Swanepoel Trends Report

A years-long relatively low level of new home construction has significantly contributed to the industry’s years-long inventory shortage. This imbalance significantly contributes to a shortage of homes for sale, which greatly impacts real estate activity and has been a major factor in the sustained upward surge in prices. This chapter dives into the homebuilding industry, how it operates and its role in the current housing inventory shortage.

As the residential real estate brokerage industry matures from the high-flying tech startup era that encompassed the last decade, media coverage has broadened as new players have emerged to cover it, and, increasingly, the verticals that surround it, such as mortgage, homebuilding and renting. These media companies track the industry’s big changes and dynamic evolution in real time and serve as the leading distribution, advertising channels and conversation hubs for the industry. This chapter catalogs the landscape and dives into the largest media companies in the space.

As brokerages get bigger and more sophisticated, the branch manager role is becoming even more vital than ever, and great branch managers are difficult to find and harder to keep. Branch managers are responsible for many key responsibilities including recruiting, retention and overall sales growth. This chapter provides a deep dive into their role, how to find talented branch managers, which remain key to navigating growth and maximizing profits.

Technology acquisitions are occurring at a frenzied pace in the residential real estate brokerage industry. It has become difficult to keep track of who owns whom and which big companies have new owners. In some cases, large brokerage companies have acquired tech firms; in others, private equity has purchased well-known products. Regardless, the significant technology acquisition spree is reshaping the industry. This chapter outlines the trend and its implications.

The residential real estate brokerage industry gained a significant new player when CoStar Group (Nasdaq: CSGP), the dominant commercial and multifamily real estate marketing and portal operator, acquired Homesnap and Homes.com. The aggressive, well-operated giant has plans, and the resources and experience, to create a residential real estate sales marketplace that rivals Zillow and realtor.com. This chapter analyzes the company’s key components, how it operates and its dive into the residential real estate industry.

The pandemic affected many areas of work and social life as more people took advantage of remote work arrangements and in general spent more time at home. Early evidence indicates where people are choosing to live and the amenities that they desire in a home have changed, especially as working from home becomes more mainstream. This chapter explores these changes, referred to by many as the Great Reshuffling, and how they are influencing today’s housing market.

The innovative real estate transaction financing iBuying introduced has expanded into a financing revolution, with many companies rapidly and independently converging on a similar goal of a streamlined, all-encompassing digital transaction and full-spectrum home services model. This chapter provides a big-picture view of the developments, where they appear headed and more details on this dynamic, rapidly evolving trend we’re calling AltFin, short for alternative financing.

Private equity has played a significant role in the recent explosion of acquisitions and development in the residential real estate brokerage industry. These sophisticated investors, like those from Wall Street and venture capital, are placing big bets and reshaping the industry in real time. This chapter explores the world of private equity and its growing influence in residential real estate.

By forcing the adoption of new technology and habits, Covid-19 accelerated the real estate industry’s evolution, catapulting it into a new era. The shift toward a new stage fits a the innovation framework T3 Sixty developed to analyze and describe the industry’s long-term evolution and development. This chapter analyzes the shift and outlines what to expect in Stage 10, which began in the last year.