Real Estate Careers: What are the Pros and Cons?
David Nelson
God's son+Hubby+Dad+Employee Leadership&Customer Experience Management Training+Student Mentorship
This post was originally posted on www.theperfectscribe.org.
If one-sided coin buys one goat, how many goats can five one-sided coins buy? Well, mathematically, the answer is five; but practically, it is zero because one-sided coins don’t exist! This question about the non-existence of single-sided coins remind us of one of the biggest beauties of life—duality. Everything in life, except perfection, has two sides. The good side motivates us to achieve our goals while the negative side reminds us of and equips us to overcome challenges along the way. That is why roses have sweet smelling flowers and thorns.
Regarding real estate careers, and selling in particular, the reality is the same. As you pursue your career in real estate selling, you will meet the thorns and fragrant flowers. The journey will be like peeling an onion to make your favorite meal. Before enjoying the delicious flavor in your mouth and its nutritional value in your body, the onion will make you cry. However, no sensible person throws away their onions just because the peeling makes them weep. Likewise, you cannot discount the fact that working as a real estate salesperson is a worthwhile career just because of its cons. With that in mind, here are the pros and cons of selling property.
The Pros
- Enjoy hefty commissions
Real estate, just like other industries, has its own unique ups and downs. This means you will enjoy high seasons when you will get the highest commissions for your sales. With most real estate brokerages offering agents up to 50 percent of their commissions, you are bound to earn a decent income from your efforts. With an average of $ 47,000 per year, you should thank God because billions of people on earth earn less than $2 per day! Moreover, an average real estate selling agent in the developing world earns an annual average of $6,000.
- Easy and faster entry
Unlike other industries, real estate careers—sales in particular—have an easy and faster entry path. In many states, you only need to complete necessary training and get licensed to start a fulfilling career. Moreover, most of the states allow this process to take place within a few months or even weeks.
- An opportunity to showcase your expertise
Do you want to establish yourself as an expert and an authority in your own right without needing a college degree? Then real estate allows you to do that. As a sales agent, you can use your skills to benefit fellow humans to get their dream homes and get value for their property investment. As the man on the ground, you are better positioned to know the finer details of properties and their environments. For instance, your interaction enables you to know where the best facilities such as schools, shopping malls, and hospitals are located.
- Work at your own time
When you venture into this field, you get a rate opportunity to work at your own time. This means that you will be better placed to learn and exercise time-management skills. If you are tired of sitting behind that desk all day, then you can venture into a new world of freedom as a property sales agent.
- Real estate careers allow you to be your own boss
Do you long to be your own boss? If you do, then selling property allows you to do that. As an expert in your own right, you will be better placed to make decisions and grow your career to the highest possible levels.
The Cons
- Negative Feedback that can Ruin Your Career
Dealing with real estate transactions involves stressful moments for many clients. This means that if you are not careful and a client leaves dissatisfied, they could damage your reputation and endanger your referral prospects.
- A Flexible schedule could be a disruption
Even though working as a real estate agent allows you to set your own working hours, you should prepare for possible disruptions. The reason is that your customers will not approach you based on the official 9 to 5 timeframe. This means that they can call on you anytime before or after five. Moreover, they could also need your services on weekends or holidays. Consequently, you will enjoy lesser private time or with your family in the evenings and during holidays or weekends.
- It could take some time before getting your first pay
Since you will be working for commissions, you should expect to wait for some time before earning your first pay check. Unless you have an alternative source of income, then you are most likely to feel some financial pinch.
- You could face challenges during low seasons
Real estate careers are like a bicycle that requires one peddle to be down with the other up or else they won’t move forward. Therefore, you should be ready for low seasons where you will need to compete for fewer customers while earning low commissions.
Are Real Estate Careers Worthwhile?
After seeing the two sides of the coin—the pros and cons—are selling real estate careers worthwhile? Based on our comprehensive coverage, the answer is a big “Yes.” The reason is that its cons are like the tears you shed when preparing onions to fix your favorite and tantalizing meals. You only need to be smart enough to know how to handle and mitigate the effects of its unavoidable cons while maximizing its pros. Based on the above, we can conclude that being a property sales agent is a worthwhile career.
About the Author
David Nelson is a full-time freelance content writer from Mombasa, Kenya. He specializes in article writing, copywriting, rewriting, proofreading, and editing. Moreover, he is fatally allergic to mediocre content, and hence, his firm belief in producing perfect content. You can sample some of his writings at www.theperfectscribe.org.