I ran across an interesting article called “Study provides insight into typical New York REALTOR®” released by the New York State Association of Realtors® in the September/October 2009 issue of Realtor® Magazine. The article outlined the results of a statewide and nationwide survey of 91 questions sent out to approximately 100,000 random Realtors®. How many actually responded was not printed. I can assure you with complete certainty that not all 100,000 responded.
Here are a few points that were highlighted in the article:
On the Practitioner
- The typical New York Realtor® is a 54-year-old female who works 40 hours per week and has eight years of experience.
- Nationally, is the same as above, but has 10 years of experience.
- Education: 41% of NY Realtors® has an associate or bachelor’s degree, and 12% have a master’s degree.
- Nationally, it’s almost identical at 40% with at least a bachelor’s degree, and 12% have a master’s degree.
- 71% of NY Realtors® claim real estate as their sole occupation.
- Only 5% of Realtors® said that real estate was their first full time career.
- 72% of the respondents receive no insurance benefits from their firm.
On Technology
- Only 77% of NY Realtors® use a cell phone on a daily basis. 40% use a smartphone.
- Only 52% of NY Realtors® have a website, however only 23% of that 52% have their own custom personal website not provided by their firms.
- 55% of NY Realtors® actively use or plan to use social networking sites (Twitter, Facebook, etc.).
On Salary
- The typical New York agent completed 7 transaction sides in 2008, which according to the report, coincides with the national average. This one boggles me because if there were approximately 4.9 mm residential real estate transactions in 2008 in the US and there are approximately 1.1 mm real estate agents, wouldn’t the math indicate that the average agent is involved in approximately 4.4 transactions per year.
- The median gross income for NY Realtors® in 2008 was $27,600 compared to $36,000 nationally.
- Nationally, 82% of real estate agents are independent contractors. This one is very interesting for the public. Most people don’t realize that most agents are considered “consultants” and not actual employees of the firm they work for. They get no medical benefits, no 401K, no dental, or any other benefits most employees enjoy. When the agent sells a home, he/she has to pay part of their commission to their office. In most cases, more than half.
What does this all mean to you the customer? Not very much, except for 2 things:
1. Just as the business itself goes through its phases, so do the people in the business. Meaning, that just because your real estate agent is your childhood friends grandmother who doesn’t Twitter or have an iPhone, or doesn’t have a website, doesn’t mean that she can’t be successful in the business or provide quality service to her clients. Just as the practitioners that once used the big MLS book to show black and white listings to her clients are disappearing, so will those who Facebook and Tweet today! Change is the only constant.
And
2. That those guys on BRAVO in Million Dollar Listing are not your typical agent.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
eddy,
I’m on the same boat. I’m a little more biased towards professionals that embrace the various technology available to them…or at least make an attempt to use them. It shows me that they’re open to new methods of doing of business–which usually means they’re setting themselves apart from the pack. In this new world of instant gratification and higher levels of expectations you want to know, as the one paying for the service, that your questions and concerns will be addressed in a timely fashion–via an email, text, voice mail or god forbid a call back.
Now, how do I get my plumber or electrician to text me when they’re dropping by?
Jaime,
Yet another informative article. Very valid points about agents and technology. Being a tech guy I tend to frown on professionals that aren’t using the latest technology or lack a decent website. But you’re absolutely right, it shouldn’t be something I should hold against a given professional.
That being said, I tend to relate more to professionals that use the same technology I use such as emails, text messaging etc. I think it’s very important as a professional that you adjust with the times and use tools that your clients will expect. For instance I stopped giving a lot of business to a travel agent I used for years because she was reluctant to email me information I needed about trips. It started becoming a deal breaker because I didn’t really have the time to yap on the phone. But more importantly I felt she was failing to respect my preferences as a client which is a no no in my book. So that should be something that should be considered by any professional.
Fortunately, you adjust accordingly. lol