Thinking of a Career in Real Estate?
If you think becoming a real estate agent seems like a good idea, you’re not alone. There are currently more than a 1.5 million REALTORS in the U.S., and for good reason. REALTORS enjoy flexible hours, the opportunity to be self-employed, a network of interesting people, and of course, the income. But how did all these people become agents? The fact is that most people who work in residential sales were in some other profession first.
Success as a REALTOR is primarily determined by your personality. It doesn’t matter who you know. Your age doesn’t matter. Neither does your education. What does matter is that you are an optimistic, can-do type of person....someone who is caring and interested in others. Successful real estate agents enjoy working with people and are great problem solvers.
You Will Need to Get Your License
First step is to get your real estate license from the Missouri Real Estate Commission, which will require 48 amount of hours of coursework and MREC testing, followed by the 24 hour Real Estate Practices course. The courses are mostly related to ethics, discrimination and other consumer protections. Many online courses are available, but you can take live courses if you prefer. The longest course may stretch over eight weeks, but many courses can be completed in less than a week. The cost of your courses can vary, but it’s usually under $1,000 to get licensed.
Build Your Business Using Your Contacts
As a new agent, most of your initial contacts will be family or friends. For most agents, getting the word out is the best way to use your contacts to build your business. First you create a list of your all contacts and put them together in a database. We recommend you send out our announcement about your new career and ask your closest people to help share the news. Put out information through your social media, start networking and soon you’ll have people interested in talking to you about representing them. We sell the most desirable product there is... everyone needs to live somewhere!
After You Obtain Your License
A license from the state real estate commission (MREC) gives you the legal right to sell real estate, but you cannot call yourself a REALTOR until you join the National Association of REALTOR (NAR) and agree to follow the rules they set forth. To work with Executive Real Estate, you will have to join the National, State and local Associations of REALTORS. All successful agents find this very beneficial. This is how you will obtain access to our local Multiple Listing Service (MARIS), which is the database where all the homes for sale are listed. You will need an annual pro-rated subscription to obtain access to our Supra electronic lock boxes as well. Many types of training and your required continuing education are provided by these REALTOR associations.