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From lumps of coal to listing wars, Carl Medford lists the things everyone in the real estate world is looking for on Christmas morning.

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Gift baskets, holiday socks, festive mugs, desktop succulent plants, flavored coffee gift packages, branded insulated water bottles … chances are that if you are a real estate agent, you have received most of these as holiday gifts at one time or another. While all of these are nice, they don’t really scratch the itch for what agents REALLY want for Christmas.

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25 things real estate agents really want for Christmas 2025

Here is my list. First of all, let’s start with the obvious:

1. 2025 to be over

Let’s put a fork in it. This was not a kind year for most agents, and it just needs to be done so we can move on.

2. Agents who answer their phones

This keeps showing up every year at the top of most agents’ lists. You would have hoped the message would have gotten out by now. That would be followed up by agents who actually read the comments in the MLS, the disclosures, reports and other important information.

3. Recognition that being a real estate agent is a real job

We are one of the few businesses I am aware of where hundreds of previous sales and years of experience do not seem to matter … the customer always seems to think they know more than us — especially if they have watched countless hours of HGTV or have a friend/family member who bought or sold a home over 10 years ago.

4. Buyers who don’t ask for part of your commission

While this may not be an issue in some parts of the country, it is the first question many buyers ask in our region.

5. The ability to do YELP reviews for our clients

To steal a quote from My Fair Lady’s Eliza Doolittle, “Wouldn’t it be loverly!” It might not change anything but would definitely feel great.

6. A truth serum for buyers

The old adage, “Buyers are liars” exists for a reason. Agents I’ve talked to hope that someday a method will be discovered that will bridge the colossal gap many agents have with their buyers who state they want one thing and then go buy something totally different using another agent.

7. Buyer agents who know how to use buyer broker agreements

We still encounter agents showing homes without signed agreements, find copies of confidential buyer agreement forms between the buyer’s agent and the buyer included in offers, see incorrectly filled-out agreements and more.

You would hope that enough time has passed between Aug. 17, 2024, and now to figure out the new rules and corresponding forms, but you would be wrong.

8. An end to fake listing prices

While this is not prevalent in some regions, we have agents in our market who routinely list homes hundreds of thousands of dollars under their real value to create an auction-like environment. The problem is simple — there are actually buyers out there who think the low price is real. When they submit offers at the list price, they are told to “get real.”

9. Parents who control their children at open houses

Why not bring your dog and let it run rampant through the home as well? Those of us who have encountered unattended children at open houses know what I mean. Maybe the solution is mandatory parenting classes for parents who insist on bringing their children to open houses.

This also applies to those parents who ask their 3-year-old, “Do you like this house?” I’m guessing they are the same group that allows their kids to tie up a line at McDonalds for ages by giving children who cannot make up their mind the chance to order their own food.

10. Clients who understand that HGTV is entertainment only

Kind of like fake news. Fun to watch, but not even closely related to reality. The ability to see three homes, get one into contract, have it close in a couple of weeks and then be fully renovated a week later — pure fiction — kind of like a Hallmark Christmas movie.

11. A gag for the media

Let’s face it — the mainstream media is not our friend. From sensationalizing market conditions to propagating outright fiction (as during the commission lawsuits), the media is only interested in viewership — not the truth.

Agents are either forced to waste inordinate amounts of time explaining the facts to clients or, even worse, never get the opportunity to work with those who refuse to enter the market because they believe the hash the media is slinging onto their plates.

Maybe a gag, a cork or huge fines for publicly misrepresenting the truth. A lump of coal for sure.

12. Clients who read

As in the contract documents. Unfortunately, many just sign the documents their agent sends over to them for electronic signatures — and then blame their agent when something goes wrong, and they are on the hook.

13. Clients who understand that AVMs (like Zestimate) are not accurate

I saw a funny picture the other day. It stated, “Don’t be hard on children who believe in Santa Claus; there are still adults who believe Zillow is accurate.” Or any other AVM on other platforms, for that matter.

