It’s 2025 — time for a fresh start, a renewed focus and fresh optimism about the possibilities for the coming year. The temptation is to aim high and set big goals. There’s nothing wrong with that, but we have to be realistic, too.

In December, I received an email about a survey of 79 real estate agents across the country conducted by KeyLeads. One-third of agents surveyed said winter is the most stressful time of year in the real estate industry. More than half said they work more than 40 hours per week, and one-quarter said work-life balance remains the most difficult part of being an agent.

I can hear some of you now. “Work-life balance? Not in this business.” Some people like to work 360 days per year. It’s how they are wired. That’s great. Others work in spurts, a frenzied month followed by a pause, then a return to the grind. That works just fine, too.

I’m reminded of a phone call I made to a very successful West Coast agent. She was juggling business in multiple states, but when I reached her, she was sitting poolside in Hawaii. “Just taking a little getaway,” she said. “It’s how I recharge.”

Whatever success looks like for you, whatever recharge you need or don’t need, devise a plan now and go make it happen. Stick with the plan, and in December, hopefully you can look back on a successful 2025.

So, what’s the outlook for 2025? For this month’s cover story, we asked some of the top executives in the industry, including Robert Reffkin, founder and CEO of Compass; Kamini Rangappan Lane, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Realty; Amy Lessinger, president of RE/MAX; and Mike Miedler, CEO of Century 21.

Also in this issue, you’ll find a guest column from National Association of REALTORS® President Kevin Sears, advice from Tinka Ellington at Douglas Elliman on working with developers to sell luxury condos, and the inside scoop from Agent X on all those holiday parties last month.

Happy new year, and thanks for reading!