January home sales dip, but signs of resilience abound

Last month we predicted that home sales in January would see a dramatic dip. It’s common in January to see a decrease in home sales after the holiday months and turn of the new year (between December 2019 and January 2020 there was a 24% decrease) and our model predicted we would see that again this month.
But then, on top of all the usual reasons for a dip, the now historic month of January 2021 happened.
Before you roll your eyes and say ‘yes, every month has been unprecedented,’ ‘every month has been unpredictable,’ January was an entirely different animal.
January was the worst month on record for the pandemic. As of January 27, 2021, we lost nearly 80,000 people in the U.S. to the coronavirus, just in January.
That is an unimaginable loss.
Then, there was also an insurrection, an impeachment, and an inauguration like we’ve never seen before. It was not your typical month, even by 2020 standards.
So, it’s really no surprise that the result was home sales dropping more month-over-month than they ever dropped during any month of the pandemic. During the pandemic, the biggest drop we saw was a decrease of 14% between March and April of 2020.

Source: MoxiWorks Month-Over-Month Sold Listings (February and March are predictions*)
The good news is though, that we are not worried. As we have said time and again during all of this, we are resilient. This industry is resilient.
We’re confident and still hopeful that sales will pick back up very soon. Our predictor has remained directionally accurate each month, and we predict home sales to pick back up in February and in March with a 2% and 25% increase month-over-month respectively.
February and March Home Sales Prediction
Based on activity inside our products in February we predict there will be 385K home sales and in March there will be 483K. You can see the full scope of these predictions below.
With our predictions that means the number of home sales in February would be 13% higher than they were a year ago and for March there would be 15% more home sales than there was this time in 2020.
All signs pointing to recovery from the last few months.
Brokers and Agents. This is your time.
January proved once again the absolutely crucial role real estate agents play in helping their clients buy or sell a home.
Agents have always had an enormous role to play when it comes to the sale of a home, but right now, as the level of stress people are under continues to tighten its grasp, a professional and quality real estate agent is crucial to keep our ecosystem running. High-quality brokers and agents are needed to advise, mentor, and guide their clients during the buying and selling process, now more than ever.
Our communities have always and will always need you. Hear us as a technology company when we say, let the computers do the things computers are good at so that you can continue to do the things that humans, and only humans, are good at. Building relationships, showing compassion, and helping people buy and sell their homes to continue to build a better life for themselves.
We look forward to hopefully reporting back some positive outcomes for February, March, and beyond!
The Home Sales Predictor is a brand-new set of prediction data that dives into the number of presentations created and the correlated number of U.S. home sales. This data is provided by MoxiWorks with insights from their MoxiPresent product.
Get our Home Sales Predictor Monthly Report delivered to your inbox!
Three MoxiWorks Leaders Named 2021 RISMedia Real Estate Newsmakers

York Baur, Georgia Perez and Maddie Heye join exclusive group of industry leaders who have made newsworthy contributions to the real estate industry
SEATTLE, Wa. — (Feb. 1, 2021) MoxiWorks, the leading real estate technology platform, is pleased to announce that MoxiWorks CEO, York Baur, VP Business Development & Product Evangelism, Georgia Perez, and Director of Marketing, Maddie Heye, have all been selected as a RISMedia 2021 Real Estate Newsmaker—a dynamic group of key influencers making headlines as a result of their newsworthy contributions to the real estate industry, and their efforts to positively affect the consumers and communities they serve.
RISMedia, the leader in U.S. real estate news and information services, announced its nearly 300, 2021 Real Estate Newsmakers on Feb. 1, in both an online directory on RISMedia.com and in the February issue of its flagship publication, Real Estate magazine.
RISMedia’s 2021 Real Estate Newsmakers were nominated in 2020 by RISMedia readers and editors and are showcased in the following categories: Influencers, Trailblazers, Futurists, Achievers, Crusaders, Inspirations, Luminaries and Trendsetters.

York Baur, MoxiWorks CEO
For the third consecutive year York Baur has been named a RISMedia Real Estate Newsmaker. This year Baur has been named in the Influencers category for years of having a leading voice in the industry and especially while navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic, sharing his inspiring philosophy to be productive, supportive and optimistic. He is constantly looking for ways to improve the industry to move forward, stronger than before. In 2020 Baur was awarded the Achievers category and in 2019 was among the Trailblazers.
“I’ve been fortunate to be at the helm of an incredible team of people who have helped to build an incredible network of customers that is now an ongoing force in our industry, ” said York Baur.

