Ethica CEO Judd Hoffman in conversation with real estate leaders, recorded on stage at industry events.
Fewer deals, and more work inside each one
At Inman Connect San Diego, Ethica CEO Judd Hoffman asked Phil Hawkins, CEO of the California Association of REALTORS®, how the job of being an agent is changing and what's becoming harder.
Hawkins started with transaction volume, and the figures are stark. From about 2000 to 2022, California ran between 400,000 and 450,000 transactions a year. Since 2022 it's hovered around 270,000. C.A.R.'s own published data backs him up: 269,030 existing single-family home sales in 2024, against a 2021 peak of 444,520.
That by itself would make for a hard market. Fewer transactions, and the same agents competing for them.
But volume was only part of his answer, and the rest is what makes it bite.
"Your clients are looking for the REALTOR® to respond 24-7. Real estate's never been a nine-to-five job, but I would say it's getting worse over that time period. So they're looking for quicker access, more demanding, and transactions have gotten harder, not easier."
Put those together and the real shape of the job comes through. There's less work available, and every piece of it costs more than it used to. Fewer deals. Higher expectations inside each one. More complexity before any of them close.
That combination is worse than either problem by itself. In a slow market with simple transactions, an agent can make up the difference by taking on more clients. In a busy market with complicated ones, the volume pays for the effort. Agents now have the difficult half of both: not enough deals, and each one asking more hours than the last.
Hawkins put it plainly.
"Everything's gotten harder."
In a market like that, every hour an agent spends back at the office on paperwork is an hour not spent finding the next client or looking after the one they have.
Hawkins had more to say about where C.A.R. landed on that in the full conversation, which runs about twelve minutes.
Quick takes
How many real estate transactions does California do per year?
C.A.R. CEO Phil Hawkins said California ran between 400,000 and 450,000 transactions a year from about 2000 to 2022, and has hovered near 270,000 since. C.A.R.'s published data supports this: 269,030 existing single-family home sales in 2024, against a 2021 peak of 444,520.
Why is being a real estate agent harder if there are fewer transactions?
Because volume and workload moved in opposite directions. Hawkins said clients now expect their REALTOR to respond around the clock and that transactions themselves have gotten harder to complete, so agents face fewer deals with more hours inside each one.
What did the CEO of the California Association of REALTORS say is getting harder for agents?
His summary was two words: everything's gotten harder. He cited falling transaction volume, round-the-clock client expectations, and transactions that have gotten harder rather than easier to complete.
Sources
- C.A.R. December 2024 Home Sales and Price Report: 269,030 existing single-family homes sold in California in 2024, up 4.3 percent year over year
- C.A.R. via PR Newswire: sales remain below pre-COVID norm: C.A.R. describes 400,000 units as the pre-COVID norm California sales remain below
Transcript
173 words
JUDD HOFFMAN: All right, Phil, as you talk with agents across California, how is the job of being an agent changing, and what's becoming harder?
PHIL HAWKINS: Well, since most of you are from California, I'm going to be preaching to the choir here, but transactions. We're down in transactions, that most of you know. From about 2000 to 2022, in California, we had between 400,000 and 450,000 transactions in the state. Since 2022, we're hovering around the 270,000. That's a big difference. So there's a lot less transactions.
PHIL HAWKINS: The client, and again, I'm preaching to the choir here, your clients are looking for the REALTOR® to respond 24-7. Real estate's never been a nine-to-five job, but I would say it's getting worse over that time period. So they're looking for quicker access, more demanding, and transactions have gotten harder, not easier. So it's kind of all the above when you say what's going on in the real estate market in California. So everything's gotten harder.
JUDD HOFFMAN: Everything. Fair enough.
