Ben has written extensively on the topic of the aging Real Estate Agent demographic and its threat to derail the future of the traditional Real Estate model.
We have heard similar conversations about this topic repeated among many of our clients and it was a "hot topic" at recent conferences.
So is there any validity in the theory? I did some poking around to find hard data to verify or discount this trend.
In a recent survey by Imprev (A Real Estate marketing firm) it turns out that finding younger talent is on the minds of most thought leaders in the industry.
"Although recruiting is a perennial issue, leaders of the nation's major brokerages who were surveyed about the issues that concern them most put an even finer point on it, citing "recruiting younger agents" as their top business challenge; it was selected by 70 percent of respondents. "Recruiting top talent" is the second-most crucial business challenge, specified by 65 percent.
"The real estate business is aging out," said Renwick Congdon, chief executive officer of Imprev, the real estate marketing software firm that works with 150,000 agents and brokers nationwide. "Broker-owners and other top real estate executives are under pressure to find new talent."
And another supporting piece -
National Association of Realtors data show that a mere 6 percent of its membership is under the age of 34 -- and that in the past 15 years, the percentage of members in their 40s has dropped by one-third. Additionally, more than 40 percent of all Realtors are older than 60 and one in four is 65 or older.
Based on the factors discussed in the above paragraph it should come as no surprise to learn the following:
Recruiting is a pervasive topic: When asked the open-ended question, "What is your firm's single biggest challenge today?" nearly 40 percent of the written answers cite recruiting. Profitability garners the second spot, cited by 14 percent of the executives, with 13 percent mentioning technology.
The good news is that the majority of you who read this blog already address this vital challenge and as a result are hopefully ahead of your competitor.
And in finding solutions to this challenge, you are providing the next generation and your consumers (both current and future) an incredible gift.
- Offering the younger talent, an alternative to being underemployed in a possible job with no future.
- For the consumer - More diversity, which can potentially lead to a better match in the style and knowledge of the agent they choose.
Editor's Note: This article was written by Dr. David Mashburn. Dave is a Clinical and Consulting Psychologist, a Partner at Tidemark, Inc. and a regular contributor to WorkPuzzle.
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