Growing a Practice
Why Production Stalls After Year Six and When to Hire a Transaction Coordinator
Updated
Bottom line: Agents with six to 15 years in close a median of 11 transactions a year, per NAR. Top teams grew closings far faster than top solo agents. Handing paperwork to a transaction coordinator is one first step.
How flat does production get after year six?
HousingWire, in a sponsored piece from Colibri Real Estate, cites National Association of Realtors figures showing a median of 11 closings a year for agents six to 15 years in.
The same HousingWire piece puts agents with 16 or more years at a median of 10. At the median, the count after year 16 is one lower, not higher.
A median is the middle of the field, so half of agents in that band close more. If you have sat near 11 for years, you are at the center of the experienced field.
How much faster did top teams grow than top solo agents?
In HousingWire, Steve Murray reports that the 250 highest-producing individual agents in RealTrends rankings grew closed transactions per person 13.9% from 2011 to 2022.
The same HousingWire report puts the 250 highest-producing teams at 405.4% growth per team over that stretch.
The agent figure is per person and the team figure is per team. A team's count rises with everyone on it, while a solo agent's count is one person's work.
What does a transaction coordinator take off your desk?
RISMedia's Bill Gassett describes a transaction coordinator, or TC, as the person who keeps a deal moving from signed contract to closing.
RE/MAX News profiled an agent who handed his paperwork to a TC. Moving the administrative work off his plate let him put that time into deeper client relationships.
When is the right time to hire one?
That agent's advice comes with a condition: understand the paperwork thoroughly first, then hire the coordinator.
If you can run a file from contract to close without checking your notes, you meet his condition.
Past that point, in his words, handing it off can change your business.
What does Keller Williams Southwest put behind a producing agent?
Our office at 1650 Highway 6 has 14 people behind you: marketing, technology, a productivity coach and compliance.
You get weekly one-on-one coaching, classroom training, and a yearly business plan reviewed every month.
A 12-agent Associate Leadership Council sets office strategy, so agents have a seat where decisions get made.
If your count has sat near the median for a few years, talk with Jana Hayes about what you would hand off first.
Filed in The team, for agents who are stuck.
Questions & answers
What do Sugar Land agents ask about this?
How much of a typical agent's business comes from repeat clients and referrals?
Less than many producers expect, at the median. HousingWire, in the sponsored Colibri Real Estate article, cites NAR data showing the typical Realtor gets 20% of business from repeat clients and 21% from referrals. Combined, those two shares leave most of the typical member's business arriving some other way.
Those are medians for the typical member, not a target. If your own shares run higher, past clients already make up a larger part of your pipeline than the norm. Sort your last two years of closings by source. The split shows which kind of work you would want more time for once paperwork is off your desk.
Should I pay a transaction coordinator per file or by the hour?
RISMedia's Bill Gassett lists both models. A per-transaction fee can run from $300 to $1,000 or more, depending on several factors RISMedia lists. Some coordinators bill by the hour instead, at $25 to $50. Which one costs you less depends on how much coordinator time each of your files takes, so price a few recent files both ways.
Volume can change the per-file number. RISMedia notes that an agent or broker who expects to use a coordinator often may be able to negotiate a lower per-transaction fee. If you close around 11 a year or more, ask every coordinator you interview about a volume rate before you sign.
Was my flat year just the slow market, or is it me?
Part of it was the market. Real Estate News, covering the National Association of Realtors 2025 Member Profile, reported no change in the typical agent's sales volume or transaction count in the last year, while the market stayed slow. A flat year put you level with the typical member. A flat run lasting several years is a separate question, and the medians by years in the business speak to that one.
The same Real Estate News report found that the median member now has 12 years of experience, up from 10 in the prior report. Members are getting more seasoned while the typical deal count holds still. Set those two findings side by side and added years are not adding closings for the typical agent. If your own count has held for several years, compare it with the medians by years in the business rather than with one slow year.