Posted by: Adam McCann

“Location, location, location” might be the catchphrase of the real-estate profession, but it applies just as much to realtors as it does to their clients. After all, success in the industry hinges on both an agent’s work ethic and area of operation.

The current real estate market is very healthy. January to February 2019 showed the biggest month-to-month rise in sales since 2015. But even as the market adjusts as a whole, certain cities remain hotspots. In the coming year, real-estate agents may want to relocate to places with the highest demand for housing, and that pay the best for their expert guidance.

To determine the best markets for this particular profession, WalletHub compared more than 170 U.S. cities across 19 key indicators of a healthy real-estate environment. Our data set ranges from sales per agent to annual median wage for real-estate agents to housing-market health index. Read on for our findings, advice and insight from experts, and a full description of our methodology.

1. Main Findings
2. Ask the Experts
3. Methodology

Main Findings

Embed on your website<iframe src="//d2e70e9yced57e.cloudfront.net/wallethub/embed/18713/geochart-realestate-2019.html" width="556" height="347" frameBorder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="width:556px;font-size:12px;color:#888;">Source: <a href="http://bit.ly/2KXVOl3>  

Best Cities for Real-Estate Agents

Overall Rank (1=Best)	City	Total Score	‘Job Opportunity & Competition’ Rank	‘Real-Estate Market Health’ Rank
1	Seattle, WA	64.28	1	12
2	Salem, OR	63.74	3	8
3	San Francisco, CA	62.07	4	18
4	Oakland, CA	58.30	9	13
5	San Jose, CA	58.08	16	7
6	Denver, CO	57.64	25	2
7	Fremont, CA	57.49	27	3
8	Boston, MA	57.13	5	53
9	Washington, DC	56.96	6	38
10	Phoenix, AZ	55.99	28	16
11	Santa Rosa, CA	55.64	12	35
12	Vancouver, WA	55.60	14	33
13	Fargo, ND	55.52	15	25
14	Sioux Falls, SD	55.19	43	1
15	Tempe, AZ	54.81	53	5
16	Gilbert, AZ	54.62	51	9
17	Portland, OR	54.36	8	55
18	Irvine, CA	54.21	55	11
19	Tacoma, WA	54.07	38	22
20	Mesa, AZ	53.98	68	6
21	Chandler, AZ	53.71	56	17
22	Atlanta, GA	53.35	36	29
23	Peoria, AZ	53.30	63	15
24	Nashville, TN	53.23	75	10
25	Durham, NC	52.97	85	14
26	Tampa, FL	52.96	54	23
27	Cape Coral, FL	52.63	19	57
28	Portland, ME	52.42	35	30
29	Oxnard, CA	52.32	17	72
30	Los Angeles, CA	52.31	22	64
31	Pearl City, HI	52.24	24	52
32	Ontario, CA	52.19	61	26
33	New York, NY	52.06	2	151
34	Charlotte, NC	51.45	41	37
35	Richmond, VA	51.42	45	40
36	Reno, NV	51.40	62	31
37	San Diego, CA	51.36	34	54
38	Scottsdale, AZ	51.22	32	63
39	Nashua, NH	51.10	11	106
40	Glendale, AZ	50.94	73	32
41	Missoula, MT	50.88	112	4
42	Austin, TX	50.58	109	20
43	Fort Worth, TX	50.57	80	34
44	Jersey City, NJ	50.53	26	85
45	Rancho Cucamonga, CA	50.40	37	61
46	Sacramento, CA	50.20	67	41
47	Aurora, CO	50.11	104	27
48	Fresno, CA	49.98	65	46
49	Grand Rapids, MI	49.74	82	39
50	Charleston, SC	49.32	66	51
51	Manchester, NH	49.27	20	109
52	Dallas, TX	49.27	49	71
53	Riverside, CA	48.93	64	62
53	St. Petersburg, FL	48.93	90	47
55	Winston-Salem, NC	48.84	57	75
56	Henderson, NV	48.76	154	19
57	Knoxville, TN	48.56	33	103
58	Jacksonville, FL	48.55	72	65
59	Colorado Springs, CO	48.15	143	21
60	Buffalo, NY	48.14	39	98
61	Port St. Lucie, FL	47.99	47	91
62	Fontana, CA	47.51	87	70
63	Chula Vista, CA	47.50	118	48
64	Glendale, CA	47.48	100	50
65	Oceanside, CA	47.32	117	49
66	Bakersfield, CA	47.29	44	104
67	Spokane, WA	47.25	110	60
68	Orlando, FL	47.17	79	83
69	Honolulu, HI	47.11	13	140