14. The 12 days of Christmas 5-star reviews

Posted on the website of your choice …

On the first day of Christmas, you’d get one review. On the second day, two. You get the idea. At the end of the 12 days, you would have 78 reviews. Add to your wish list reviews that actually stayed on YELP! Truth is, if you got 78 reviews in 12 days, YELP would mark most of them “Reviews that are not currently recommended.” Please, Santa, fix YELP!

15. Lead generation companies that produce real leads

Real. Instead of the industry average of one-in-a-hundred (or less), we want leads that turn into actual buyers and sellers. Leads that produce closed escrows. We all get bombarded with calls from companies asking, “Can you handle eight to 10 extra closings a month?” I feel like responding, “Do you think I’m stupid?”

Would it not be great if some of these companies were actually telling the truth?

16. Buyers with hot feet

We all have buyers with cold feet. Santa, please send us some of the other kind.

17. Zoom cameras on

Since much of our business has migrated to Zoom, it would be nice to actually see who we are talking to. And you only have to be dressed from the shoulders up.

Now the more serious wishes …

18. Lower interest rates

Not so low they prompt multiple offers, raise prices and deepen the housing crisis, but low enough to get sellers to put their homes on the market and for more buyers to get off the fence and into homes.

19. Insurance companies that would actually insure our listings

Keep in mind these are wishes, OK? We want insurance companies that will insure our listings at reasonable rates and will not cancel. We want to be able to easily transfer the existing seller’s policy to the buyers.

20. An attorney-free year

Stop already. This is beyond ridiculous. Enough said.

21. Web portals that display the virtual tours we paid for

As an example, we pay for Matterport tours because our clients love them — the smooth interface, crisp graphics, accurate floor plans … For a major portal to refuse to post them on their site because of a turf war is simply ridiculous and could even negatively influence prices.

22. An end to the off-market listing wars

Let’s make the assumption that we are actually in the business of putting our client’s best interests ahead of our bottom-line profit or stock valuations. We want a world where all buyers and their agents have equal and full access to all listings on one site.

23. A National Association of Realtors that is relevant

As a huge trade association, NAR has the capability of representing the interests of its members to make substantial and meaningful contributions to real estate policies in the U.S. We want an association that is free of scandals, provides meaningful leadership and policies that actually make sense.

24. A higher home sale tax exclusion

Currently, it is capped at $250,000 per qualifying seller. That is fine in regions where home prices are relatively low. However, in areas such as the San Francisco Bay area, it is not unreasonable to see a home that was purchased decades ago sell for a dramatically higher price.

As an example, a home purchased 40 years ago for $50,000 could easily, in the current market, sell for $1,550,000. That is a difference of $1,500,000. If we assume there are two homeowners, they get to deduct a total of $500,000. That leaves a capital gains liability of $1,000,000.

Even if they are able to deduct for home improvements, they are still facing a huge tax obligation. This not only affects their personal income taxes; it also changes the qualifying rate for those on Medicare. Raising the home sale exclusion to $500,000 per person would help ease this burden and would make it more palatable for more homeowners to actually sell their homes.

25. AI that provides meaningful answers to real questions

I asked Gemini, “How does Santa put lumps of coal in attorney’s stockings?” Instead of providing a real answer, it stated the following:

“That sounds like the start of a classic Christmas joke! The traditional story of Santa leaving a lump of coal in the stocking of a naughty child is a piece of American folklore, and the mention of an attorney suggests a humorous legal twist. The traditional idea for how Santa leaves coal for naughty children is simply out of convenience: he would reach into the fireplace or the nearby coal scuttle right after coming down the chimney and drop a piece into the undeserving child’s stocking before heading back up. However, since your question specifically references an attorney, I’m guessing you’re looking for the punchline to the joke! Would you like me to try and find the joke, or are you interested in learning more about the origins of the lump of coal tradition?”

No … I want to know how Santa is going to get a lump of coal into the sock drawer of the attorneys who are promulgating the endless stream of real estate-related lawsuits … just sayin’.

Carl Medford is the CEO of The Medford Team.

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