When Real Estate Agents Outnumber Home Sales with Jere Metcalf

For every home on the market in the blazingly hot Austin and Miami, there are three active real estate agents per home on the market in Miami and double that, six active real estate agents for every listing in Austin. In Aspen, where a 300-square-foot studio will sell for over $1m, the median home sales are just shy of $3 million, and nine-figure transactions aren't uncommon; there's about one real estate agent for every listing but over three real estate agents for every closing each year. Homes in the price points of Aspen take longer to sell and many homes are traded off-market through a tiny handful of agents who win the lion’s share of business. On Jere Metcalf Podcast, where top real estate agents tell how they do it, a few recent top broker guests from Aspen share that for an off-market listing, there are typically 3 to 5 real estate agents who are trusted enough to gain early access to this information, if at all, or the opportunity to sell such a home. 

Even on average, in less aspiring markets, almost half of real estate agents don't sell one house per year, and for the half who do sell a home, they sell less than five. The remaining real estate agents will sell less than 10 homes per year, leaving a tiny percentage of real estate agents selling almost all of the homes that close each year. It's no wonder why less than 10% of ‘real estate agents' make a living that actually pays the bills from selling real estate. 

With property values shifting in the current volatile market, only the best agents in the country's hottest, most expensive markets will benefit, and the rest will find themselves on the sidelines. Competition as a real estate agent has never been more fierce, and with no indications that succeeding will get any easier, people who want to win in the business will have to compete smarter. 

"It's easy to get into a scarcity mindset," says Jere Metcalf, a successful veteran of Sotheby's International Realty who has parlayed her experience and success into agent performance coaching. "But the people who think there isn't enough business are the agents who haven't looked at the situation through the right lens," she continues. "The buyers and sellers of the most expensive homes in the country are the same buyers of the most expensive products in the world. Unless they're shopping at Costco, they're not looking for the cheapest, they're looking for the best." 

Jere, who founded BreakthroughLuxury in 2021, first watched agents struggle for decades, as a real estate agent. "We get into this business and they think, ‘ok, I'm going to be a real estate agent, and realizing it or not, most of us assume an identity we associate with being a real estate agent. That identity for which the public, unfortunately, but understandably, has a distinct and ever-present disdain." Ironically enough, she has found that this assumption of identity brings her agents with a "box of tricks" to close deals. More ironically, she has also found that, more often than not, what agents want to do is out of fear of being a ‘sales-y realtor.'

They're often seeking what ‘will work' as if pursuing that one thing they're going to do that will get them lucky. Jere reminds agents that ‘what works' is to focus on the client's needs and a business plan and approach that actually creates success. Approaching business the way we might approach a night at the casino with a ‘play the odds' tactic, is a dangerous one to apply to our careers and livelihoods." 

Known for her distaste for ‘the typical real estate agent' and more for her distaste for the public's perception of ‘the real estate agent' she points to the cause. She says there are two evergreen and distinct types of business development approaches shared within the industry. The first approach is simply being thoughtful and exuding ‘positive' traits. "The traits," Jere repeats with a passionate emphasis, "that should be instilled as a way of being in life for all of us, not a proclaimed palatable business development strategy for real estate agents'."

The second approach is an aggressive ‘cold call and script until you drop' strategy. "Imagine," Jere says, "if you use this kind of unwelcome approach to get into a private exclusive club? We all know that rather than get considered for the list to get into the club, you are blacklisted. It doesn’t take long for exactly the same thing to happen to a real estate agent in pursuit of the luxury business who is taking this approach." Just as someone blacklisted doesn't get notified for the private exclusive club, neither do they in their "relentless pursuit" of luxury real estate.

Being sold on playing the odds and false pretense for hope, it's easy to assure yourself, just one more call (one more unwelcome solicit), and I'll ‘get lucky.' The reality is, this mentality builds the very obstacles stopping most real estate agents from reaching their potential. However, real estate agents are being re-sold new versions of this same approach at every turn. 

Jere adds, "Please don't misunderstand. This doesn’t mean sit idly by. This doesn’t mean don’t make phone calls, this doesn’t mean be passive. It means quite the opposite. It means, understanding this business, knowing the steps, the habits, the process, and the strategy, and implementing it for your career to align you with the clients and the business you want. 

Jere passionately adds one more time, "This also doesn't mean be the ‘professional' who, as they all do, claims ‘he has the best service' and is a nice guy. It means taking action and positioning yourself to ensure the clients you would choose will choose you first to be not just an option but the only one your client will consider and all he or she can talk about when it comes to the topic of selling homes. It means get clear on what you want, realize you can do more than you know is possible, and get on your path."

An interesting and scary trend, recently discussed by Jere, is how the public is misrepresenting and misunderstanding the value an agent brings to the transaction – not just in service, time, adn expertise, but the actual bottom line for the seller. Jere shared one of many of these stories here.

Offering access to real-life insight outside of her coaching practice, with over 300 episodes and counting, Jere also launched, ‘Jere Metcalf Podcast, where top real estate agents tell how they do it,' featuring industry icons who have thrived in competitive markets. They share insights not just about success but about how they ‘did it' while overcoming a host of personal challenges that we can all relate to. Jere Metcalf's strategies and insights can be found at https://jmpartners.io/. 

This post was authored by an external contributor and does not represent Benzinga’s opinions and has not been edited for content. The information contained above is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and nothing contained herein should be construed as investment advice. Benzinga does not make any recommendation to buy or sell any security or any representation about the financial condition of any company.