Fun facts and figures

If you've wondered what happenned to my blogging this week the answer is simple: I'm on Oahu taking a 2 day class geared towards earning my Certified Residential Specialist designation. Without going into a lot of detail, let me just say that the CRS designation is one held by only 4% of real estate agents globally. It's basically the equivalent of getting a PhD in real estate, as the number of classes and actual production required for the desigation is much more comprehensive than most other designations. Our instructor, Robert Morris is an active realtor, a Senior CRS instructor and holds 7 designations of his own. All of the following ‘fascinationg" facts and figures are courtesy of our instructor- my thanks to you Robert for a great class!

Let's start with Hawaii real estate agents. Of the approximately 6300 agents statewide, 33% had no transactions last year and another 25% had only one. That fact alone should frighten you into doing some research before selecting an agent to represent you in what will probably be the largest financial transaction in your life. I have nothing against new agents, but have seen too many of them out on their own with no one to back them up, leaving both agent and client in a precarious position. If you are going to use a new agent, make sure they are being mentored throught your transaction by an experienced agent.

On a national level, the average age of a real estate agent is 54 to 57 while the average age of buyers is 23 to 47. Interestingly enough, 75% of the agents who quit do so in years 6 through 10. I would have thought it would be within the first 5 years but I guess if you've been at it 6 or more years and still haven't figured it out, you just may get frustrated enough to hang it up.

The National Association of Realtors, of which I am a member along with being a member of the State and National CRS, publishes an annual Buyer / Seller profile which has some great information which Robert passed along. For example, 48% of Buyers learn about the home they bought from a real estate agent; 15% found their home from a yard sign; 8% used the Internet, 8% obtained information from a friend / neighbor and 7% looked in the newspaper. This is the first year that the Internet surpassed the newspaper. 94% of Internet buyer's looked on the web to find homes; 35% looked for area information, and 5% searched for either a real estate company or an agent.

I plan to order the entire survey and will share other fun facts once I have it. That's about it for today. It was a very informative and educational two days but I need to get out and take a long walk after sitting for so long. I'll be back to my regular blogging routine next week. Have a great weekend!

Aloha, Elaine

Elaine Schaefer (R, GRI, ABR)
Broker in Charge - Princeville Resort Office
Graduate, Realtor's Institute
Accredited Buyer's Representative
Top Producer 100% Club

RE/MAX Kauai
Princeville Resort Office
POB 223632
Princeville, HI 96722
cell: 808 639 2935
home fax: 1 808 440 4552
email:soldonkauai@yahoo.com
website: www.kauairealestatenow.com

......you can have your own piece of paradise
ask me how!