Last year was a year none will forget — including the real estate community. The year 2020 saw the greatest number of homes sold since 2006 at 5.64 million, and Realtors said the lack of inventory was the biggest factor impeding their business, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 2021 Member Profile.

The record number of sales didn’t necessarily translate into higher wages for most Realtors, however. In 2020, the typical Realtor had a slightly lower sales volume of $2.1 million in 2020 compared to $2.3 million in 2019, and fewer transactions overall (10 in 2020 compared to 12 in 2019).

Realtors’ median gross income was also down to $43,330 in 2020 from the previous year’s median of $49,700. Even among Realtors with more experience in the industry, income was down from 2019. Those Realtors with experience of 16 years or more earned a median gross income of $75,000, down from $86,500 in 2019. Just one out of four Realtors earned an income of $100,000 or more.

Fortunately, business expenses were also down for most members to $5,330 in 2020 from $6,290 in 2019.

Jessica Lautz

“Realtors continued to serve clients’ needs despite the challenges 2020 brought to the real estate market,” Jessica Lautz, NAR vice president of demographics and behavioral insights, said in a statement. “Economic lockdowns and historically low inventory coupled with surging homebuying demand only showed the resilience of our members and industry.”

NAR’s 2021 Member Profile was generated through a 93-question survey sent to a random sample of 161,155 Realtors in March 2021. A total of 10,643 responses were received from members, which translates to an adjusted response rate of 6.6 percent. Responses were weighted in order to represent state level NAR membership. While compensation, earnings, sales volume and number of transactions data is reflective of calendar year 2020, all other data that emerged from the survey represents member characteristics from early 2021.

NAR
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