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December 2, 2022

Number of real estate salespeople in CT rose 24% during pandemic

Contributed | pixabay.com/photos/house-home-sold-brick-for-sale-435618/ A house for sale.
By Andrew Larson

The number of real estate brokers and salespeople in Connecticut spiked during the pandemic, as people who were laid off from their jobs explored new careers and took advantage of remote licensing classes. 

According to licensing data from the state Department of Consumer Protection, the number of real estate salespeople in the state rose from 17,100 in 2018 to 21,122 in 2022 – a 24% increase. While the number decreased slightly from 2019 to 2020, it increased steadily in 2021 and 2022.

The number of real estate brokers rose from 5,945 in 2018 to 6,003 in 2022 - an increase of nearly 1%. The number of brokers peaked at 6,100 in 2021.

Source: Department of Consumer Protection

As people who lost their jobs because of the pandemic hunkered down in their homes, many took online courses to fill their time and improve their career prospects.

“There are many factors we believe led to the increase, but the main one was the fact that so many people were isolated and staying at home during the pandemic,” said William Arzt, president of the Greater Hartford Association of Realtors. “Many opted for career changes and/or lost their jobs, so this along with the fact that the new licensing class was offered in so many places via Zoom, it made it much easier to get licensed.”

Recently, real estate has presented even more opportunities amid a hot housing market that has seen houses selling within days of being listed for sale. Even newly licensed agents have been able to secure listings.

“It is very rare to get licensed and instantly be a very busy listing agent, but many new agents did thrive during the height of the boom,” Arzt said. “We had such a lack of inventory for a while, so many agents, both seasoned and new, struggled to get their buyers homes without going into multiple offer situations or paying well over the asking price.”

With a cyclical market, the real estate industry generally sees more agents when sales are booming. Many people who enter the industry don’t keep their licenses long term.

Arzt said the number of people taking real estate salesperson classes is starting to level off, which mirrors the slowdown in the housing market. But in general, real estate sales remains a viable career, he said.

“With the training we have available and the networking opportunities, there are very few professions where you can make a good living and be such an integral part in our economy and helping make the dream of home ownership for all a reality,” Arzt said. “The satisfaction to know you can make such a huge impact in someone's life is amazing.”

The Greater Hartford Association of Realtors, the largest association in the state, had 5,841 members as of October.
 

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