Man who changed U.S. real estate visits franchisees in central New York

CNY Business Journal (1994-95), May 15, 1995 by Grossman, Naomi

Liniger believes that these forces and rising interest rates will cause the National Association of Realtors (NAR) membership to continue to shrink. Over the last two years NAR lost nearly 150,000 members. "This is the first time I can remember where the economy came out of a recession, and the NAR still lost members," says Liniger.

Despite national trends, Liniger says that a national real-estate market does not exist in this country. "We have vastly different regional markets," he says. Liniger believes that Central New York is one of the country's more stable real-estate markets. "Central New York didn't experience the wild boom of the 1980s, but it has also not experienced the bust that followed," he says. "It is in a wonderful position because it hasn't seen a large swing in values."

Liniger feels that the trend in the country away from cities and power centers is going to help Central New York real estate. "The past five years there has been a subtle shift in where people are going," he says. There has been less of an increase in major areas. People are looking for a better quality of life, away from crime, congestion, and smog. And telecommuting makes it possible for them to live in places they never considered before."

Liniger points out that it is smaller businesses that are creating jobs in today's economy and those businesses are also looking to escape "big-city" problems. Because smaller businesses can more easily move from one place to another, areas like Central New York will be the beneficiaries of their moves.

Real-estate agents in Central New York hope Liniger's forecast is accurate. Peter Babbles, owner and broker of the Syracuse office of RE/MAX of New York, Inc., says that right now housing prices in this area are probably as low as they will go. "It is a real buyer's market," he says. "The listings have increased over the past few years, but prices have not increased."

But tell that to the 80 RE/MAX agents in the Central New York area's nine offices. In 1994 the average RE/MAX agent in Central New York did 27 transactions which is the highest per-agent transaction within the New York state RE/MAX system. The New York State Association of Realtors' 1993 figure, which is the latest compilation, reports that its average member did six transactions. The average sales volume per RE/MAX agent in Central New York was $2.5 million, which is high in an industry where agents usually receive an award for producing $1 million in sales.

Babbles attributes that success to the selectivity of RE/MAX offices and their ability to utilize the latest technology to their advantage. "Average, part-time agents can't afford to be part of our system because of the cost of the overhead," says Babbles. But top-producing agents can join RE/MAX, and with the technology available, "the sky is the limit," he says.

All 650 RE/MAX agents in New York state are looking forward to making even more money if the state's anticipated change in the commission structure is enacted. It took RE/MAX 14 years to open an office in New York state because Department of State regulations do not allow real-estate agents to receive 100-percent commission. Presently, RE/MAX agents in New York state work on a 95-percent commission. "We are hoping that will change with the new governor," says Cassandra Trace, communications and technology coordinator for RE/MAX of New York, Inc. "New York is one of the last states to still insist on this payment structure."