Springfield agents perform well in Top 200 listing

The four local agents – Tom Rieken of Murney Associates, Ethel Curbow of Coldwell Banker Vanguard Realtors, Sherrie Loveland of Murney, and John Heitz of Re/Max House of Brokers – were the only Missouri agents to appear on the listing. They were chosen based on their numbers of real estate transactions in 2005.

For the agents-transaction sides listing, individual agents were allowed to have no more than one full-time and one part-time assistant working with them, Loveland said, and larger teams appeared on the team listing.

In each real estate transaction, there are two sides – the buyer and seller – that can be represented by a real estate agent.

All of the Top 200 agents were featured in a special advertising feature in the Nov. 11 edition of the Wall Street Journal, and in LORE (Lives of Real Estate) Magazine LLC.

“These men and women are the cream of an extraordinarily impressive crop of individual agents and teams from markets throughout the nation … ,” said Marti Gallardi, vice president of classified advertising with The Wall Street Journal, in a news release.

Leading the Springfield pack

With 206.5 transaction sides, Rieken outranked his Springfield cohorts on the Top 50 list.

The fractional number, Rieken said, is the result co-listing homes.

Rieken, who has been in real estate for 30 years – 10 in Iowa – said he works alone and represents more sellers than buyers.

“Typically … other agents are more likely to sell your listings than you are, because there’s more of them out there,” Rieken said. “So you don’t expect to have as many buyers as you have listings.”

Rieken works with several builders and with individuals, and he said he doesn’t focus much on his volume, just on his work.

“My job is to sell their homes,” he said. “I don’t attempt to go out and do something in particular just to hit some number.”

Market conditions are among the factors that Rieken cites for helping him achieve 206.5 transaction sides in 2005.

Specifically, he said, the good economy and the growing number of people in the Ozarks are boosting the real estate business.

“We have a need for the homes … and that’s obvious, because the only people in the state of Missouri that were on that list are all here,” he said.

Also, he said, there’s his relationship with Morelock-Ross Properties, whose homes he’s been selling for 15 years.

“They build a really good home at a really good price, so we sell a lot of homes,” he said.

‘It doesn’t seem like work’

At No. 30 on the list is Curbow, who has worked in the Springfield-area real estate market for 25 years. Curbow posted 206 transaction sides in 2005. She said she usually averages about 200 a year, which she anticipates hitting again this year.

“It was an exceptionally good year in real estate last year,” she said.

Curbow noted that “lots of hard work” is one of the primary reasons she was able to complete so many transaction sides.

“I spend a lot of time on the Internet, answering e-mail, and I have a good Web site, and I get a lot of good out-of-town people from that,” Curbow said, adding that she had a lot of out-of-town buyers in 2005.

Still, she’s quick to point to a strong local customer base – and plenty of referrals – as the source for most of her business.

Then, there’s the fact that Curbow loves what she does.

“I think this is just my calling … it doesn’t seem like work,” she said.

‘A very aggressive year’

Loveland, a Murney Realtor with 13 years of experience, clocked in at No. 42 with 182 transaction sides, primarily representing sellers.

“We’ve had a tremendous amount of new construction … and lot sales, because I market developments with vacant lots also,” Loveland said, noting that she works with several area residential developers and has a strong and growing referral base among her clients.

Loveland, who said that her business generally is about 60 percent new homes or lots and 40 percent existing homes, expects to wrap up 2006 with an even higher volume.

“We’ve had a very aggressive year this year … it’s just been the area,” she said. “The Ozark and Nixa areas – I sell in those areas – and they’ve grown very steadily, and … it’s just been a really busy year.”

A familiar face

With 40 years of experience in Springfield-area real estate, John Heitz of Re/Max House of Brokers is the chief veteran among the four local Top 50 honorees.

Heitz logged 175 transaction sides – a volume he attributes to long working relationships with developers such as Ron Stenger, national banks and individuals who want to buy or sell homes.

“If you’ve been in the business as long as I have, you’ve got a real good referral base,” he said. “Most of the business that I do now is repeat business.”

Ironically, though transaction sides placed him on the Top 50 list, Heitz said 2005 was actually a slower year for him. His record year, he noted, was in 1993, when he posted 257 transaction sides.

Still, he said, business is good.

“What a great place to be in the real estate business,” Heitz said. “The Ozarks has continued to grow over the years, and the real estate market has just been fantastic. I’ve been able to take advantage of the growth of Springfield and the Springfield area.”

About the Real Estate Top 200

Presented by The Wall Street Journal and Real Trends, the Real Estate Top 200 recognizes the top 50 residential agents and agent teams in four categories:

• Individual agent – sales volume

• Individual agent – transaction sides (category in which Rieken, Curbow, Loveland and Heitz are recognized)

• Agent team – sales volume

• Agent team – transaction sides

The honorees, chosen from nearly 2,000 submissions, were announced Nov. 11 at the National Association of Realtors’ Annual Conference and Expo in New Orleans. No other area agents or teams were ranked.

Local Standouts

Four Springfield Realtors placed among the Top 50 U.S. agents in terms of transaction sides. They are:

No. 28 Tom Rieken, Murney Associates, 206.5 transaction sides

No. 30 Ethel Curbow, Coldwell Banker Vanguard Realtors, 206 transaction sides

No. 42 Sherrie Loveland, Murney Associates, 182 transaction sides

No. 50 John Heitz, Re/Max House of Brokers, 175 transaction sides