According to the New York Times, "How to become a real estate agent" was the most searched job-related term from Jan 2020 to Jan 2021. The Bureau of Labor statistics estimates a 5.3% employment growth for real estate agents between 2021 and 2031. And the possibility of growth creates an estimated pool of 23,100 jobs in the real estate industry. 

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Real estate offers a lucrative career with flexibility, high-income potential, autonomy, the opportunity to help people, and earning status in the community. Besides, the recent socio-economic, market, and research trends have created diverse career opportunities in the real estate sector.

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This article explains how to start a successful real estate career, the diverse career paths, the advantages of a real estate career, and how to carve a niche.

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How Do You Start A Successful Real Estate Career?

Although real estate jobs hold lucrative benefits, there is yet to be a definite trajectory to start a successful real estate career. Moreover, while penetrating the competitive real estate sector, specific objectives, activities, milestones, costs, and considerations align with every aspiring agent's career path. 

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So, how can you start a successful real estate career? "Preparation is the key to success." A future career in the real estate industry demands a few fundamental principles to chisel and groom for the rewarding path ahead.

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Here are a few ways to enter the real estate sector:

• Understand the area you are operating in
• Create a referral network
• Learn about small businesses
• Find a good mentor
• Develop Resilience
• Provide great customer service
• Pitch a reality story to newspapers
• Use Email Marketing
• Create a budget and success plan
• Continue Learning

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Advantages and Rewards of a Career in Real Estate

A real estate career attracts the young and ambitious. Although it demands the right balance of ambition, motivation, social skills, and hard work, it can be enriching.

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The following are the advantages of a real estate career:

1. Business Growth

Careers in real estate, like agents, brokers, and contractors, often function independently, providing higher prospects for business growth. 

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2. Career Mobility

In the real estate industry, you can work for yourself. For example, a real estate agent can build their own business or brand. The evolving career prospects provide the flexibility to transition to different roles. 

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3. Competitive Salaries

Real estate jobs don't have a fixed income cap. Professionals can earn beyond the hourly wages per the sale of property deals. 

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4. Involves social skills

Marketing and networking are essential skills for a real estate career; hence, the career suits social professionals who like meeting new people.

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5. Demanding field

Real estate is an "evergreen" business arena, as the demand for property won't cease to exist. 

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Real Estate Career Paths

There are different career opportunities in the real estate industry. The following are a few careers in real estate:

1. Real Estate Agent

Real Estate Agents help clients to buy, sell and rent properties. They are licensed professionals who work under the guidance of brokers. How can one acquire an agent's license? A real estate agent can acquire a license after completing hours of training (according to state) and clearing a written exam. 

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Moreover, the demand for real estate agent jobs is increasing due to its lucrative benefits. The administrative duties of a real estate agent vary depending on whether they are a buyer's agent or a seller's agent. The responsibilities of a real estate agent involve a mix of administrative, research, and marketing duties.

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The following are the primary duties and responsibilities of a real estate agent:

• Draft and submit real estate documents, agreements, and lease records.
• Schedule appointments, showings, and open houses
• Manage phone calls, texts, emails
• Create and distribute flyers, newsletters, and promotion materials
• Create monthly, quarterly, and annual budgets.
• Research active, pending, and sold listings and create competitive market analysis(CMA) reports. 
• Handle online and social handles
• Create and update blogs and websites
• Run advertising campaigns

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2. Brokers and Leasing Agent

A broker is a licensed agent with a broker's license that allows them to operate a brokerage and hire real estate agents under them. How can one turn into a broker? A real estate agent can be a broker if they have state-determined experience and pass the state's broker exam. Besides, they also possess additional knowledge of ethics, contracts, taxes, insurance, real estate investments, brokerage, construction, and property management.

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Generally, a broker's duties are as follows:

• Compare local market values and market properties, and offer valuable advice to clients on purchasing, selling, or renting properties. 
• Identifying suitable office spaces, warehouses, retail, or residential spaces,  on behalf of corporate users.
• Leasing spaces for owners.

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3. Realtors

A Realtor is a licensed real estate agent and a National Association of Realtors (NAR) member. How are they different from real estate agents? Realtors have to hold to the standards and ethics of the association, which real estate agents may not follow. 

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Realtors are professional agents who work as residential and commercial brokers, property managers, appraisers, and salespeople. In short, realtors are experts in their field. The primary responsibilities of realtors are similar to those of real estate agents.

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4. Property Manager

A property manager ensures the day-to-day operations of rental properties on behalf of passive real estate investors. Property managers generally manage apartments, retail malls, and offices.

