Ben Caballero with HomesUSA.com is the top agent in the country in both sales and transactions, according to Real Trends’ 13th-annual “The Thousand” list, published in coordination with The Wall Street Journal. Keller Williams was the best represented franchisor in the agent team rankings, which annually lists the top real estate sales teams nationwide.
No stranger to the Real Trends rankings, Caballero, an Addison, Texas-based legend, has landed the top spot on the list since at least 2012 in both sales and transactions. Earlier this year, he also smashed his own Guinness World Record by selling a whopping 4,700 homes in 2017 — 1,144 more homes than in 2016.
“Technology continues to enable us to improve how homes are bought and sold,” Caballero told Inman in a statement on Friday. “The Real Trends’ rankings aren’t just a measure of unit sales and dollar volume — rather, they’re a gauge as to who is innovating and thinking creatively.”
“As service professionals, we aim for new heights as we improve the way we do business and respond to the evolving needs of our clients,” he added. “I am pleased to be ranked alongside so many forward-thinking agents.”
The Thousand is a collection of the preeminent agents and brokers in the industry and the numbers don’t lie: the average agent in the United States closed eight transactions in 2017, but the average agent ranked on The Thousand closed 204 transactions and the average team closed 533 transaction sides.
“The real estate sales professionals ranked in The Thousand have proven that they have the skills to grow their businesses year after year,” said Steve Murray, president of Real Trends and publisher of The Thousand.
“These kinds of results show that those who commit to being full-time professionals can build meaningful businesses and succeed beyond expectations,” he added. “Achieving this level of results is simply incredible.”
Keller Williams was the franchisor with the most agent teams ranked on the list. In total, 78 Keller Williams agent teams made the top 250 in transaction sides and 48 agent teams made the top 250 in sales volume. However, Re/Max was the franchisor to have the most appearances with 156 total agents and teams on the overall list. It had an excellent showing with two agents in the top five for transaction sides, and the Minnesota Real Estate Team from Re/Max Advantage Plus in the top four for agent team transaction sides.
“We’re proud to be in business with our 78 agent teams ranked by sides and the 48 agent teams ranked by sales volume,” said Darryl Frost a spokesperson for Keller Williams. “No other brand is so well represented with as many ranking real estate agent teams.”
“It’s clear real estate agent teams are continuing to take more and more market share,” he added. “And Keller Williams stands out with the best systems and models to support these teams today and with their expansion efforts as they continue to grow across the U.S. and the world.”
Here’s who ranked among the the top five in each category, comprised of agents from independent and franchise brokerages:
Individual agent: sales volume
- Ben Caballero; HomesUSA.com, Inc.; Addison, Texas
- Chris Cortazzo; Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage; Malibu, California
- Mauricio Umansky; The Agency; Beverly Hills, California
- Alexa Lambert; Stribling & Associates; New York City, New York
- Aaron Kirman; Pacific Union International; Beverly Hills, California
Individual agent: transaction sides
- Ben Caballero; HomesUSA.com, Inc.; Addison, Texas
- Brian Bair; OfferPad; Gilbert, Arizona
- Jason Saphire; www.EntryOnly.com; Boston, Massachusetts
- John Swartz; Re/Max Connection; Turnersville, New Jersey
- Sherri Saad; Re/Max Leading Edge; Detroit, Michigan
