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Realtor membership profile at a glance

     (This study can be ordered directly from NAR by calling 800 874-6500, or online at http://www.realtor.org/newresearch. The cost is $50 for NAR members and $125 for non-members.)

     ( WASHINGTON ) – NAR has released its 2007 membership profile. Here are some of the findings:
     -- The typical Realtor member is 51 years old, works 40 hours per week and has been in the business for seven years.
     -- Median income was $47,700 in 2006, down from $49,300 in 2004. Members licensed as brokers earned a median of $73,700 last year, while sales agents earned $34,600. (NAR believes the rapid growth in new, inexperienced members over the past two years has dragged down the income curve.)
     -- Realtors in the business for two years or less earned a median of $15,300, while those with three to five years of experience earned $44,200.  For six to 15 years, the median was $64,600, while members in the business for 16 years or more earned $76,200.
     --  One quarter of all business is from referrals or repeat business from previous clients, ranging from 7 percent for newcomers to 41 percent for those with 16 years or more experience. Seven out of 10 are compensated through a split commission arrangement, 17 percent receive a full commission and another 3 percent receive a commission plus a share of profits.
     -- Only 4 percent said real estate is their first career. The majority come from a variety of other fields, including management, business or financial, 20 percent; sales or retail, 15 percent; office or administrative support, 10 percent; education, 6 percent; and homemaker, 5 percent.  Twelve other categories were each 4 percent or less.
     -- About 13 percent of NAR members have been in the business for one year or less, while another 13 percent have been in the business for 26 years or more.
     -- Only 10 percent work fewer than 20 hours per week and 30 percent work 20 to 39 hours per week, while 15 percent work at least 60 hours per week.
     -- Nearly six in 10 are women, and the typical respondent has been with their firm for four years.  Five percent are under 30 years of age while another 6 percent are 30 to 34 years old; 12 percent are 65 or over.
     -- Men earned a median income of $58,600 in 2006 and were more likely to be brokers, while women earned $42,000 and were more likely to work part time.
     -- Among Realtors working as full-time sales agents, men earned a median of $61,300 while women earned $54,400. Full-time male brokers made $94,000 last year, while the median income for women brokers was $80,300.
     -- Among sales members, the median number of transaction sides handled last year was 10, equivalent to five full transactions.  In 2004, the median number of transaction sides was 12.  Transactions have two sides--buyer and seller.
     -- In 2006, typical residential sales members sold one of their own listings and five of someone else’s, while other agents sold four of that member’s listings.  The median sales or leasing volume was $1.9 million, down from $2.2 million in 2004.
     -- The most popular designation is GRI (Graduate, Realtor Institute), held by 18 percent of respondents; ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative), 13 percent; and CRS (Certified Residential Specialist®), 8 percent. Smaller percentages hold one of 13 other designations.
     -- 42 percent of residential specialists offer both buyer and seller agency, and another 8 percent providing exclusive buyer agency.
     -- Among brokers, eight out of 10 report their primary business specialty is residential brokerage, followed by commercial brokerage, 5 percent; property management, 4 percent; land and development, 3 percent; relocation, 2 percent; counseling, 1 percent; appraisal, 1 percent; and international, less than 1 percent.
     -- Half of all members are affiliated with an independent, non-franchised firm; 34 percent are with an independent franchised company, 11 percent with a franchised subsidiary of a national or regional corporation, and 6 percent with a non-franchised subsidiary of a national or regional corporation.
     -- By race, 87 percent are Caucasian, 6 percent Hispanic, 4 percent African American, 3 percent Asian, 1 percent Native American and 1 percent other. (Respondents could choose more than one category.)
     -- 44 percent of the membership holds a bachelor’s degree (compared with 26 percent for the U.S. labor force as a whole.)
     -- 95 percent of members are registered to vote (66 percent in the general population) and 90 percent voted in the last national election.
     -- Fifteen percent of NAR members are fluent in a language other than English, and 10 percent were born outside the United States . One out of three members report they have clients who are foreign nationals. 

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