Focus on the fundamentals

How to prepare your agents for the shift back to a buyer’s market.

We all know the real estate market is shifting. While headlines might lead you to think it’s a plummet, the truth is, the market is gently coursing back to normal. Still, brokers and agents are faced with the reality of a pivot — in tactics, strategies, and mindset — as the market tips back in favor of the buyer, not the seller. How can you help guide your team through this transition?

Make it simple: focus on the fundamentals.

“At Weichert, we know what works. By putting the fundamentals first, we can determine our results in this shifting market. There is hidden power in the little daily choices we make repeatedly. We need to master what we do on a fundamental level and then intensify it.”
—Bill Scavone, President, Weichert, Realtors®, Weichert Real Estate Affiliates, Inc.

Everyone wins with a focus on fundamentals, including a new crop of agents. To help newer agents navigate the market shift, many brokers are doubling down on agent education.

According to the National Association of Realtors 2022 Member Profile, 18% of members have one year or less experience in selling real estate. That means a significant number of agents in the industry today have only ever operated in the COVID housing market. So, while the market blew up in ways many of us have never seen before, for this group, it’s all they ever knew. This underscores the importance of getting back to the fundamentals that have worked in our industry for decades.

Review the terminology

As leaders in the industry, it’s up to us to shape the narrative. To effectively do this, start with the very basics in terminology. What exactly does a buyer’s market mean? Conversely, what’s a seller’s market?  In the spirit of fundamentals and keeping things simple, it’s worth reviewing.

Here are some definitions from Rocket Mortgage:

• Buyer’s market: real estate inventory is high with plenty of homes for sale, but there’s a shortage of interested home buyers. These conditions give buyers leverage over sellers because when supply is higher and demand is lower, the market is forced to respond.
• Seller’s market: this arises when demand exceeds supply. There are many interested buyers, but the real estate inventory is low. Since there are fewer homes available, sellers are at an advantage.

Know your numbers

According to Forbes, there are leading indicators of home buying activity. An obvious one is the rise in interest rates. Another indicator is that fewer people searched for “homes for sale” on Google.

In addition to the industry trends, know your own numbers. There’s lots of smoke and mirrors out there that can distract your agents and customers. Bring the dialogue back to what’s fact-based: the numbers. Recent trends, historical data, predictions — it’s all available to draw from to keep the conversation going in the right direction.

Get back to basics

When you get back to implementing some best practices, tools, and strategies, you can better serve your clients moving forward. Plus, you’ll operate with a level of confidence that everyone picks up on, helping you stand out from the crowd.

Here are key fundamentals to employ during this market shift, plus ways to amplify them:

For more than five decades, Weichert has weathered nearly every type of market imaginable. We believe in mastering the fundamentals of our industry because we have seen, time and time again, that they work and can help agents and brokerages navigate the most challenging times. We’ve successfully been down this road before — and we’ll successfully do it again!

Learn more about how Weichert can help you prepare your agents for a smooth transition into a buyer’s market.