Ever wonder what it’s really like to be a real estate agent?
With so many ways to approach this particularly “nontraditional” career, real estate often lends itself to plenty of myths about things like work-life balance, general difficulty, and earning potential.
From how to choose a brokerage to work for to how to pass your real estate license exam the first time around, nearly everyone working in the field has their own experiences in real estate and their own opinions.
This can leave newcomers wondering things like how to choose the best real estate company (and how important is it, really?), or even what the typical hours are for a real estate agent who’s just getting started.
To clear up some of the confusion, here are three common myths (and truths) about being a real estate agent.
Key Takeaways:
- With support from a good pre-licensing school, passing the exam is manageable.
- Choosing the right brokerage significantly impacts early career success.
- While real estate offers flexibility, work-life balance isn’t automatic.
Myth #1: It’s Hard to Pass the Real Estate License Exam
Before you get into the “fun stuff” like learning how to choose a brokerage to work for or how you’re going to market your services, you have to pass the real estate license exam. For some, this can bring up some test-taking anxiety and even discourage them from starting the process in the first place.
The good news?
No matter what you’ve heard about the difficulty level of the exam, nearly anyone can pass with enough support from their pre-licensing real estate school. At Allied, our students pass the real estate license exam so easily and so often that we have a “Pass or Don’t Pay” guarantee.
Free Guide: Learn how to launch a successful career in California real estate with this free guide.
Myth #2: It Doesn’t Matter Which Local Broker You Choose to Work With
Knowing how to choose a brokerage to work for is, in fact, one of the most important processes you’ll learn when you’re getting ready to finish your exam. In fact, knowing how to choose a brokerage to work for can directly affect your success as a real estate agent during the first three to five years of your career as you learn how to navigate the field and market yourself.
The thing is, there are no “best real estate brokers to work for” or “best real estate companies”. The truth is, there will only be the best for you.
This step requires some self-awareness, goal setting, and expectation setting on your part, which will help you determine the right brokerage to work for when you see it.
Some factors to consider are:
- How much hands-on training do you expect or need?
- What is an appropriate commission split for your current financial needs?
- Are you looking for mentorship?
- How much do you want to work?
- Do you expect your brokerage to take care of most of the lead generation?
Once you have a good idea of how you’d answer these questions, it’s a good idea to make a list of potential brokerages based on their reviews, what you’ve heard from peers, and the general sense you get from them when you explore their job openings.
Myth #3: Work-Life Balance Is Guaranteed
While work-life balance is certainly one of the main appeals of breaking into real estate, work-life balance is never guaranteed. The amount of freedom you experience as a real estate agent is directly tied to factors like:
- Knowing how to choose a brokerage to work for (it’s great to choose one whose values and time management boundaries align with yours)
- Whether or not you’re a buyer or seller agent
- How well you can delegate some of your tasks
And of course, how well you can manage your own time. While some of those factors require some up-front work, they can lead to more freedom and flexibility to achieve the work-life balance you’re after.
