How to Start a Career as a Real Estate Agent in New York
Starting a new career can be hard for anyone, and it’s even trickier when that career demands as much out of you as being a real estate agent does. Unless you’re working with an agency, your income depends solely on your ability to close deals, and this can be tricky especially at first when you don’t have a bunch of testimonials from previous clients to display to establish trust with new ones.
Of course, this isn’t to say that it can’t be done, just that you need to do it right if you want to increase your chances of success. Not only do you need a good understanding of the local real estate market but you also need to possess various skills like marketing and communication. The ability to successfully communicate with prospective buyers and sellers will help you build up your own reputation and create a dependable professional network you can fall back on in case you need anything.
Becoming a real estate agent in one of the toughest real estate markets on the globe is not easy, but if you feel like you’re up for the job, keep reading to find out what you need to do.
The Skills You Need
In order to be a real estate agent, you need to have the skills to find prospective buyers for the listings you’re trying to sell, or sellers for the people who want to buy a certain kind of place. Both these things require a lot of digital marketing skills, and you may even have to keep up with running your own social media and websites. This will only establish trust and keep you relevant with your clients. Think about it – wouldn’t you find it suspicious if you were working with an agent who didn’t have social media or didn’t even show up in a Google search?
You’ll also need to maintain a trustworthy circle of professionals you can fall back on when you need something. This is because people who are looking to buy or sell a home will often need other services, like home staging and basic renovation work.
Obtaining Your License
Once you’re sure you have what it takes, you need to start the official procedure to get your real estate license. You can do this by taking the following steps:
1. Be a Legal Adult
Of course, you can’t be helping people find homes and advising them on the terms of legal contracts without being over the age of 18.
2. Complete 75 Hours of Education
Not only do you need to be an adult, but you also need to have at least 75 hours of formal training before you’re given your license. You can receive real estate pre-license training with the help of any preparatory course that gives you the knowledge to pass the written exam and consists of 75 credit hours.
3. Take the Exam
Now, it’s time to take your exam where you need to score at least 70% to pass. You can register for the exam on the New York Department of State Occupational Licensing Management System.
4. Find a Sponsoring Broker
While you’re still new to the world of real estate, a sponsoring broker will be responsible for your day-to-day dealings and you’ll be part of their brokerage Brokers are real estate agents or salespersons with at least two years of sales experience or three years of full-time real estate experience, and you can’t submit your real estate license application without one authorizing it.
They will also take part of your commission as their brokerage fee as long as you work under them, but you’ll be able to learn a lot as well. Think of them as your teachers.
5. Apply for the License
Once you pass the exam and have a broker, you can apply for the license online and pay the related fee to get it.
Once you clear all these hurdles, you’ll be ready to take on the real estate market with your newly acquired skills.
