The real estate business is shrinking with the housing bubble. "More than half of California's real estate agents quit within their first five years, according to a recent study. CAR found that many left because of a lack of support from their brokers, but others left because of an inability to make a decent living.' The association's membership is at a record level at more than 161,000 members. A quarter of that total, 42,000, came on board in 2004."

"'I think you could be seeing something of a shake-out in the next 18 to 24 months,' said Desiree Otero, president of the California Desert Association of Realtors. Greg Berkemer, the group's executive vice president, noted that what's happening in the valley is typical of what has occurred throughout California and elsewhere when real estate became the hot profession because of skyrocketing prices."

"He pointed to a recent industry report estimating that one in every 300 Americans, and one of every 75 Californians, is now a licensed real estate agent or broker." "The current number of valley agents and brokers, including full-time and part-time personnel, is five times the 1,000 agents that were here in 1996. 'Around here, if you think there are two or three agents living on your block, you're probably right,' Berkemer said."

"Unsold inventory levels have jumped sharply. In late January, there were nearly 6,400 unsold valley properties on the MLS, more than double the level of January 2005 and more than quadruple the 1,400 properties available in April 2004. And homes on average are taking around 60 days to sell, more than twice the time seen in early 2004."

And in Florida. "Amid all the talk of a bubble in home prices, another bubble has been inflating, this one in the number of people flocking to work in the real estate industry. Palm Beach County now has nearly as many real estate agents as annual home sales."

"Five years ago, the Realtors Association of Palm Beach County had 4,867 members. Today, it has 10,419 members. Consider that Realtors handled only 13,679 sales in the county last year, and that leaves barely one sale per Realtor per year."

"The increase has been even more striking at the state association, which today boasts 155,000 members, up from 65,000 six years ago. Statewide, Realtors handled 248,565 home sales last year."

"With the typical real estate commission at about 5 percent, a $400,000 sale generates a $20,000 payoff. But if both buyer and seller have agents, the agents divide the $20,000. And agents' brokers typically get a cut of their commissions, and agents usually pay for ads, yard signs and car expenses."

"A cooling market only boosts marketing expenses for agents who had been cashing in on quick sales. 'You'd stick a sign in the yard and two or three days later you'd have competing offers,' Brad Westover said of the boom during the past few years. But, he said, those days are over. 'These weekend warrior real estate agents are going to go away,' said Westover in Jupiter."