Georgia Perez, MoxiWorks VP Business Development & Product Evangelism
Georgia Perez joins Baur in the Influencers category for her impact on the industry. Perez helped her team rise up and become the go-to resource for others with new and creative ideas, creating lasting and important relationships. This is Perez’s second consecutive year being named a Real Estate Newsmaker. In 2020 Perez was among the leaders named as an Inspiration.
“I felt more connected to people throughout the real estate industry in 2020 than I ever have before. We came together as a community,” said Georgia Perez.

Maddie Heye, MoxiWorks Director of Marketing
Maddie Heye was named a 2021 Trendsetter for her work as a leader as her team responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. Heye led the MoxiWorks marketing team by making sure MoxiWorks remained a positive and productive resource for the industry. Heye’s team even published Grit Unlocked, a book with contributions from 26 leaders in real estate, despite a drastic budget cut.
“This year has proven that when we face challenges, leaders in this industry are quick to share, learn from each other and innovate to progress the industry,” said Maddie Heye.
“Every year, we’re amazed by the incredible ingenuity and success of members in the real estate community, ranging from the glass ceilings being shattered by industry leaders, to the creativity and innovation being implemented at a record pace, and all the way to the wonderful charitable work being accomplished across the nation,” said John Featherston, CEO, president and publisher of RISMedia. “This year, more than ever, we are proud to recognize the hard work, dedication and determination of real estate’s finest professionals—the 2021 Real Estate Newsmakers—who went above and beyond in 2020 even amid a turbulent time for the industry, and the world, facing the challenges head-on and without fear. Help us in celebrating their hard-earned recognition.”
In January 2019, RISMedia announced its first industrywide Newsmakers Showcase, with more than 230 individuals honored. The 2020 Real Estate Newsmakers included 300 honorees and their achievements can be viewed in the 2020 Newsmakers Gallery.
To learn more about MoxiWorks visit moxiworks.com.
About MoxiWorks
MoxiWorks is a comprehensive open platform system for large residential real estate brokerages that serves over 260 brokerages and 340,000 agents nationwide that account for more than 13% of the transactions in the U.S. MoxiWorks’ customer retention over the past seven years stands proudly at 96%. Their integrated tools are centered on sphere methodology that increases agents’ repeat and referral business by 54%, while lowering overall technology, training, and support costs for the brokerage. The open platform known as the MoxiCloud has tools from more than 50 partners that integrate to create unique brokerage solutions. Find more information at moxiworks.com.
About RISMedia’s Real Estate Newsmakers
RISMedia’s Real Estate Newsmakers is designed to recognize those individuals making headlines as a result of their newsworthy contributions to the residential real estate industry, and their efforts to positively affect real estate professionals and the consumers and communities they serve. RISMedia’s Real Estate Newsmakers were chosen based on nominations received through an online nomination process on RISMedia.com, and by nominations from RISMedia’s in-house editorial team and other industry sources. Nominations for RISMedia’s Real Estate Newsmakers are collected on an ongoing basis throughout the course of the year. There is no fee to nominate a Newsmaker or be recognized/featured as a Newsmaker. Due to deadline and production criteria, RISMedia’s 2021 Real Estate Newsmakers Online Directory may not currently be in its final format. Please check back for ongoing updates.
The cure for the inventory shortage is sitting right in front of us

