It’s still a good market, and the agents surveyed in the first quarterly RealTrends’ AgentPulse are expecting it to continue into Q2 2022, despite the top three challenges mentioned being low inventory, inflation and interest rates and housing affordability.
Some 71% of the agents surveyed felt optimistic about the next three months, while 20% felt neutral. Brokers were slightly more optimistic in our BrokerPulse Q1 2022 report at 76% who were optimistic about the next three months.
RealTrends AgentPulse requests quarterly surveys from some 19,000+ real estate agents around the nation on market trends and brokerage opportunities and challenges. Of the 252 completed surveys, 24% were from the Northeast, 15% were from the Southeast, 27% from the Southwest, 19% from the Midwest, and 15% from the Northwest.
In the survey, some 65% think that home sales will be up 5% or more in the next three months, while 24% said home sales will be flat. When it comes to home prices increase, 44% said they expected home prices to be up 1% to 5%, while 42% said they would be up more than 5%.
Biggest challenges
When it comes to challenges, COVID restrictions were not that big a concern, but still mentioned as an obstacle when showing and listing homes. Here are the challenges in order of most challenging to least challenging.
- Low Inventory
- Interest rates and inflation
- Housing affordability
- Finding leads
- Professionalism of other agents
- Growing a team
- Connecting with sphere
- Business planning
- COVID restrictions
Consumer options? No interest, say agents surveyed
When asked whether agents are offering buyers and sellers options, such as iBuying or programs for cash offers and bridge loans, such as Knock, Easyknock or Ribbon, the majority of those surveyed said no or that they weren’t aware of such services.
“I have offered, but usually the clients aren’t interested because they can sell on the open market for a higher price and because I’m a seasoned expert with helping negotiate the sale of the departure residence and purchase of the replacement residence. They trust me,” says an agent with Realty ONE Group West in Irvine, California.
Others agreed with this agent’s assessment. “There is not much interest in our area. Sellers realize the value in improving the home before selling, and we can help with that,” says an agent with a RE/MAX office in Fremont, California.
But, those who had heard of the services were in the minority. About 76% of those surveyed said they had no knowledge of those services, had never heard of the companies mentioned or aren’t interested in finding out why an agent would even consider offering an iBuying or alternative financing offer. “I’m not sure what those programs are,” said a Compass agent in the northwest. Others echoed that sentiment.
However, in RealTrends Q1 2022 BrokerPulse, brokers saw adding or offering these services as a must-do to compete, so there is a disconnect between the brokerage leaders and their agents. Brokers surveyed said that education is important so agents understand the benefits of offering a menu of options to consumers.
Video really is king
When asked what type of marketing agents are doing to stand out, video reigned supreme. The pandemic certainly accelerated many real estate professional’s plans to implement video marketing. While some are choosing video tours, others are getting creative with short videos on Instagram Reels and TikTok. “I’m working with a media specialist to help me improve my brand recognition, directing people to my website and my business,” says a RE/MAX agent in the midwest.
Other popular marketing strategies include networking, regular contact with sphere of influence and targeted mailings. 90% of those surveyed says that it takes at least four or five different methods to reach potential sellers and buyers.
The one priority almost everyone mentioned? Creative lead generation for listings. That means everything from boosting your Google presence and number of reviews to building lead-generating websites and canvassing neighborhoods.
If you have questions about AgentPulse or want to be added to the list, email RealTrends Editorial Director Tracey Velt at tvelt@realtrends.com.