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The primary responsibilities of a property manager are as follows:

• Ensuring the financial and physical aspects of the ongoing owner’s property.
• Finding tenants for vacant spaces.
• Ensuring tenant satisfaction and collecting rent.
• Clearance of legal and regulatory issues about the property.

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5. Research

Real estate, like any other niche, needs constant improvement. Research helps to analyze the socio-economic trends that affect property value, work on surveys and compile data. 

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Given that, the different research domains in real estate are:

• Equity Researchers at major real estate organizations analyze market trends like stocks and perform detailed financial and valuation analyses of publicly traded companies.

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• Research Specialists working for different consulting groups evaluate how macro and micro events affect the real estate sector.

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• REIS Researchers provide detailed reports on market rent, building permits, new loans, tax sales, foreclosure work, etc. 

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6. Investment Banks

Investment Bank is a financial services organization that is an intermediary between large and complex financial transactions. These transactions finance the capital needs of REITs, private equity funds, and private operators. 

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The primary role of an investment bank is to raise debt and equity, advise work on mergers and acquisitions, and restructure an organization. A career in an investment bank includes creating pitch books, PowerPoint presentations, and financial models.

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7. Institutional Investors

Institutional Investors invest, buy, sell, and manage investment securities like stocks and bonds on behalf of their clients or shareholders. Moreover, the investments include pensions, endowments, commercial banks, mutual funds, insurance companies, and hedge funds. 

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Institutional Investors also invest in specific portions of high-risk instruments such as private equity funds, REITs, properties, mortgages, and CBMS. A career in institutional investment involves working in diverse arenas like asset management, monitoring investments, evaluating performance, preparing reports, and appointing managers.

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8. Commercial Banks

Commercial Bank is a financial institution that offers accounting services, accepts deposits, and underwrites various loans. It is an intermediary between an issuer and an investor. In comparison, commercial banks finance permanent residential purchases; given their short-term loans, they primarily lend construction loans (3-6 months). 

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Generally, the primary duties of a commercial banker involve the following:

• Developing, negotiating, and closing commercial loans.
• Getting involved in the due diligence process
• Evaluating Construction timelines
• Estimating Financial projections 

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9. Developers

Real Estate Developers are involved in different stages of constructing buildings and other structures or even sub-division of land into plots. Most developers specialize in a single property type – residential, commercial, hotel, or retail industry.

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The essential duties of real estate developers are:

• Clearing title deeds for every project
• Review building plans as per tenants, market, or engineering requirements 
• Acquire required finances from financial institutions
• Lease or sell the space
• Find prospective deals in the market

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10. Architects and Planners

Architects create appropriate, efficient, and flexible structure designs that fit the zonal codes and other local regulations. They generally specialize in different project areas, such as interiors, landscapes, schematics, mechanicals, and facade construction. A good architect conceptualizes a project "inside out" rather than the standard "outside-in" approach.

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11. General Contractor Firms

A general contractor or GC signs a contract with the property owner or developer. They are involved in different construction phases like construction and project logistics, organizing project schedules, and evaluating budgets. Besides, a contractor might hire a subcontractor to execute different construction phases.

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12. Lawyers

Real Estate Law encompasses deeds, titles, estate planning, property taxes, and zoning. A real estate lawyer or attorney ensures entities follow legal procedures during sales or land acquisition. 

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The primary duties of a lawyer are to draft, finalize and negotiate documents. Besides, they also draft partnership agreements for efficiently distributing tax credits, liabilities, and returns among partners.

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13. Home Staging and Photography

Home Staging is "preparing" or rearranging a property for sale to appeal to potential buyers. While home staging is a relatively new field, it is a significant aspect of marketing. So why does home staging matter? Home staging highlights a property's best features and helps potential buyers visualize the space better. 

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The typical duties of a real estate photographer involve staging houses, offices, and other properties for photographs, photographing the interior and exterior of a property, editing photos, and building a portfolio.

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What makes you successful in real estate?

Given the recent developments, careers in real estate development are satisfying and offer lucrative benefits. However, as explained above, there are many career opportunities beyond the conventional real estate agent, broker, and real estate marketing jobs. 

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The following are the essential elements to carve a successful real estate career:

• Ambition
• Domain Knowledge
• Organized
• Networking
• Marketing
• Location
• Technologically Competence

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Conclusion

Real estate is a massive industry with diverse opportunities. Entering the industry is relatively straightforward, given you complete training and pass the examinations within six months. Recently, real estate jobs have evolved beyond the conventional realms of realtors, agents, brokers, and managers. 

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Carving a niche in the industry requires the right blend of domain knowledge, motivation, hard work, networking skills, and ambition. Above all, the choice is left to the individual to choose the right one by gauging his skills and potential. And with the right guidance and mentorship, you can perfectly guide your clientele on how to create wealth investing in real estate.

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