Two large real estate companies announced layoffs this week, both with a large presence in the Bay Area.
Compass reduced its workforce by about 450 people across the country, although the company did not confirm to SFGATE how many were affected in the bay area. The fired were full-time employees of Compass, not real estate agents.
“Due to the clear signs of slowing economic growth, we have taken a number of steps to safeguard our business and reduce costs, including the pause of expansion efforts and the difficult decision to reduce the size of our staff in about 10%, “Compass said. the spokesman told SFGATE. Compass is headquartered in New York City.
In its most recent housing report for the Bay Area, Compass reported that rising interest rates are affecting home sales in the Bay Area: overall sales are declining and the number of active ads and price reductions are increasing. Still, the report clung to any drastic conclusions and wrote, “By analogy, if traffic goes 100 miles per hour and drops to 65, it feels much slower, but it can’t be reasonably described as a lent “.
Redfin, a Seattle-based brokerage, cut about 6 percent of its employees, a company spokesman told SFGATE. That’s about 470 employees, including some from Rentpath and Bay Equity, two of the company’s subsidiaries. Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman wrote in a statement: “With May demand 17% below expectations, we don’t have enough work for our agents and support staff, and fewer sales leave us with less money for headquarters projects “.
As mortgage rates continue to rise, there are indications that the housing market is finally slowing across the country. Rates have risen by about 3% in early January to more than 6% today.