Increase in Alabama Real Estate Professionals Seen
Despite the widespread slowdown in the housing market, which is taking a toll on Realtor numbers nationally, numbers are up in most of Alabama.
“I have always wanted to sell real estate and have no regrets,” said Julie White, who works out of LAH Real Estate’s Mountain Brook office.
The National Association of Realtors recently projected it will end the year with 1.3 million members, down from 1.4 million a year ago.
The drop will be the first for national realty ranks in 10 years, after membership nearly doubled from 716,000 in 1997 as more entered the field to take advantage of a booming national housing market.
- The Birmingham Association of Realtors, as of July 31, had 3,741 agents, up 3.1 percent from 3,630 on January 1, according to the Birmingham News.
- Statewide, the Alabama Association of Realtors has 16,308 members, up 9.3 percent from 14,922 a year ago, said Danny Cooper of the association.
The reason for the rising agent ranks in the city is that the Birmingham housing market remains stable, the association said.
The area has seen a few small monthly sales declines this year but overall the market defies the sharp slowdown experienced in some parts of the nation.
With Alabama mortgage rates still low, Birmingham-area agents’ total sales through July were just 1.6 percent lower than at the same point in 2006.
Moreover, officials say that considering 2006 was a record year for sales, the 2007 numbers are even more impressive considering the national slide.
Birmingham association President Jim Lawrence said Birmingham is benefiting from a diverse economy and history of steady price increases.
He said those factors enable the area to avoid the dramatic slowdown taking place in overheated, overpriced markets like California and Florida.
Enrollment of students pursuing real estate qualifications also is way up at the University of Alabama, where the business school happens to be home to the Alabama Center for Real Estate.
A strong Alabama housing market means there were 534 UA majors in finance with a real estate concentration, nearly double the 273 enrolled in 2002, said Executive Director Grayson Glaze.
SOURCE: Birmingham News