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And lets not forget that we are talking about a profession that states production on business cards and prospecting tools. LOL! I have to laugh, because when things were humming, agents got in your face practically boasting about their income and production.
I have never known a single agent who publicly disclosed their income to strangers (or anyone else for that matter other than elected officials, etc. where it was part of the public record). Telling people the dollar value of the sales in which you were involved in a year is a very different beast than telling people what you bring home in a year. Being able to show that you produced $5 or $10 million worth of transactions lets people know that you have experience and that you are a full-time professional capable of handling their real estate needs.
Personally, I find it hard to believe any agent would be any more willing to post their annual income on a public bulletin board than any other professional.
Well, I certainly didn't intend for it to be rude. I thought that was relatively par for the course to share things like that, or at least estimates. And lets not forget that we are talking about a profession that states production on business cards and prospecting tools. LOL! I have to laugh, because when things were humming, agents got in your face practically boasting about their income and production. Now that things are at a standstill, you don't hear a peep out of them! Now that they aren't making the bucks, they consider it 'rude' to inquire about what they are pulling in......okay, lets just put it another way. What production are you agents pulling in? 1,2,3...10 million? You guys used to boast about that on cards and ads. So are you guys unable to admit what you are making now that the market is dead? Sure looks that way to me! All I can say is that if the production was happening I'd have 30 replies by now. I can simply infer by the abject lack of response that most of you are having a VERY hard time right now! I truly feel for you guys, and wish you the best of luck in your future career change!
He-he, I think this is total BS, but here's some "official" data:
It sounds to me just like the 24K salaries of these "poor" government officials (councils, I believe) that are always on the ballots in AZ to be increased to 36K and are always turned down. In the meantime, all of them manage to live in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in town. I almost feel for the mayor - the poor guy makes as much as I do and probably has a family, too... Now tell me how can they be NOT rich or NOT corrupt (this is not related to realtors - just a quick disclaimer before somebody jumps on my throat before reading carefully).
I always find it amusing that Realtors must disclose to buyers the amount we are getting paid by the seller/builder, etc.
What other occupations do you disclose your income?
I love it when I'm sitting with my buyers explaining who pays the realtor's fees, etc., and I can see that they are mentally tallying up the cost of their new house times the rate of commission!!! Quite a few are somewhat disappointed!
I usually get..."I thought you got the full 6%"!!! or
"Wow...with the price of gas, you don't make as much as I thought". or
Just curious as to what active agents out there are making now on an annual basis....any out there switch from full to part-time, as things have slowed? Any agents still doing quite well? Have you had to really pick up the pace to maintain your income, kicking your prospecting gears into overdrive? Ready to quit altogether? I'm really looking forward to hearing how you are faring. Thanks for sharing.....
I'll bite soothsayer. When I was actively dealing in real estate, in my best year 3 years ago, my sales volume was $11.5 Million. I was mainly working residential new construction, and had very little out of pocket marketing and advertising expenses because the developer picked up most of that, but my cut was a bit smaller because of that. I probably grossed $150,000 that year. I was lucky if I took one day off during the week, and worked EVERY Saturday and Sunday, including those "floater" days around holidays that most people take off. The next year, that dropped in half, and needless to say, I've shifted gears to be more on the commercial construction/development side.
I think the hardest part lately isn't so much the drastic reduction in volume, but the long periods of time between closings that is killing a lot of agents. I have a buddy who hasn't had a closing in 6 months. Have a good rainy day account set up. I think a lot of agents are lucky if they close 10 deals a year now (and they're mostly bunched together).
I'll bite soothsayer. When I was actively dealing in real estate, in my best year 3 years ago, my sales volume was $11.5 Million. I was mainly working residential new construction, and had very little out of pocket marketing and advertising expenses because the developer picked up most of that, but my cut was a bit smaller because of that. I probably grossed $150,000 that year. I was lucky if I took one day off during the week, and worked EVERY Saturday and Sunday, including those "floater" days around holidays that most people take off. The next year, that dropped in half, and needless to say, I've shifted gears to be more on the commercial construction/development side.
I think the hardest part lately isn't so much the drastic reduction in volume, but the long periods of time between closings that is killing a lot of agents. I have a buddy who hasn't had a closing in 6 months. Have a good rainy day account set up. I think a lot of agents are lucky if they close 10 deals a year now (and they're mostly bunched together).
I thought as much.....think of all the new agents that got in the business when things were humming and had no chance/interest to hard prospect (door knocking, handing out cards, making calls). I think they are the ones that will be hurt as business slows. I stopped selling 2 years ago for a paycheck job, but came up in the mid-90's when things were slow. I can't imagine what the newer agents are making of this dead market.
It varies so much. I'm new to the business and probably started the worst year in real estate history...LOL. I got my license in March and I've made roughly $8,000. That's not including all my costs; gas, advertising etc...I know people in my class that have not made a dime and then I know others that are doing very well. I'm also new to my area and have another business, so it's been a little harder for me then someone that's doing it full time or from the area.
First of all, I misunderstood your question.
Secondly, I wouldn't disclose my personal income whether it was a good or bad year.
Thirdly, I'm a newer agent in terms of years and I'm one of the more successful agents in the number 1 ERA franchise in the world with over 450 agents. I'm still doing fine although I'm only going to close about 1/2 the number of transactions the last 6 months of the year as I did the first half of the year.
I started as an Agent back in the early '90s, when interest rates were pretty high. Everyone said that the market was slow then! I sold plenty of houses. I'm still selling plenty of houses. I do think this time of year is typical for our slowdown (I'm in Wake County) but it is slower than usual. I'm enjoying the break!
The slowdown will get rid of all the Realtors that got into real estate thinking it was easy money. It will get rid of the lenders that hopped on board when the re fi craze hit. It will get rid of the discount brokers that don't work for their money anyway.
Maybe its not such a bad thing!
Vicki
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In the meantime, all of them manage to live in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in town.
I almost feel for the mayor - the poor guy makes as much as I do and probably has a family, too...
Have a good rainy day account set up. I think a lot of agents are lucky if they close 10 deals a year now (and they're mostly bunched together).