The Home Sales Predictor shows a continued increase in home sales as we move into 2021
We learned a lot in 2020.
We learned how to innovate in all new ways. We learned how to pivot at a moment’s notice as shutdowns spread. We learned new ways to use our technology. And, as Helen Hanna Casey put it during last week’s RISMedia’s Rocking in the New Year event, “we are better prepared than any year beforehand.”
While there was a lot we’d like to leave behind in 2020, these lessons learned, and skills gained are something to be grateful for.
One of the things that came out of 2020 for us at MoxiWorks was our Home Sales Predictor. The Home Sales Predictor predicts the trends of real estate agent activity within our products and the correlation to closed residential real estate transactions. And our predictions have been within 2% of the actual number of home sales each month.
It’s been so encouraging to see the way our industry bounced back this year and it seems that trend is bound to continue. Let’s take a deeper look.
2021 Homes Sales Predictor – January & February
Based on activity inside our products during November and December of 2020, we predict there will 422K and 447K home sales in January and February respectively. Take a look at the graph below to see the continued trend of this correlation.
The graph above shows there was the usual dip we would expect to see around the holidays (everyone needs to take some time to rest and recharge, especially this year). But, we are confident we will see the trend of home sales continue to pick back up as we are already expecting to see a 30% increase YOY from Jan 2020 and a 33% increase YOY from Feb 2020.
Curing the inventory shortage
“For years we’ve discussed that there is no need to limit ourselves to an average of only 5 million home sales each year,” said MoxiWorks CEO, York Baur.“So why has the industry continued to settle at this milestone?”
In 2020, there were 5.65 million home sales AND that is with a pandemic vs. the 5.25 million in 2019.
“For better or worse, this pandemic forced many agents to do what they hadn’t always done before and that’s make the market,” said Baur.
The inventory is there, it just has to be uncovered.
Let’s make the market
This is our battle cry for you and your agents for 2021. Don’t be a victim to the market, make the market.
Be proactive and give your clients the knowledge they need to make the decision to sell their home. The more knowledge you can disseminate to your clients, the more likely their confidence grows to transact. Agents should be a trusted resource who gives their clients annual, or even quarterly, property reviews keeping them abreast of their homes worth, but also the worth of homes in their area.
“2021 is going to be the year where the agent and brokerage that knows how to get listings is going to drive by the brokerage that is too focused on buyers,” says Baur. “If you can be better at finding and winning listings than your competitor, you are going to win.”
2020 proved that we can make the market. So let’s get out there and sell more homes together.
The Home Sales Predictor is a brand-new set of prediction data that dives into the number of presentations created and the correlated number of U.S. home sales. This data is provided by MoxiWorks with insights from their MoxiPresent product.
Get our Home Sales Predictor Monthly Report delivered to your inbox!
MoxiWorks predicts 415,000 home sales in January to kick off 2021

We are approaching the end to a year like no other. We know a lot of people are ready to kick 2020 to the curb, but before we do that, we have our final home sales prediction and analysis to wrap up 2020 and jump into 2021.
Expansion and Growth
Specifically, in the real estate industry, we have seen so much grit, compassion, and expansion as we all pivoted to meet the needs of the year. While things were frightening (to say the least) in Q2, this industry has bounced back with a lot of fire.
Since September, sold listings have eclipsed nearly 100K transactions higher than they were in the same month in 2019.
“This is a gigantic delta and sign of the boom of the housing market,” said York Baur, MoxiWorks CEO. “And 2019 was no slacker year, it was also very strong.”
While the inventory shortage has been and remains a concern, movement in the market is still happening and will continue.
Home Sales Predictor
Based on the activity inside MoxiPresent during October and November, the MoxiWorks Home Sales Predictor predicts there will be 530K home sales in December and 415K in January.
Source: MoxiWorks Dec-20 Jan-21 Home Sales Predictor
The presentation run rate in October predicts that December will close out higher than November. And while we predict a dip for January, this is typical with every year based on a bigger push in October and the beginning of November to get stuff done before the holidays and the new year hits. That’ll be exacerbated this year due to the unusually short time between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays in 2020.
If our prediction is accurate that will put the total number of home sales for 2020 at 5.53 million. There were 5.43 million homes sold in 2019 according to NAR. “Achieving this level of growth during a pandemic year that includes a gaping hole in the market in Q2 is a spectacular performance on the part of the residential real estate industry,” said Baur.
Looking to 2021
As we move into 2021 it’s important to focus on the pieces of your business that you can control. We learn during every downturn, recession, or set back that the strong survive. When you can set your business up for success to weather any storm you will always bounce back.
From reviewing our Home Sales Predictor data this year we now know that you have a secret weapon. You can look at the number of presentations your team has done and know how many sold listings you will see two months out, which means you can know ahead of time if your agents are going to be hitting their goals or falling short. Instead of reflecting on your data, you can use the leading indicators in this data to see what sort of action needs to be taken ahead of time.
Use the data you have to your advantage. Continue to look for ways to think about your numbers in new ways to stay ahead of whatever curveball gets thrown our way next.
Cheers to a safe, healthy, and prosperous New Year!
The Home Sales Predictor is a brand-new set of prediction data that dives into the number of presentations created and the correlated number of U.S. home sales. This data is provided by MoxiWorks with insights from their MoxiPresent product.
Get our Home Sales Predictor Monthly Report delivered to your inbox!
Home Sales Predictor Predicts 490K November Home Sales

It’s November. The air is crisp, the holidays are heading our way, and homes continue to be bought and sold. This has been a year of complete uncertainty, but thankfully the real estate industry has bounced back and continues to show its resiliency.
November/December Home Sales Predictor
We’re back this month for our latest predictions using our Homes Sales Predictor. Using the activity inside our presentation tool, MoxiPresent, we are able to look two months out and predict the number of home sales.
Based on the activity we saw during September and October, we are predicting there will be 490,000 homes sales in November and 519,000 in December.

