Is a Real Estate Career for You? The Honest, No-Fluff Answer.

So, you’re thinking about a career in real estate. I get it. You see the flashy TV shows, the fancy cars, and hear whispers of six-figure commission checks. And yeah, some of that can be real, but it’s like seeing the highlight reel of a championship game without watching any of the grueling practices.

After more than two decades in this business—from a green agent who didn’t know a thing to running my own brokerage—I’ve seen it all. The number one question I still get is the simplest: “Is it a good career?”

Here’s the honest truth: Real estate isn’t a job. It’s a business. YOUR business. You build it from the ground up. It can give you incredible freedom, but it can also be a one-way ticket to stress and an empty bank account if you aren’t prepared. My goal here isn’t to sell you on it. It’s to give you the real story so you can decide if you’ve got the right stuff.

First Things First: Getting Licensed and Facing the Startup Costs

Everyone focuses on getting their real estate license, but most people miss the point of the whole process. Those pre-licensing courses aren’t really about teaching you how to sell homes. Honestly, they’re about teaching you how to stay out of court. They drill you on contract law, agency law (a fancy term for who you legally represent), and fair housing rules. In many places, you’re looking at over 150 hours of coursework before you can even take the test. It’s a legal foundation, not a sales seminar.

I still remember my first broker telling me, “The exam is just a gate. The real test is applying those laws when a client’s life savings are on the line.” He was 100% right. Understanding the legal gravity of a contract is infinitely more important than writing a clever Instagram caption for a new listing.

Heads Up: The Real Cost of Getting Started

This is where the dream often meets a harsh reality. Passing your exam is just the beginning. You’re starting a business, and businesses need capital. I am brutally honest with new agents about this: you need savings. Plan on having enough cash to cover all your personal living expenses for at least six months, but a year is even safer. Why? Because your first paycheck might not show up for four, five, or even six months.

Let’s break down the typical startup costs. These will vary depending on where you live, but this gives you a real-world budget:

• Courses & Exam Fees: Expect to spend between $700 and $2,000 for the pre-licensing classes, exam fees, and your initial license application.
• Association & MLS Dues: This one is the big shocker for most people. To call yourself a Realtor® and get access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), you have to join the local, state, and national associations. Budget around $1,000 to $2,500 for your first year. This is not optional; it’s the cost of being a professional.
• Brokerage Fees: These are all over the map. Some offices charge a monthly “desk fee” from $50 to $500. Others take a bigger cut of your commission. You have to factor this in.
• Essential Insurance: Errors & Omissions (E&O) insurance is your professional liability coverage. It’s non-negotiable and will likely run you $500 to $1,000 a year. No reputable broker will let you work without it.
• Business Basics: At a minimum, you’ll need another $500 or so for business cards, a professional headshot (no selfies!), lockbox access, and maybe a simple website.

Running out of money before you gain momentum is the number one reason new agents fail. Seriously, treat this like opening a coffee shop or a small retail store—because that’s what it is.

What You Actually Do All Day (Spoiler: It’s Not What You Think)

Ah, the “flexible schedule.” It’s probably the most attractive lie in real estate. Yes, you’re your own boss and you don’t have to clock in. But you’re not in control of your schedule—your clients are. Buyers want to see houses on nights and weekends. Sellers want to review offers after they get home from work. My spouse used to joke that I had the most flexible schedule ever: I was free to work any 80 hours a week I wanted.

The real flexibility is being able to go to a dentist appointment on a Tuesday morning. The reality is that you’ll be working all day Sunday to make up for it. The job isn’t just showing pretty houses; that’s maybe 10% of your time. The other 90% is the real work.

1. Lead Generation (aka Finding Business): This is the engine of your career. If you’re not actively looking for clients, your business is actively dying. This is the hardest part for most people. My first mentor made me spend three hours every morning on this before I did anything else. It felt like a grind, but it built my entire career. What does it look like? It’s making calls, networking, holding open houses, and building a presence.

Quick tip for beginners: Try the “50-50-50” rule for a month. Aim for 50 phone calls, 50 handwritten notes, and knocking on 50 doors each week. It’s tough, but it forces you to build the habit.

2. Client & Admin Work: This is the paperwork and project management side. You’ll be writing contracts, managing deadlines, and coordinating with lenders, inspectors, appraisers, and the other agent. My personal rule is: “If it’s not in writing, it never happened.” You’ll live inside software like DocuSign or Dotloop for signatures and hopefully use a CRM (Client Relationship Manager) like Follow Up Boss or LionDesk to keep track of everyone. A good CRM is your second brain.

Let’s Talk Money: The Unfiltered Truth About Commission

That “unlimited income” potential is real, but let’s do some real math. When people see a big commission number, they think it all goes into your pocket. Not even close.

Let’s use a $400,000 home sale as an example:

• The total commission is typically around 5%, which is $20,000.
• That total is almost always split between the buyer’s brokerage and the seller’s brokerage. So, your side gets $10,000. This is your Gross Commission Income (GCI).
• Now, you split that with your brokerage. A common split for a new agent is 60/40 (60% to you). So, your cut is $6,000.
• But wait! If you’re with a big franchise, you might pay a franchise fee of around 6%. That’s another $360 gone.
• Your pre-tax income is now $5,640.
• Since you’re an independent contractor, you have to pay your own taxes. Set aside 30% for federal, state, and self-employment tax. That’s $1,692 for Uncle Sam.

