Choosing a particular career path while younger can lead to you being rather happy with the decisions you’ve made and with the job you are doing. It can, however, also lead to regretting your choice and trying to make certain changes.
Changing careers, or at least the idea of doing it, often brings people towards considering the real estate industry, not only because they believe it can be paid well, but also because the skills seem quite learnable. Then, there are those who know what they want right away and enter this industry without first going into some others and trying their luck out.
While the skills are learnable, you have to be ready and prepared to actually learn them and boost your knowledge as much as you can if you want to work in this industry, whether you’re making a career switch or starting your first one right now. Not having enough knowledge on how things work in this business could have all your efforts come to a halt the moment you encounter an issue.
Giving up after the first issue, however, is not the best move, so learning precisely how things are done and gaining the necessary skills is important if you want to join this industry. This is what the agents to, in case you’re still wondering.
Entering into any kind of a career without knowing a few significant things about it, though, is also not the right idea.
Understanding what your responsibilities would be when you become a real estate agent, as well as what the perks of the business are, is crucial, as it helps you figure out all the pros of working as an agent, as well as understand how hard you’ll need to work and which steps you’ll need to keep on taking so as to build the business and practically build a name for yourself. Not being familiar with any of the responsibilities, you’re highly likely to get stuck on your first try here and realize you may not be cut out for the job.
Being cut out for the job, however, is not the criteria to use when deciding if you should do this, because this is something that people learn to do and not something they are born with. The skills are very much attainable, and you simply need to put effort into gaining them and learning as much as you can.
Spending your time learning the ins and outs of the industry, though, isn’t what you want to do before first checking if becoming a real estate agent pays good money and if you should start the path towards becoming one at all. Those are the questions I’ll answer for you below.
Does This Pay Good Money?
If you’re used to a fixed income and a fixed amount you’ll receive one month after another, always being able to rely on it and never wondering just how much you’ll earn this month, then you’ll need to completely change your mindset in order to become a successful real estate agent. Why? Because their income is often not fixed and it depends on numerous different factors, including the number of hours you work per day, your niche, and even your experience.
Depending on these factors, the income can vary quite a lot, and it’s also not uncommon for one person to earn a different amount this month than they have earned the previous one, because the success of their work also impacts the actual income.
If wondering whether this is the right career path for you, this should help you decide: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/040215/real-estate-broker-career-you.asp
As mentioned, income will depend on numerous different factors, including the number of hours you’ll actually be working. Longer hours usually equal higher earnings and those agents putting in 40 to 50 hours per week into their work could expect to earn even up to $120,000, while that number will increase to up to $180,000 for those working even longer.
Burning out, however, is a real danger, and it is something you want to avoid, which is why you should look for a good balance of working hours and your income, deciding what to prioritize, when to work longer and when to simply take a rest and refresh.
Years of experience also impact the average earnings of a real estate agents, with the more experienced ones being able to earn a higher income than the less experienced ones. Working in the industry for a year or so, you can’t expect your income to be the same as the one earned by a professional who’s been an agent for more than 10 years, for example.
This is just a reason for you to work harder and stick with this career, knowing that the more experienced you’ll become, the more money you’ll earn, but always keeping in mind that those other factors influence the income as well.
Niche is one of them. Working in the residential real estate industry will probably bring you less money than working in the commercial part of the industry. Selling homes will earn you a lower commission than selling a certain commercial property that will cost more to begin with. Property management and affordable housing tend to earn people lower incomes, while luxury properties and green properties are at the higher end of the spectrum.
Telling you precisely how much you’ll earn as a real estate agent is, thus, impossible, as it depends on numerous factors, such as the niche you’ll choose, the hours you’ll put into it and the effort you’ll put into building your experience, as well as your reputation and becoming a noticeable name in the industry.
Expenses, as explained at Krista Mashore website also play a role in your earnings, as well as the fees you’ll set for your services. Taking all of those factors into consideration, it could be said that the average annual salary for a real estate agent is around $50,000.
Depending on the choices you’ll make and on how hard you’re willing to work, the number could be either higher or lower. When aiming for it to be higher, you’ll need to invest in marketing as well and slowly build your own brand, become recognizable and increase your pool of clients, consequently increasing the income.
Should You Become A Real Estate Agent?
Thinking about becoming a real estate agent, you’ll take the income into account, but you’ll also think about other important things as well, trying to determine if you’re cut out for the task and if you’d actually enjoy this career, or if it isn’t exactly your cup of tea. Determining that is not easy without actually trying this path out, but you can talk to other agents to hear their experiences and have them let you in not only on their secrets of the trade, but also on their level of satisfaction, explaining just how rewarding this job can be, not only money-wise.
Hearing other people out, learning about the industry in general, gaining the necessary skills and trying your luck out… All of those things will help you determine if this is the best career path for you, and if you’re looking for a dynamic and exciting job that offers great earning potentials, you’ll definitely love the real estate industry.
