Sphere of influence statistics

of all home buyers found their agent through a referral from a friend, neighbor, or relative — 49% among first-time buyers.

of recent home sellers used an agent who was referred to them or whom they had worked with before.

of the typical REALTOR®’s business came from repeat clients (20%) and referrals from past clients (21%) — 41% of the pipeline from existing relationships.

of the typical NAR member’s business now comes from past clients and customers — up from 20% a year earlier.

of the customer pipeline is repeat business for agents with more than 16 years of experience.

of buyers (88%) purchased through an agent and 91% of sellers sold with one — an all-time high, while FSBO fell to an all-time low of 5%.

of home buyers say they would use their agent again or recommend them to others — 76% say “definitely.”

of repeat buyers actually purchased through an agent they had worked with before. Across all buyers, just 15%.

of sellers said they would definitely (75%) or probably (12%) recommend their agent for future services.

of sellers used the same agent to sell that they had used to buy their home — barely a coin flip, even after a good experience.

of repeat buyers would consider working with the same agent again (79%) — but only 13% ultimately hired their agent based on past experience. Zillow’s research division, independently confirming the NAR gap.

of buyers had already recommended their agent at least once within a year of closing. Sellers: 65%.

of REALTORS® spend more than $500 every month on lead generation; another 27% spend $50–$250.

of REALTORS® name their CRM — the tool that works existing relationships — as their top source of quality leads, versus 9% for listing portals.

cite social media — where an agent’s sphere lives — as their top lead-generating technology, the highest of any category.

of buyers interviewed only one agent before deciding (74%) — and 80% of sellers contacted only one.

of buyers (47%) and sellers (59%) hired the first agent they spoke with.

of sellers moving within 10 miles reused their previous agent (72%); past 100 miles, reuse collapses to 8%. Distance — and lost contact — kills reuse, not dissatisfaction.

contact — the median number of times a buyer reached out before engaging an agent. There is no long courtship to win them back later.

is the typical REALTOR®’s experience — and repeat business rises with every year of tenure.

active registrations on the National Do Not Call Registry as of September 30, 2025 — 4.7 million numbers added in FY2025 alone.

the maximum FTC civil penalty per illegal call to a registered number — set by the January 2025 inflation adjustment and unchanged for 2026.

per call or text — the TCPA’s private right of action: $500 per violation, trebled up to $1,500 when willful or knowing.

of home buyers value an agent who communicates by text message — exactly the same share who value personal phone calls.

of buyers who used an agent prefer texting or messaging apps (50%); only a third prefer phone calls.

of buyers made first contact with their agent by phone call — still the most common first touch, ahead of in-person (23%) and friend introductions (17%).