Source: MoxiWorks, Home Sales Predictor tool with predictions for November and December 2020
Some thoughts from MoxiWorks CEO, York Baur on these predictions and the market:
“The fundaments of residential real estate remain very strong – after a difficult Q2 as we entered the pandemic, the market has come roaring back in Q3, and we expect that to continue well into 2021.
While you may read headlines about looming foreclosures and other negative opinions, I believe that the market will remain buoyant through next year based on three fundamental factors:
Demand from people who are changing their housing need or location based on the work-from-anywhere trend, the fact that Millennials and Generation Z are entering the housing market in large numbers, and the prospect of continued low interest rates.
While low inventory remains a constraint, our leading indicators show that agents were in front of more consumers in October, talked to them about listing their homes, and that should bode well for December closings, as well as creating further momentum for the beginning of 2021.”
As York says, we expect to see the market continue its recovery and to remain strong. Agents must continue to stay in flow with their sphere of influence to help push to create more inventory.
We’ll see you in December!
The Home Sales Predictor is a brand-new set of prediction data that dives into the number of presentations created and the correlated number of U.S. home sales. This data is provided by MoxiWorks with insights from their MoxiPresent product.
We’ll be back each month to make our predictions on what’s to come and to also reflect on the predictions we’ve made. Sign-up below to receive these predictions in your inbox each month.
Get our Home Sales Predictor Monthly Report delivered to your inbox!
Episode 15: The evolving role of real estate websites with Brian Boero

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Brian Boero, the CEO of 1000watt, joins York Baur on the podcast for a candid conversation about the evolving role of real estate websites. Brian has spent 23 years in this industry and knows a thing or two about branding. Especially when it comes to websites. York and Brian discuss the importance of the brokerage website, how it has evolved over the years, and how to cultivate a sense of meaning behind your brand and website. For weekly insights from the talented minds of 1000watt subscribe to their newsletter by visiting 1000watt.net.
MoxiWorks Publishes Handbook for Growing an Unstoppable Real Estate Business

Real estate leaders from across the country contributed to the tech company’s book bringing together a powerhouse of insights and advice
SEATTLE, (June 3, 2020) – Residential real estate software company, MoxiWorks, has published a new handbook for business leaders as they work toward recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and work to build more durable businesses to withstand any future crises.
GRIT UNLOCKED: The Handbook for Growing an Unstoppable Real Estate Business brings together 26 leading real estate industry voices with lessons on resiliency and endurance and insights into how their businesses are surviving and thriving in the face of a global pandemic.
“When the COVID-19 crisis began we felt the weight of the uncertainty for our communities, our industry and the country as a whole”, said MoxiWorks CEO, York Baur. “While we didn’t know much about what the result of this crisis would be (and still don’t), we did know that we were committed to helping and serving brokerages across the country. We brought industry leaders together to give them a place to collaborate through virtual roundtables, a five-week webinar series, podcasts and more discussing how to remain resilient and durable through this crisis. But that still didn’t feel like enough. This book is the culmination of our desire to help as many brokerages and their agents as we could by bringing this inspiring group of industry leaders together in one book.”
GRIT UNLOCKED features lessons from:
Stephanie Anton, Rob Amen, York Baur, Gino Blefari, Brian Boero, Paul Boomsma, Helen Hanna Casey, Adam Contos, Mike DelPrete, Jeff Detwiler, Matthew Ferrara, Dan Forsman, Matthew Gardner, DeAnn Golden, Ryan Gorman, Chris Gunn, Hoby Hanna, OB Jacobi, Larry Kendall, Julie Kozich, Steve Murray, Georgia Perez, Michael Saunders, Greg Scott, Eric Thompson, and Bill Yaman
An excerpt from the Foreword authored by Matthew Ferrara, Philosopher:
Contained in this guide are leadership insights from an industry that has weathered decades of business cycles — from economic booms and financial busts to industry-wide technology transformations. These organizations have navigated national crises like September 11 and international monetary meltdowns every other decade. They have initiated and directed an endless stream of innovative experimentation. Through it all, one thing has remained consistent: A deep and abiding commitment to stick with it, to see it through.
The result has been one of the most resilient, flexible, creative and adaptive industries in the global economy; one which has made change its middle name and problem-solving its daily habit. An industry that has, in some sense, been practicing its whole life for today’s troubles and stands ready to tackle it head on. Not a single person hesitated when asked to contribute to this guide, even during a global pandemic. That’s what we do, was the common sentiment. Whatever it takes, for friends and competitors alike. To stay in the game, in the best of times or the worst. Sharing our best ideas creates a stronger foundation for everyone.
Baur added, “we are beyond grateful that each of these leaders were able to share their insights and expertise to help inspire brokerages across the country. Our industry is strong and will bounce back and we look forward to seeing how the industry evolves over the coming months.”
GRIT UNLOCKED can be downloaded for free here. MoxiWorks will also be publishing an audiobook version in the weeks to come. To learn more, visit moxiworks.com.
About MoxiWorks
MoxiWorks is a comprehensive open platform system for large residential real estate brokerages that serves more than 260 brokerages and 340,000 agents nationwide accounting for more than 13% of U.S. real estate transactions. MoxiWorks’ customer retention over the past seven years stands proudly at 96%. Their integrated tools are centered on sphere methodology that increases agents’ repeat and referral business by 54%, while lowering overall technology, training, and support costs for the brokerage. The open platform known as the MoxiCloud has tools from more than 50 partners that integrate to create unique brokerage solutions. Find more information at moxiworks.com.
MoxiWorks – Let’s sell more homes together
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For more information on this topic and other press inquiries at MoxiWorks, please contact Jordan Barrish at jordan.barrish@moxiworks.com.
*This press release was originally published on PR Newswire.
Episode 13: Turning Fear Into Action w/ Hoby Hanna

