| January is always a slow month for closings. For the last several years it has been the slowest month for closings. Lots of reasons, holidays, back to school, weather, just to name a few. This January was no exception. It was the slowest month since the previous January. There were slightly more transactions in January of 2026 than in 2025. But we had less than 50% of the closings in january of 2021. So, way slower. Here’s the crazy part, There were only 248 closings in January in Rutherford County. I had 2 of those. So the remaining 246 closings split amongst over 1700 agents here in the county. And we know several of those transactions were out of county agents. So what are agents doing? How are they eating? These are questions you need to ask your prospective agent, along with a few more. I’ll give you a list: 1) With the number of transactions for the last year being right at half of what it was a few years ago, how are you surviving? 2) When was your last closing? this is important as it establishes how desperate they are. 3) How many transactions did you do last year? If it is less than like 5-6, they likely don’t have the experience to navigate this very complex market we are in. Here’s the thing, i am not trying to be ugly but it is worth asking these questions. You need to know the mindset of your agent before you hire them. A desperate agent might be just who you need as they will work harder than anyone else. But they might also have clouded judgement in their advice to you because they need the closing more than you do. Bottom line, ask the questions. Know your agent. Some other high points from January: – Active Inventory is up – Closings are barely up – Price is completely flat – Days on market are up – Months of supply are up. We are approaching the 7 month mark which is the historical even market (buyer market vs. seller market |
