Though slowing a bit now, the real estate market in the Chicago area has been hotter than ever the last couple of years, and that means lucrative times for agents. Carrie McCormick, who tops our latest rankings of individual agents, sold $186.3 million in residential properties last year, up from $104.4 million the year before, when she finished third. With diminished inventory, pent-up demand, and low (though increasing) interest rates fueling the market, the @Properties Christie’s International Real Estate agent doesn’t see an end to the flurry of activity anytime soon, just some decelerating: “I think these trends are going to continue for the rest of 2022. We were going 150 miles per hour, now we’re maybe down to 120, and we might eventually get down to 100. The market might slow, but it’s not going to die.”
Among real estate teams, Lowe Group Chicago, headed by Jeff Lowe and part of Compass, continues its reign at No. 1, with $399 million in sales in 2021, up from $298 million in 2020. Increases were felt across the board. A whopping 39 individual agents or teams cracked the $100 million mark in 2021, more than double the prior year’s 17. Meanwhile, the No. 100 entry in last year’s team rankings posted sales of $40.6 million; in the new list, the group in that slot hit $54.0 million.