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Good Investments Prepare You for Disruption
Hoby Hanna, President of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, brings his passion and insights to the REAL with MoxiWorks podcast discussing how we can turn fear into action. This episode highlights the value of investing in your technology stack to be prepared for any sort of disruption (not just COVID-19), and why it’s important to streamline processes in a legacy industry and at a legacy company.
Episode 12: Leading Through the Cycle of a Crisis w/ Jeff Detwiler

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4 Ways for Brokers to Support Their Local Communities

Mercedes Santiago, Marketing Coordinator at MoxiWorks | March 24, 2020
It’s a time of global uncertainty, due to COVID-19, the epidemic that has disrupted the world. We’ve seen the anxiety-inducing statistics on job uncertainty, food scarcity, deaths, and more. The combination of it all is showing us the true magnitude of the current state of our world. While we’re not sure of what’s to come for certain, we know as a community we must jump in and help where we can.
“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.”
– Coretta Scott King
Real estate brokers are an integral part of their communities and experts in the residents, businesses, and structures that make a neighborhood ‘home.’ As such, brokers and their agents are poised to be great community leaders and supporters during this time. We’ve put together a list of recommendations and want to hear from you as well!
1. Support local restaurants
Seattle streets are much quieter these days for obvious reasons, with one of them being the empty tables in restaurants — a trend fast occurring across the country. We know we can’t dine-in, but don’t forget that many restaurants are offering take out, and it’s essential to their survival. Support your community by ordering takeout.
Fun idea: Virtually cater for your agents! Let all agents order lunch on you for company moral! Share your support on social media to encourage others to follow in your footsteps! Not only can you promote positivity and camaraderie amongst your company, you continue to support your market’s economy.
2. Check in with your neighbors
These times are difficult for many, physically and mentally. You could be struggling personally to care for someone who’s been infected with COVID-19. Or, perhaps you’ve upended your day-to-day routine and are now working from home. Especially difficult, maybe you’re self-isolating due to a pre-existing condition and feel uncertain about your safety. While we shouldn’t be physically close to each other, with technology we have the ability to all stay connected. Even from miles away, what you post online has the ability to shift someone’s mindset on the situation. Let’s keep content optimistic, light-hearted, and inspiring to keep our mental states up high.
Fun idea: check-in with your partner businesses like mortgage lenders, moving companies, or home repair persons and share each other’s stories.
3. Reach out to nonprofits
Many nonprofits around your city are constantly providing shelter, food, and support for members of your community — even during pandemics that close other public places. Call around to local nonprofits and decide who needs what most. In our current situation, these groups are running out of food to distribute. Feeding our community and staying healthy is important for us to move past this.
4. Help seniors who are most at risk
It’s a fact that older people and people with pre-existing health conditions are most vulnerable to COVID-19. There are multiple things we can do to keep this group of people healthy and safe.
- Grab groceries for those who are at risk or those that are shut-in. Drop the groceries off at their door to keep your distance.
- Facetime self-quarantined individuals to keep them socialized and less lonely
- No tech? Start a letter-writing campaign to individuals in nursing facilities who can’t visit their friends and loved-ones face to face currently.
Now is the time to think outside your office walls and see how you can help your community.
Together we can accomplish so much more than we can alone.