President’s Perspective: June, 2026
By Chris Delfs, NWIA President
Broker, Keller Williams Siouxland & Keller Williams Okoboji
As the weather heats up, we are seeing an expected increase in market activity. The real news is that we are seeing an increase in both listings and closed units compared to this time last year. The lockbox records show steady showings of listings and the listings inventory is up at a 11.5% increase year over year. This means more options for buyers and shows the competition sellers now face.
The stats page on our Board website is a great resource to help educate our clients about the realities of the market. This page is updated monthly and has great value for helping paint a picture to both buyers and sellers about the nature of current real estate activity locally. I encourage you to check it out here. I’m a firm believer that statistics help us look more professional and keep us as REALTORS® apprised of what is happening around us regularly to better serve our clients.
Additionally, we have an update on the board purchasing new Supra lockboxes; we wil be rolling out in August 2026. This is going to be a great improvement from our current lockbox and the new features will add value regarding security, tracking and ease of use. This transition will also be important because the batteries in our current lockboxes deteriorate more in the cold months, making it a welcomed change ahead of the winter months. The Sentrilock boxes have been great, but are at the end of their life expectancy (and out of warranty) and will be phased out. We will share more details as we get closer to the deployment date. The Board Office will work with all of the brokers to ensure a smooth transition.
Lastly, I want to take a minute to thank our Board staff for all their work. It wasn’t until I became the Board President that I realized how much behind the scenes work was being done. From answering the phone and questions, dealing with vendor contracts for MLS/Lockboxes, to making us all look good through our public facing social media, communicating with us, preparing meeting minutes, events, the staff does all this and more. A great deal goes into running our association and I am thankful for all the work of Denise, Heather, and Kerri. Thank you for all you do and for making it look easy in the process. Your talents are being noticed.
As always, I would love to hear from you if you have thoughts or questions. Make it a great month!
