An Influx of Realtors

By ANTHONY MARGULEAS | Special to the Palisadian-Post

As the Real Estate Market continues to see demand, the real estate world is seeing many new faces. In both 2020 and 2021, the country has seen record breaking numbers of membership; the highest amount of both growth and quantity of members since 2006, when the early 2000s housing boom peaked. In December 2021, the National Association of realtors had an increase of 6.92%, which equates to over 100,000 new members. The highest market growth by percentage was Georgia, with a 10.65% increase from 2020 to 2021.

It’s believed that the significant increase in realtors stems from the closure of many other employment options. With the demand for buying and selling homes at an all time high, more and more people are taking a chance at switching career paths instead of turning to unemployment. The pandemic also made becoming a certified agent easier. Since everything was virtual, you didn’t have to leave your home to get your license. You could easily complete the courses and everything necessary from the comfort of your own home.

However, the mass influx of real estate agents does come at a cost. The average amount of homes sold per agent in 2021 was down, at less than four homes per agent. As the amount of available homes continues to decrease, the expectation is that number will not be increasing anytime soon. In fact, we might see a significant decrease if more homes don’t become available. There are a lot of Real Estate agents all working hard for a minimal amount of opportunity.

In the U.S., Realtor memberships are highest in Florida, where we saw an 8.82% rise in 2021 to 213,963, California, who had a 4.35% increase to 211,708, Texas, who was up 9.49% to 146,940, and New Jersey, up 7.59% to 61,257. If these trends continue to climb, there simply won’t be enough houses for everyone to sell. As the housing demand remains, but the supply decreases, the increase of these agents may be too late to be able to make it their career path.

Anthony Marguleas is the founder of Amalfi Estates, and has sold close to $2 billion in properties and was selected by the Wall Street Journal as one of the top 40 agents in the country out of one million agents. If you are thinking of buying a home or selling your own, Contact Anthony Marguleas at 310-293-9280 or anthony@amalfiestates.com.