In July, NAR Research released the 2022 Member Profile, a report that began in 1993 and has been released annually since. I spoke with my colleague Brandi Snowden, Director of Member and Consumer Survey Research, about this year’s report findings and the most important takeaways.
What is the Member Profile – what kind of data can we find in this report?
Brandi Snowden: The Member Profile is our yearly report that looks in depth at who our members are. We survey our membership to better understand their business practices, technology use, and demographics. This report covers many areas, including business characteristics, business activity, income and expenses, office and firm affiliation, technology, and demographic characteristics.
What are the main takeaways from the report?
Brandi Snowden: This year, we saw that:
- 66% of all REALTORS® were female, up slightly from 65% last year.
- The median age of all REALTORS® was 56 this year, with 67% of all members being licensed as sales agents, 21% as brokers, and 14% as broker associates.
- 57% of REALTORS® cited a lack of inventory as the leading reason limiting potential clients from completing a transaction, followed by housing affordability (16%) and difficulty finding the right property (12%).
This report has been running since 1993. What are some key differences between the early versions of the report and the latest version?
Brandi Snowden: Compared to earlier versions of this report, we see changes in how our members are using technology in their business. Recognizing the role of technology, we have even created a separate chapter on technology use and looked into the different ways that REALTORS® are communicating with their clients, the technology products they use daily, and their web and social media use.
What significant trend(s) stood out to you in the latest report?
Brandi Snowden: We continue to see the importance of referrals and repeat clients for our members in their business. The typical REALTOR® earned 16% of their business from past clients and customers. As expected, experienced REALTORS® reported a more significant share of repeat business from clients or referrals, a median of 44% for those with 16 or more years of experience. The typical REALTOR® also earned 20% of their business from referrals, with those having 16 or more years of experience reporting a median of 31%.
What aspects of this report do you find most interesting?
Brandi Snowden: Seeing the changing demographics among our members is interesting, especially among our newer members. We saw that among all of our members, 77% of REALTORS® were White, Hispanics/Latinos accounted for 11% of REALTORS®, followed by Black/African Americans at 8% and Asian/Pacific Islanders at 5%. Compared to more experienced members, new members tended to be more diverse. Of those with two years or less of experience, 37% were racial minorities, an increase from 34% one year ago.