How's business in your town? In your city? In your state?
Do you feel like your area is saturated with REALTORS? During the height of the real estate frenzy about 3 years ago, I often heard people saying "Everyone and their cousin is a REALTOR!" Back then, I heard stories about full-time car mechanics getting a real estate license so they could sell a home on the side after changing filters and rotating tires all day. Lots of people entered the business. Many for a quick buck.
Nobody needs to tell you that the real estate market has changed.
Gone are the days of selling a home seconds after hammering the sign post into the front yard. Multiple offers from purchasers? They're still happening... just mostly on foreclosures these days.
Nationwide, the number of REALTORS remains large. The National Association of REALTORS reports that by August 31, 2008 there were a grand total of 1,257,686 REALTORS. That is, however, a decline of 8.16% from the numbers reported last August -- 1,369,411. With this many REALTORS in the United States, there is one REALTOR for every 243 people.
Everyone always hears the statistic about the U.S. being a litigious country. We've got more lawyers per capita than any other country. There is one lawyer for every 265 people.
REALTORS OUTNUMBER LAWYERS! Maybe that's because owning real estate is the American Dream.
While the number of REALTORS has decreased in almost every state during the past year (South Dakota and Wyoming were the two states to experience modest increases in the REALTOR ranks), real estate most certainly remains a competitive business.
How competitive is your state? Here's some charts that I've compiled that show the rankings of each state by number of people per REALTOR. There are a few surprises here.
Before any Nebraskans, Iowans, Alaskans, South or North Dakotans, Missippians, or West Virginians cry foul and yell at me for saying the "selling is easy," trust me that I know that it is not.
It's no surprise that the 4 most competitive states according to these charts are traditional retirement and vacation locations. The more demand for housing, the more REALTORS. It's just that simple.
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