Harris & Partners Place Third in The Real Deal's LA Broker Ranking
Photo by Luigi Estuye, LUCREATIVE® on Unsplash
The Real Deal's September issue ranks the top residential brokers in Los Angeles, and James Harris and his team at Carolwood placed third. Harris & Partners reported $482.2 million in volume across 53 transactions.
Also on the list: the Altman Brothers at Douglas Elliman, who reported $489.3 million.
The magazine's headline for the package, "A Rough Ride," tells you something about the tone. Even the people at the top of the ranking have been working in a demanding market.
The math is worth a look
If you divide $482.2 million by 53 transactions, you get an average of a little over $9 million per deal. This is a different business from the one most of my clients are in. It is the top of the market, where a handful of closings can define a year.
The Hollywood Reporter has also published its list of 37 Top LA Brokers, around Sept. 16. That list notes Sally Forster Jones' $100 million La Fin listing, which is a number worth pausing on.
What rankings mean, and what they don't
I read these lists the way I'd encourage you to. They are interesting, they reflect real work, and they tell you who is active at the highest end of the market. They don't tell you whether a given agent is the right fit for your home, your price range or your temperament.
Volume is one measure. It doesn't capture responsiveness, honesty, negotiation or how a person treats you when a deal gets hard. At any price point, the question I'd ask is simple: will this person tell me the truth, and do they know my neighborhood?
Still, congratulations are due to those who made the list. In a year that The Real Deal describes as rough, producing numbers like these takes skill and persistence.
Sources: The Real Deal (September issue), The Hollywood Reporter.
