Quad-Cities’ Ruhl & Ruhl Realtors Celebrates 2020 As Their Most Successful Year Ever
Beth Gilbreath won for top community involvement of the year.
Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors celebrated 2020 as their best year in the company’s 158-year history, at their virtual annual awards event on Friday, Jan. 29.
Caroline Ruhl is CEO and Chris Beason is president of Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors.
Chris Beason, President, and Caroline Ruhl, CEO, honored 215 award winners for their 2020 achievements. Over 300 agents, staff and affiliated business partners cheered on their co-workers during the virtual celebration.
“Though we had more than our fair share of bleak moments, I had no doubt that you and our company would prevail,” Beason told his team. “In times of struggle, we have served and stood by our clients, our communities and each other. And in the end, we come out stronger.
“We heard countless stories about how you went above and beyond for your clients and overcame some incredible challenges,” he said. “You accommodated their unique needs throughout the year with virtual open houses, additional cleaning measures, and quickly learned and embraced new technology necessary to help ensure the health and safety of your clients. And above all, they were grateful for the genuine care and empathy you showed for them. These stories embody what it means to be a part of this team.”
Kurt Johnson won for top associate of the year.
Penny Egert won top Nelson Brothers associate of the year.
Top awards were awarded to:
- Top Excellence in Service Award: Laura Custis, Muscatine Office
- Top Associate of the Year: Kurt Johnson, Bettendorf Office
- Top Team of the Year: The Stopulos Team, Davenport Office
- New Associate of the Year: Jason and Stacey Miller Team, Moline Office
- Top Associate of the Year – Farm & Land: Austin Maas, Muscatine Office
- Top Ruhl Mortgage Associate of the Year: Ray McDevitt, Bettendorf Office
- Top Nelson Brothers Associate of the Year: Penny Egert, Moline Office
- Top Community Involvement of the Year: Beth Gilbreath, Dubuque Office
- Top Referral Staff Member: Jenny Parvin, Director of Marketing & PR, Corporate Office
- Employees of the Year: Deb Painter, MLS Administrator, Muscatine Office and Misty Grady, Foreclosure & Business Development Coordinator, Corporate Office.
There is a complete list of all award winners on Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors’ website at www.RuhlHomes.com/News.
Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors 2020 Results
Laura Custis won the top excellence in service award.
Ruhl shared with her team the company’s results in 2020:
Residetial Sales Volume: Ruhl’s sales volume in 2020 was $951,461,219, up 4.4% from 2019.
Number of Properties Sold: Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors sold 5,203 in 2020, as either listing agent or selling agent. This was 3.2% more transactions than in 2019.
Revenue: Revenue in a real estate company is primarily gross commission income (GCI). Ruhl’s 2020 GCI was $27,774,499.
New Listings Taken: Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors listed 2,560 properties for sale in 2020.
Nationally Ranked Per Agent Productivity: On average our agents closed 16.7 transactions in 2020. This is more than double the national average for per agent productivity.
Great Agents and Staff: Ruhl&Ruhl ended 2020 with 311 residential agents. In addition, 65 employees work for the company.
The Stopulos team (Joanna Stopulos Gehrke, left, Kyle Condon, and Megan Stopulos) won the top team award.
Ruhl Mortgage: Ruhl Mortgage closed $359,929,158 in loan volume, which was generated by 1,572 loans. 51% were purchase loans and 49% were refinances. Ruhl Mortgage employs 29 staff members, including 6 loan officers and in-house underwriting and processing.
Insurance Referrals Sold: Ruhl&Ruhl agents referred clients resulting in 566 policies being sold by the Nelson Brothers Agency, Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors’ affiliated insurance company has 20 sales agents and 16 staff members.
Commercial Sales Volume: NAI Ruhl Commercial Company, a joint venture with Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors, sold $77.7 million in commercial real estate in 2020. They have 17 commercial agents and 15 staff members. NAI Ruhl Property Management manages 1.725 million square feet of space.
Regional Real Estate Forecast for 2021
Mortgage Rates Will Stay Near Historic Lows of 3% on Average
Low mortgage rates have been the key reason for the housing market’s strong performance in the midst of the pandemic and high unemployment. Rates are forecast to rise slightly, perhaps up to 3.2% so they are still attractive.
Austin Maas won top associate of the year, farm and land.
As of Jan. 13, rates with no points were about 1% lower than this time last year:
- 15 year Conventional Fixed — 2%
- 30 year Conventional Fixed — 2.5%
- FHA/VA 30 year Fixed — 2.375%
Appreciation and Price Increases Will Continue.
In our region, homes appreciated from 1.53% to 4.1% last year, depending on the market and price range of the homes. Less expensive homes will continue to appreciate more due to strong demand and lower inventory.
Best Time Ever to Sell a Home.
The number of properties for sale is at an all-time low.
Stacey and Jason Miller won for new associate of the year.
For sellers, that means:
- Less competition from other properties for sale
- More buyers + fewer properties for sale = higher prices for sellers
- Realtors can list and show properties safely- either virtually or online
“2021 Housing Sales Are Predicted to Be Up 5% to 7% by Unit Count, With Prices Continuing to Rise.” – Steve Murray REAL Trends Consulting
While low mortgage rates are a highly influential factor, many other drivers are fueling the real estate market: the Covid-19 vaccine, buyer confidence as the economy and jobs are improving, and life-cycle events such as marriage, changes to family size, and retirement.
During the pandemic, we also learned that most people who worked in offices could be just as productive at home. This new work-from-home reality has fueled home sales from owners who want home offices or are
Ray McDevitt won top Ruhl Mortgage associate of the year.
considering moving further from town for more room and lower prices.
A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors has grown to 311 sales associates, 65 employees and eleven offices, selling more than 5,200 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwest Wisconsin. The company has residential sales offices in Bettendorf, Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Iowa City, Muscatine, Iowa; and Galena and Moline, Ill.
In addition to residential sales, the company offers services in relocation, property management, real estate investments, new home sales, land development, farm and land sales, senior services, home vendor services, insurance services through the Nelson Brothers Agency, mortgage services through Ruhl Mortgage, and commercial services through NAI Ruhl Commercial Company.
For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors, visit www.RuhlHomes.com.
