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Residential commission for real estate agencies rose 10% in the third quarter year-on-year, showing signs of steady growth

Property / news
Residential commission for real estate agencies rose 10% in the third quarter year-on-year, showing signs of steady growth
Champagne all round

Residential real estate agencies appear to have had a reasonable third quarter this year, with total sales commissions up almost 10% compared to the third quarter (Q3) last year.

Interest.co.nz estimates the industry earned $440.5 million in gross residential sales commissions in Q3 this year, compared to $400.9 million in Q3 last year.

As the graph below shows, quarterly commission levels have climbed slowly but steadily this year. In Q3 they were at their highest level in any quarter since Q1 2022, which was at the tail end of the post-Covid lockdown boom.

However commission levels are still well below the estimated record high of $693.4 million achieved at the peak of the boom in Q4 2020.

The latest result suggests industry revenues are now well up on where they were prior to Covid, and are showing some signs of ongoing growth. However, they show no signs of returning to the extraordinary levels achieved in the Covid-era boom of 2020-2021.

But neither do they show any signs of an imminent crash, unless there is an unexpectedly significant decline in sales over the coming summer months.

Around the main centres, the sale of residential property in Auckland earned the industry an estimated $164.7m in gross commissions in Q3, followed by Canterbury $65.0m, Wellington $42.2m, Waikato $41.6m, Bay of Plenty $28.8m and Otago $23.4m.

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34 Comments

It's a funny industry, only the top 5% are earning extraordinary amount of money, the remaining are just making ends meet.

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10

So pretty much exactly the same as the rest of the available jobs out there then ? The top 5% are the only ones making big money.

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7

So pretty much exactly the same as the rest of the available jobs out there then ? The top 5% are the only ones making big money

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7

Sorry to see that your still suffering the Palilalia. Best of luck...

             Sorry to see that your still suffering the Palilalia. Best of luck...

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3

.

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1

I know of one agent who works Mon-Fri in a vape shop and sells houses in the weekend.

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2

Bolly darling. Will have been a while between drinks for a few.

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3

Why is it that i loath these pin striped suit, veneered teeth, leased Audi types so much?

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14

You reckon you can sell my house for 1 million. How about I give you 50% commission on anything you get over 950K and nothing if it sells under 950k. No!!

I didn't think so.

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13

Too right.  That's a great offer for anyone able to walk their talk about being able to sell for more than you could privately.

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1

That cannot be right Greg, the market is tanking according to most one here. No room for any good news on this site.

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6

If it's any consolation Z, I'll come in and bat for you and the REAs. I've always believed commission-based gigs selling houses and cars are unfairly looked down upon. The scorn and condescension are unwarranted, particularly by middle-management public sector types who collect a paycheck regardless of what they actually achieve. Honestly speaking, I've thought about throwing my hat into the ring and sell houses. Have a mate who's a natural salesperson and has done well in the game. Used to be a DJ.    

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4

particularly by middle-management public sector types who collect a paycheck regardless of what they actually achieve

Well, that's not setting the bar very high.

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7

I think you understand what I'm saying. The REAs and car salespeople cannot sit back and expect a weekly pay cheque. Different incentives. 

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3

Its actually a pretty hard job if done right and anyone who has been in sales will know, the rest are clueless. You have to be there for a while, the best have been doing it like 20 years because its based on repeat business on a very slow cycle of 4 plus years. Do a good job and you will get the same buyer and seller back the next time they are looking for a house. The hours are horrible, weekend open homes and follow up call sometimes till 9pm at night they don't really stop its a 7 day a week job.

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7

It's also a job were you have to say goodbye to your weekends and not party excessively on Fridays and Saturdays.

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4

Absurd.

They get paid a fortune as the middle men overseeing NZers wastefully bidding up land prices against each other with zero productivity gain.

NZ has wasted $500bn bidding up land prices that should have gone into productive businesses instead.

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13

NZ has wasted $500bn bidding up land prices that should have gone into productive businesses instead.

Like ZURU? To be fair, not everyone is like the Mowbrays. 

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    3

    Unfortunately the RBNZ uses property as a mechanism to inject $NZ into the economy via bank mortgage lending.  My argument is why not hold the OCR at say 6% and use tax fluctuation as a means to stimulate the economy, would be far reaching and farer. Tax is used as a mechanism to decrease or destroy $NZ in the economy, as is someone paying off their mortgage.

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    11

    Interest.co.nz estimates the industry earned $440.5 million in gross residential sales commissions in Q3 this year

    Did it really though?

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    1

    "Earned" !!!??

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    1

    Clipped

    FTFY

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    1

    Residential real estate agencies appear to have had a reasonable third quarter this year, with total sales commissions up almost 10% compared to the third quarter (Q3) last year.

    How is this possible, when there are fewer sales and lower prices than a year ago?  Something doesn't add up.  (their commission's haven't increased on aggregate)

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    6

    Sales volumes were up slightly year on year while the average commission was down slightly.

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    4

    Wouldn't sales volumes have to be up at least 10% to offset a drop in average commission and still result in a nearly 10% increase in total commission?

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    4

    So, (don't you just hate it when people start a conversation with, So) So, house prices have doubled in the past 5 years as has there commission, yet they are/were often selling within days.. It's an industry that has no (Gov) regulations, and, easy money always attracts its fair share of unscrupulous sharks too. Just saying.

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    4

    Who would've thought that selling ponzi schemes was so lucrative 

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    2

    Headline: Eleven bidders slug it out for worst house on best street 

    Real story: sold for 2.6M = 1 million under CV.

    When you're having to start bidding by discounting 45% from peak value then you're probably going to get some bidders. Consistent with prices being roughly 30% from peak (and still falling). 

    https://www.oneroof.co.nz/news/eleven-bidders-slug-it-out-for-the-worst…

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    2

    Villa that had been vacant for 10 years fetches $2.66m at auction.

    Which is why I want a Land Value Tax.  Every year the owner would either contribute to govt tax take or sell/rent and increase supply (something Lab/Nat seem to want even if they're too thick to realise there are ways to increase supply without building a thing).

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    3

    I'm trying to figure out what has happened here. Has Zwifter-Yvil inadvertently outed themself for having  duplicate accounts?

    Did Yvil mess up trying to cite Zwifter?

    Are the two users of such unity of mind that they said the same thing with the same words?

    Why does Zwifter's have a full stop and not Yvil's?

    This mystery fascinates me.

     

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    6

    Great minds think alike.

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    4

    I'm trying to figure out what has happened here. Has Zwifter-Yvil inadvertently outed themself for having  duplicate accounts?

    Did Yvil mess up trying to cite Zwifter?

    Are the two users of such unity of mind that they said the same thing with the same words?

    Why does Zwifter's have a full stop and not Yvil's?

    This mystery fascinates me

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    0

    Actually, I was going to write a very similar reply as Zwifter, so I thought it was easier and faster to copy and paste.  I just didn't quite copy the last fullstop.  I also didn't copy and paste the last point of your comment, since you missed the point of my comment.  ;-)

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    0

    We need laws in NZ to price things - like commissions, council fees, etc. - to the actual cost to perform the service rather than linking the cost to some other asset price. 

    Hidden price increases, because services are charged by percentages of another cost, is screwing NZ Inc. and massively distorting the effect of 'inflation'.

    For example, between 2019 and 2021, house prices went up dramatically. Did the cost to sell - to the agent - go up by a similar amount? Hell no! But because they charge by a % of the sale price ... They made out like bandits to do nothing more than they were doing already!

    The same - by the way - applies to banks, councils, etc., that link fees and/or services to the asset price - rather than to the work they actually perform.

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    1