11 Real Estate Facts in 2020: Level up Your Real Estate Knowledge With these Stats and Facts

Real estate is full stats that can be both entertaining and informative. Agents can use these figures and numbers to study the market and plan for it while others can have a look and stay informed generally. We are providing a list of real estate facts for 2020 that offer insightful and informative figures and numbers. From the number of homes sold in US to the most expensive home ever sold, this list will keep you reading till the end.

The Year with The Highest Number of Homes Sold

According to Statista between 2011 and 2020, in 2017 there were 6.12 million homes sold in the U.S. That’s the highest number in the span of recent 9 years. In 2011 the lowest number of homes were sold reaching only 4.57 homes sold in the U.S.

Read More: How Will COVID-19 Change Real Estate Practices?

The Most Expensive Home Sold in the US

Almost all of the most expensive homes sold in the US are located in either Florida, New York, or California. The most expensive home sold in the US so far is a penthouse on top of 220 Central Park South that spans the 50th through the 53rd floor of this residential tower in Manhattan, New York. It was sold in January 2019 for $239,958,219 to Ken Griffin, the American billionaire hedge fund manager, entrepreneur, and investor.

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Most Homes Sold by An Agent

Guinness World Record book has every kind of weird and strange record. Most of the records in this book are jaw-dropping and the record set for real estate is no exception. America’s No. 1-ranked real estate agent, Ben Caballero of HomesUSA.com in Dallas, Texas has set the record for selling 5,801 homes in 2018. That’s close to 16 homes sold in a day. Caballero broke his own industry-first Guinness World Record title for 4,799 verified home sales in a single year in 2017.

Buying Your First Home

Data from the National Association of Realtors report suggests that the median age of first-time homebuyers has increased to 33, the oldest in records since 1981. Although during this period of time, the average age for first-time homebuyers fluctuated between 29 to 31, this new 33-year-old record seems to indicate the pattern is changing.

However, millennials still make up the largest group of home buyers at the present time. Older generations are more interested in selling. This shows why real estate agents need to focus on digital marketing for their business, millennials are generally pretty tech-savvy. They also tend to do research online before buying products and services which shows the importance of positive online reviews and testimonials for real estate agents.

Single Women Own More Homes Than Single Men

According to an analysis by LendingTree published on January 20th, 2020 single women own more homes than single men. This is despite the fact that they make 79 cents for every dollar men make (5.1 million homes vs 3.5 million homes). However, the price single women pay is on average 2% more than what single men pay. The same pattern is repeated when it comes to selling homes where single women sell their homes for an average of 2% less than what men sell for. The reason behind this seems to be that men tend to take greater risks when it comes to buying homes which can lead to higher overall returns.

Read More: Create Trust in Real Estate and Get Through Tough Times – The “Know-Like-Trust” Factor

Homes Time on Market

According to another study by NAR, it takes around 24 days for a home to go from listing to a contract in Jun 2020. This compared to 27 days in 2019. This number average can be used for your listing to see how it’s doing on market. If it is taking too long then there must be something wrong, either with the price or how you or your agent is presenting it to the market. However, this number is just an average number and there are always extremes where homes take longer to sell, or sell within 24 hours.

How Many Agents Are Out There in the US?

According to Homelight there are close to 2 million real estate agents in the USA. According to NAR 1.39 million of them are REALTORS®. Although real estate agents and REALTORS® are used interchangeably these days, they are not exactly the same. To become a REALTOR® you need to have registered as a member of the National Association of Realtors, pay annual fees, and abide by the code of ethics, etc. Currently, 6.85 million homes are sold on average in the US.

Home Price on Average

According to the National Association of REALTORS®, The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $284,600 in May. To give you an idea of how this number is increasing, you should know that the median price for all housing in the US was $165,000 in the year 2000. The number rose to $325,000 in Q3, 2020

Most Popular City with Millennials

According to Better.com Chicago was the most popular city among millennials with a Median home value of $249,152. The point to take away here is that for millennials price matters and as a result they are looking for more affordable housing. The pandemic has left a lot of people unemployed, yet home prices keep going up. In order to attract millennials as the largest group of homebuyers, real estate agents need to take in mind that affordability is the first and most important factor affecting home buying decisions for millennials.

How Many Times You Move in Your Life

According to a survey by the U.S. Census Bureau, an average American is likely to move almost 12 times during their life-time. Switching jobs, upsizing, downsizing, or simply trying a new neighborhood are among the reasons that Americans move. In another study mentioned by valuepenguin.com the median duration of home ownership is 13.3 years for Americans. Based on data provided by Census Bureau the homeownership rate was 67.9 percent in the second quarter of 2020.

For Sale by Owner

Another interesting real estate fact in 2020 is that according to NAR, for sale by owners (FSBOs) made up 8% of all home sales in 2018 with the average price of $218,000. It is worth noting that in the same year agent-assisted homes sold for an average price of $295,000. However, 45% of FSBOs did not actively market their home and on the next level, 25% of them used yard-signs to promote the listings. One of the reasons homeowners go FSBO is that they try to cut back on expenses, or they have been burnt by an agent already and would rather sell the home themselves. However, FSBOs are still one of the groups of prospect real estate agents can target, cautiously of course.

Real Estate Facts 2020: Takeaways

The real estate facts in 2020 demonstrate different trends affected by life and world events. Some are more interesting and entertaining to know about, like the most expensive homes ever sold. However, as a real estate agent, you can learn a lot from these stats. In order to improve the way you market your services the first step would be getting to know the market well.

What these real estate facts in 2020 offer are a clear understanding and insight into how the market is changing. How different groups of people from different generations account for all the home buyers and home sellers is changing. Millennials have become the main group of home buyers these days. They are unique. You cannot approach millennials like their previous generation. First of all, they are familiar with technology and they do research online before paying for different products and services. This makes them harder to attract unless you are as familiar with technology.

The real estate facts for 2020 are not just for entertainment. Studying stats delivered by different organizations like NAR will help you understand your market and plan for it. The more you know the market and the better you define your niche, the more effective your marketing efforts will be. Agents who do not see the results of their efforts usually fail at doing market research and defining their marketing efforts based on such facts.