RISMedia announces nation's top 500 brokerages in 19th Annual Power Broker Survey
RISMEDIA, April 10, 2007-The results of this year's Power Broker Survey by RISMedia reveal that while sales volume was down by about $100 million from 2005, the majority of the top 500 real estate firms managed to find the opportunity in the 2006 market. This was welcome news for many leading brokerages, which had to formulate new strategies and work hard to stay successful, against an onslaught of negative market forecasts.
"Like many of the Power Brokers listed in this month's Annual Power Broker Report & Survey, we have the gift of perspective here at RISMedia," said RISMedia CEO and Publisher, John Featherston. "Publishing this magazine for 27 years and ranking leading brokerage firms for 19 of those years has provided us with an important vantage point on the market. It allows us to comfortably say that, despite rampant talk of the demise of real estate in 2006, we are still in the midst of a vibrant real estate market, one that continues to present a wealth of opportunity. But, there's a catch. You have to know where to look."
While total transactions were down by about 350,000 (2,754,618 in '06 compared with 3,111,218 in '05), this year's Power Brokers emphasized that this was more a case of necessary adjustment than a cause for panic.
That's why many Power Brokers witnessed increases, opened new offices and hired more agents.
"These brokers confronted the reality of the new marketplace and turned it into their competitive advantage," Featherston said. "While some firms acted on the false hope that the slowdown was just a temporary fluke, Power Brokers with the benefit of perspective took the necessary steps to ensure profitability."
Brokers realized that success in 2006 (and in the coming years ahead) was contingent upon watching overhead, investing in agent training, restoring the fundamental practices of real estate, guiding sellers to price correctly and adjusting marketing strategies to effectively connect with today's consumers, according to the report.
