Current or ex-real estate agents...please chime in
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Anonymous
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Is this a good/bad time to start a part time real estate career?
As a mom with elementary school kids, I'm looking to try out something new, but cannot dedicate evenings/weekends to it because Im the only one who does pick ups/classes. I'm not getting into it to make some big time money, but I really think I will enjoy this line. Is it even possible to dream of a decently paying real estate career that can be worked on only during day time? |
Anonymous
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Agent here.
No. In fact, I enjoy this career because I do have kids, so I get to see a lot of them but then when the husband gets home, I'm out showing houses. Nights, weekends, when people don't work is when you work. You should find a different career. |
Anonymous
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Maybe you could start being a part time assistant for an agent or a team. You could have daytime hours and learn the business. When your children are less dependent you could start selling.
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Anonymous
I'm an agent on a large team and this was my thought, too. |
Anonymous
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What do you have to do to become a real estate agent? How much does it cost? Is dc's market saturated?
What does a part time assistant do? |
Anonymous
I was told to avoid part time realtors -- don't have their heart in the game and don't have the time to build connections. Don't know if this colors your decision... |
Anonymous
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Sales is a business for the hungry. You're just looking for something fun to do in your spare time. Going through the license process and paying the fees to not even do what is needed to build a business and make some money seems like a waste. The others are right. Just be someone's assistant.
My thinking is if you are looking for something to do or just want some extra cash, this isn't the way to go. You should love what you're doing, and if you don't know anything about real estate then it doesn't really make sense to just try to do it for a few hours a week because you likely won't last. The legalities and liability are pretty huge and the learning curve is expensive and long. And that's the part that makes the market saturated - partially that there are so many agents and the other part that it takes a long time to get up to speed on all the intricacies of it. Why not go get a part time job that actually pays something per hour for your work? |
Anonymous
Good agents are available any time day or night especially weekends. As previous posts have said, you don't have the time to do it right nor will you make money to justify a real estate company hiring you. |
Anonymous
| Agents work weekends - that's when the open houses are. Its an easy business to get in as the barrier is fairly low - you take a class and a state test and find a company who will let you hang your license in. However, actually making money can take years. No one wants to be the person buying or selling a house with a realtor who's never sold one before. They don't bring value to the table for that 3% commission. Maybe you should look into residential appraisal - many work from home nowadays. |
Anonymous
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I have an interest in real estate. One day I will probably get licensed. But I'm a mum with young kids so I don't kid myself into thinking I'd be any good/commited at it right now.
I agree with pp that sales is a business for the hungry- and that's just not my personality type at the best of times... so I'd just take the time slow, learn the job and as you stack your learning/experiences up, you'll know if you are that good/interested in it. |
Anonymous
| Agents, am I right that it will cost me money just to be affiliated with an agency apart from marketing costs of a listing and commission split with agency? |
Anonymous
Yes. Short list off the top of my head: licensing fees, MRIS membership dues, NAR and local affiliate dues, lockbox system fees, errors and omissions insurance. |
Anonymous
If you're looking for something fun, part-time, and school-hours only, think about getting started as a dog-walker. If you're willing to give up some weekend evenings, babysitting. Neither of them are glamorous careers, but people would pay for someone reliable and mature. |
Anonymous
Agent here. I just interviewed an agent the other day and they asked this question so I ran thru the fees. It's about $1500 a year to keep a license. If you don't plan on working that much, it's not worth it. The part time agents really don't add much value as PP's have said because they don't know the business or the market well enough to be worth someone hiring. I live and breathe real estate and I've been doing it 15 years. I still learn new things all the time. But the more I learn, the more valuable I become to clients. |
Anonymous
| OP, I say go for it. I may be cynical but I feel like other real estate agents are always going to put you off... I bought my house from a similar part time mom agent and she was wonderful. Attentive, flexible and even watched my baby while I went through the house carefully. Good luck! |