When it comes to selling houses, not all cities are created equal. Lucky for local agents, however, Atlanta is one of the best in which to operate, according to a new study.
Clever Real Estate ranked Atlanta No. 8 among the best U.S. cities for real estate agents, based on a variety of metrics, including housing affordability, annual salary, number of agents per 100,000 residents and annual home sales per full-time agent.
Among the factors weighing in Atlanta’s favor, Clever noted a 61.8% increase in home values over the past five years, the fifth highest in the study, as well as Zillow’s 12-month home-value forecast, which projects 0.6% growth, the eighth-highest in the study and much better than the median city, where prices are projected to drop 0.6%.
Commission rates in Georgia are better than the median, as well, Clever noted. Buyer’s agents in Georgia earn an average of 2.88%, which is 8% higher than the median rate and eighth highest overall, while listing agents earn an average of 2.93% per sale, 4% more than the median.
Georgia also grants full license reciprocity to real estate agents coming from other states, and future agents only need to study 75 hours to obtain their licenses, compared to the median 90, Clever added.
The top 10 cities for agents are:
- Detroit
- Buffalo, N.Y.
- Kansas City, Mo.
- Tampa, Fla.
- Richmond, Va.
- Columbus, Ohio
- Jacksonville, Fla.
- Atlanta
- Pittsburgh
- Hartford, Conn.