Your approximate take-home pay on that $400,000 sale is… $3,948.

And from that, you pay for all your business expenses. That’s why the feast-or-famine cycle is so brutal. You might close two deals in May and then nothing until September. The national average for a first-year agent is somewhere between 4 to 6 sales for the entire year. Now do the math. That six-month savings account suddenly makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?

Why Your Local Market Is Everything

Real estate is a hyper-local game. Being an agent in a booming city is a completely different job than being one in a quiet rural area. The core principles are the same, but the day-to-day work is worlds apart.

In a hot seller’s market, things are frantic. Homes get multiple offers in a matter of hours. Your job becomes less about marketing and more about being a strategist. For your buyers, you’re an expert at crafting a winning offer that stands out. For your sellers, you’re a pro at navigating complex, competing bids to find the strongest one, which isn’t always the highest price.

Contrast that with a slower buyer’s market. Properties might sit for months. Here, your job is about endurance and creativity. You need top-notch marketing skills to make your listings shine and sharp negotiation tactics to hold a deal together. You also become a bit of a therapist, managing a seller’s expectations over the long haul. A good agent has to be a chameleon, adapting to whatever the market throws at them.

How to Build a Business That Lasts

The agents who survive and thrive are the ones who make a critical mindset shift: they stop thinking like an agent and start acting like a business owner. This is where you build systems for the long haul.

Choosing Your First Brokerage is a HUGE Deal

This is your first major business decision, so don’t take it lightly. It’s not just about the commission split. Interview at least three different brokerages. Here are the questions you absolutely MUST ask:

• What does your training program look like for the first 90 days? Is it structured or self-guided?
• Who is my direct mentor or manager, and how often can I meet with them?
• What are ALL the fees I’m responsible for? (Get a detailed list of desk fees, tech fees, printing costs, etc.)
• What technology and marketing tools (like a CRM or website) does the brokerage provide?
• What is the culture like here? (Try to talk to other agents in the office!)

There are different models, from big-name franchises that offer incredible training systems, to smaller boutique firms with a tight-knit culture, to modern cloud-based brokerages that offer great splits but require you to be more of a self-starter. The right choice depends on your personality and what you need to succeed.

The Key to Longevity: Find Your Niche

You can’t be everything to everyone. The most successful agents specialize. They become the go-to expert for first-time homebuyers, or luxury condos, or a specific neighborhood. So how do you find yours? Grab a notebook and answer these three questions:

1. What community am I already a part of? (A sports league, a church, a parenting group?)
2. What type of property am I genuinely obsessed with? (Historic homes, modern architecture, investment properties?)
3. Who do I feel most driven to help? (Young families, retirees, military relocations?)

Your niche is probably where those three answers overlap. It’s how you go from chasing leads to having them come to you.

Your First 90 Days: A Simple Action Plan

Okay, so what do you actually do? Here’s a basic roadmap:

• Month 1: Learn & Build. Dive into your brokerage’s training. Learn the contracts inside and out. Start building your database in your CRM—every single person you know goes in there.
• Month 2: Prospect & Practice. This is your lead generation month. Start that 50-50-50 challenge. Ask to shadow a senior agent. Host your first open house (even if it’s for another agent’s listing).
• Month 3: Nurture & Serve. Follow up with everyone you met. Start sending a monthly email with market info. Your goal is to be seen as a resource. This is where the seeds you planted start to sprout.

The Unspoken Risks (Please Read This)

This is the part nobody talks about, but it’s the most important. As a broker, this is what keeps me up at night.

Your Personal Safety is Non-Negotiable

You will be meeting strangers in empty houses. It’s an inherent risk. We have strict safety rules at my brokerage. ALWAYS meet a new client at the office first. Get a copy of their ID. Tell someone where you’re going and who you’re with. And consider using a safety app like Forewarn, which can give you some background info on a new contact. Trust your gut. If something feels off, leave. No commission is worth your safety. I learned that lesson the hard way early in my career after a creepy showing left me shaken. Never again.

A Few Common (and Costly) Pitfalls

You’re handling someone’s biggest asset. A mistake can be devastating. Here are the rookie mistakes I see all the time:

• Choosing a broker based only on the commission split. Bad idea. In your first few years, training and mentorship are worth far more than a few extra percentage points.
• Not setting aside 30% of every check for taxes. When that first big check hits, the temptation is to spend it. Don’t. Immediately move the tax portion to a separate savings account.
• Thinking a “flexible schedule” means “part-time work.” As we covered, that’s a myth. The successful agents are the ones who outwork everyone else, especially at the beginning.

So, Is This Career Right for You?

After all that, we’re back to the big question. Real estate looks easy from the outside, but it’s one of the most demanding careers there is. It’s for the self-starters, the resilient ones who can take a punch and get back up. It’s for people who genuinely want to serve others through a massive life event.

It is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It is a business you build one relationship at a time. The first two years are a brutal test. But if you can push through, you can create a life and a business with a level of freedom and satisfaction that’s tough to beat. Honestly, there’s no feeling in the world like handing a family the keys to their first home. That’s the real commission, and it’s a reward you truly have to earn.