70	Bismarck, ND	47.09	31	131
71	Philadelphia, PA	47.02	30	124
72	Garland, TX	47.01	138	44
73	Yonkers, NY	46.97	18	132
74	Plano, TX	46.94	93	74
75	Huntington Beach, CA	46.93	77	86
76	Moreno Valley, CA	46.87	103	67
77	Nampa, ID	46.63	149	36
78	Bridgeport, CT	46.59	7	159
79	Santa Clarita, CA	46.57	145	42
80	Las Vegas, NV	46.53	132	58
81	Salt Lake City, UT	46.47	95	81
82	Grand Prairie, TX	46.32	130	56
83	Anaheim, CA	46.24	111	73
84	Modesto, CA	46.22	160	28
85	Chicago, IL	46.04	10	155
86	Omaha, NE	45.98	115	78
87	Overland Park, KS	45.93	113	77
88	South Burlington, VT	45.90	21	149
89	Minneapolis, MN	45.89	96	88
90	San Bernardino, CA	45.85	102	84
91	Boise City, ID	45.71	137	59
91	Pembroke Pines, FL	45.71	131	69
93	Louisville, KY	45.65	94	92
93	Virginia Beach, VA	45.65	42	117
95	Long Beach, CA	45.59	133	68
96	Milwaukee, WI	45.45	29	137
97	Irving, TX	45.37	129	76
98	Santa Ana, CA	45.33	125	80
99	West Valley City, UT	45.23	127	79
100	North Las Vegas, NV	45.11	167	43
101	Chesapeake, VA	45.09	50	121
102	Chattanooga, TN	45.08	98	95
103	Garden Grove, CA	45.04	116	87
104	Arlington, TX	45.04	108	93
105	Billings, MT	44.93	157	24
106	Huntsville, AL	44.92	122	96
107	Madison, WI	44.85	107	101
108	Fort Wayne, IN	44.57	121	82
109	Miami, FL	44.51	71	116
110	Newark, NJ	44.51	52	127
111	Fort Lauderdale, FL	44.31	92	112
112	Norfolk, VA	44.30	69	119
113	St. Louis, MO	44.22	106	108
114	Warwick, RI	44.11	46	133
115	Lexington-Fayette, KY	43.99	150	66
116	Stockton, CA	43.89	170	45
117	Des Moines, IA	43.89	126	100
118	Kansas City, MO	43.79	124	99
119	Columbia, MD	43.75	140	90
120	Baltimore, MD	43.52	81	122
121	Newport News, VA	43.43	58	135
122	Raleigh, NC	43.38	120	111
123	Columbus, OH	43.27	114	114
124	Wichita, KS	43.15	48	150
125	Worcester, MA	43.15	70	129
126	Lincoln, NE	42.99	88	125
127	Hialeah, FL	42.95	147	94
128	Pittsburgh, PA	42.88	78	128
129	Columbus, GA	42.69	76	134
130	Greensboro, NC	42.57	144	107
131	Providence, RI	42.42	60	142
132	Burlington, VT	42.40	23	172
133	Augusta, GA	42.30	40	156
134	Memphis, TN	41.57	151	97
135	Springfield, MO	41.55	84	146
136	Houston, TX	41.40	97	139
137	San Antonio, TX	41.39	155	102
138	Tucson, AZ	41.32	136	120
139	Birmingham, AL	41.28	74	157
140	St. Paul, MN	41.14	142	118
141	Cedar Rapids, IA	41.13	86	147
142	Indianapolis, IN	41.07	89	144
143	Tallahassee, FL	41.02	161	105
144	Mobile, AL	40.95	99	141
145	Anchorage, AK	40.75	59	166
146	Aurora, IL	40.67	123	136
147	Dover, DE	39.94	91	158
148	Columbia, SC	39.79	134	138
149	Rochester, NY	39.40	83	161
150	Cincinnati, OH	39.18	153	126
151	Rapid City, SD	39.07	164	113
152	New Orleans, LA	38.92	162	123
153	Amarillo, TX	38.81	128	152
154	New Haven, CT	38.54	101	163
155	Baton Rouge, LA	38.53	135	153
156	Charleston, WV	38.18	146	145
157	Little Rock, AR	37.92	163	130
158	Tulsa, OK	37.80	119	162
159	Akron, OH	37.63	172	115
160	Laredo, TX	37.59	174	110
161	Lubbock, TX	37.30	177	89
162	Lewiston, ME	37.08	158	143
163	Montgomery, AL	36.89	105	169
164	Wilmington, DE	36.44	139	168
165	Cleveland, OH	36.30	165	148
166	Oklahoma City, OK	35.18	165	160
167	Las Cruces, NM	35.17	152	170
168	Toledo, OH	34.65	156	164
169	Huntington, WV	33.81	169	167
170	Albuquerque, NM	33.42	159	171
171	Jackson, MS	33.38	141	179
172	Fort Smith, AR	32.96	176	154
173	Gulfport, MS	31.59	171	174
174	Fayetteville, NC	31.15	148	178
175	Corpus Christi, TX	31.15	173	173
176	Detroit, MI	31.11	168	175
177	El Paso, TX	29.62	178	165
178	Shreveport, LA	28.95	175	176
179	Brownsville, TX	24.80	179	177

