Last week, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that we are on an annualized pace of 3.84 million existing home sales. The Wall Street Journal ran the headline that this is the lowest number of home sales since 1995. In other words, we’re on track for the worst year since ‘95 in terms of existing home sales.
Month over month, that number dropped 1%, lower than the expected 0.5% decline. That drop month over month was the sharpest in 14 years going back to 2010.
There’s no question—especially if you’re in a market that is more reliant on existing home sales versus new construction—that there is a lack of opportunity. There is a recession of demand. There is less to go around.
Yet, home prices remain resilient, even appreciating in many areas. While this benefits homeowners, the reality is clear: opportunities are fewer. And with the current agent count and buyer-seller dynamics, it’s a much tougher climate to navigate.
So, how do you combat that reality?
Because let’s face it—no election or policy change is going to flip the market on its head overnight. There is no light switch coming to solve this problem. The road ahead requires the right strategy and a fresh perspective on the tactical moves that can keep you in the game. Here’s how to tackle it head-on.
3 Tactical Solutions to Increase Your Business Opportunities
#1: Double or Triple Your Contacts and Outreaches
In reality, it’s twice as hard today as it was just a couple of years ago to put numbers on the board. So, number one, you can double—or even triple—the amount of outreach you’re doing. That can mean more calls, more emails, or ramping up your advertising. It’s a manual grind, but it’s an option.
And if you’re investing in ads, know your numbers and be prepared to handle the volume. Generating more leads is pointless if you’re not nurturing them properly.
#2: Hire Staff to Support Your Increased Lead Generation
If you’re committed to doubling or tripling your lead generation, hiring additional staff may be necessary. If you’re going to have to put in two or three times more work, having the ability to meet that workload is really critical.
It’s important to note, however, that this is a risky move—especially in this climate. Weigh the risks and consider how much additional work you’re actually prepared to take on.
#3: Increasing Your Online Brand Awareness
The third option is to focus on increasing online awareness of your brand to attract more inbound leads. You can do that organically or through spend. The organic takes time; the spend takes money.
Either way, there’s risk in almost everything aside from the first option, which is just manually talking to more people. The cost there is your time, especially if the only person doubling or tripling those phone calls is you. And it’s a race against the clock every single day.
What NOT to Do
What you can’t do—and maybe this is the most important tactic—is to try a little bit of everything all day long. Because then you get nothing done.
Pick one strategy to focus on. If you’re going to buy leads from Realtor.com or another platform, focus on getting the highest possible conversion from those leads. Make it your focus, ensuring your existing business doesn’t slip through the cracks.
If you’re going to increase your outbound calls by two to three times what you were doing a year or two ago, lock in and commit to it daily. Create a system so that your current clients aren’t neglected as you scale up your outreach.
You have to be really good at whatever direction you choose. And you can’t do a little bit of everything at a mediocre level throughout the week. That’s where you get exposed. That’s where you get frustrated come the end of the fourth quarter—which is going to be a survival quarter. There’s no question about that.
But you can beat the market by having a plan that you stick to and doing the work that’s required to meet the reality we’re facing.
