying everything that becomes available,” said Altos Founder, Mike Simonsen.
There aren’t many listings to go around, but agents have made it clear that they don’t believe these market conditions are here to stay. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.
So what are agents doing in the meantime to improve their businesses? According to AceableAgent, real estate pros are focusing on networking, digital marketing and client service skills to stay ahead of the competition in today’s market.