 

Ask the Experts

The real-estate market is often unpredictable. For advice and insight on the current market and future of the industry, we turned to a panel of experts for their thoughts on the following key questions:

1. Should real-estate agents feel threatened by new apps and other online tools offering services to potential homebuyers?
2. How can real-estate agents protect themselves from the “boom-bust” cycle of the housing market?
3. What tips do you have for a young real-estate agent? What does he or she need to do to get ahead in the current market?
4. In evaluating the best cities for real estate agents, what are the top five indicators?
5. How likely is it that the Federal Reserve would increase interest rates again in the coming months? How would that impact real-estate agents?

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• Ken Johnson Ph.D. – Real Estate Economist, College of Business, Florida Atlantic University
• David A. Swanson Ph.D. – Professor Emeritus, Department of Sociology, University of California Riverside
• Gerald Klassen Research Data Scientist at the Real Estate Center, Mays Business School, Texas A&M University
• Jay Prag Ph.D. – Clinical Associate Professor, Peter F. Drucker & Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management, Claremont Graduate University

Methodology

In order to determine the best cities for real-estate agents, WalletHub compared 179 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across two key dimensions “Job Opportunity & Competition” and “Real-Estate Market Health.” Our sample considers only city proper in each case and excludes cities in the surrounding metro area.

We evaluated the two dimensions using 19 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the most favorable conditions for real-estate agents. Data for the metrics marked with an asterisk (*) were available at the state level only.

We then determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Job Opportunity & Competition – Total Points: 60

• Sales per Agent: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Median Home Price: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)Note: Real-estate agents are typically paid a commission based on the value of the home sold.
• Monthly Average Starting Salary for Real-Estate Agents: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Annual Median Wage for Real-Estate Agents: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Real-Estate Employment Attractiveness: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)Note: This metric measures both real-estate job density (number of real-estate agents per 10,000 working-age population) and competition (number of real-estate job openings per 100 résumés).
• Real-Estate Employment Growth (2015–2017): Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Annual Median Wage Growth for Real-Estate Jobs (2015–2017): Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Unemployment Rate: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Projected Real-Estate Jobs Needed by 2026 per Capita*: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Number of Work Hours/Pre-License Work Hours Required to Get a Real Estate License*: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)
• Google Search Index for “Real Estate Agents”: Full Weight (~5.45 Points)Note: This metric measures search interest for “real estate agent”, “real estate broker”, “real estate listings”, “real estate agent near me”, “top real estate agents” and “houses for sale”.

Real-Estate Market Health – Total Points: 40

• Home Turnover Rate: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Housing-Market Health Index: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)Note: Includes: Homes Sold for Gain; Sales Previous Foreclosed; Foreclosure Ratio; Zillow Home Value Index; Year over Year change; Stock of REOs (Homes Held by Banks); Mortgage Holders in Negative Equity; Underwater Homeowners Delinquent.
• Zillow Home Value 1-Year Forecast: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)Note: The Zillow Home Value Forecast is Zillow's prediction of what the Zillow Home Value Index will be one year from now.
• Days on Market: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Average Ratio of Home Sale Price to Home List Price: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Building-Permit Activity: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)Note: This metric measures the number of unit permits pulled per Capita.
• Share of Home Flips: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)Note: RealtyTrac defines a home flip as “a property that is sold in an arms-length sale for the second time within a 12-month period based on publicly recorded sales deed data.”
• WalletHub “Fastest Growing Cities” Rank: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)

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 Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Zillow, Indeed, Projections Central - State Occupational Projections, ATTOM Data Solutions (RealtyTrac), InvestFourMore, Google Ads and WalletHub research.

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