How to Become a Real Estate Agent

There are roughly 1.5 million people with a real estate license in the United States. Compared to other service industries, it is by far the most. For comparison, financial planners, like real estate agents, deal in helping people with financial transactions. There are roughly 100,000 licensed financial planners. In short, a lot of people have a real estate license (I’ll talk more about how to do this later). 

But there is a difference between people who have a license and the agents who are actively selling. You see, because it is so easy to get a license, so many people figure, Might as well get one and make a few extra dollars on the side. Just go to a party and you're bound to find at least one person who, for whatever reason, has a license. This is why statistically, people can name three real estate agents. But, from my experience, most of the people who have a license treat it as a novelty. Something they have just in case someone they know needs help or they want to buy something themselves. These people are not full-time agents, and in my opinion, if a license were hard to get, they wouldn’t even bother wasting time on them. So let’s not focus on them because they are not the model you want to follow. I know if you are reading this, you are not looking to just get a license as a trinket; you want to create the life of your dreams, so let’s talk about how you can do that. 

Know “Why” Being a Real Estate Agent is Important to You

The first thing I ask anyone who is considering becoming a real estate agent is, “Why?” Since I started asking this question over a decade ago, I have heard tons of answers, but there is one I hear the most. The answer I often get is people wanting to be rich (or some variation of it, like buy a bunch of stuff they don’t really need), and think real estate is a way to make that happen quickly. When I hear this, I know these people are just looking for something easy to increase their bank account as quickly as they can with the lowest possible effort. These people will never succeed because when things get difficult, they will quit and move on to the next thing they think will make them rich quickly.

On the flip side, I have also heard some emotional responses that told me everything I needed to know about whether the person will succeed or not. For example, when I owned my brokerage, one of my agents told me how she wanted to take care of her ailing Mother because of all that she had done for their family growing up. She then went into details about why it is important to her and her plan to make it happen. After hearing her story, I was in tears because I could see this woman had found her “why” and would do whatever it took to make it happen (she did!).

Look, I’m going to be very straight with you, regardless of what is shown on TV or on social media, building a successful real estate business is incredibly difficult. Want proof? Did you know, only 13% of agents make it past five years. To put that in context, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), three-quarters (75%) of new agents leave the industry in their first year. To succeed in this challenging profession, you have to know deep down why you want to be a real estate agent. If you don’t know, you won’t make it. 

NOTE: If you do believe deep down you have a true reason to be a real estate agent and want to know how you can do this check out my New Agent Resources page HERE to learn more on how you can do this.

Can Anyone be a Real Estate Agent? 

Earlier, I mentioned how easy it is to get a real estate license. Now I want to show you just how easy it is. Before I do, I want to mention that while it is easy to get a license in all 50 states, each does have its own requirements. If you want to know how to get a license in your state, I have the requirements for every state HERE on my New Agent Resources page. 

To get a real estate license, you need to be at least 18 years old in every state but in Alaska where you have to be at least 19. Next, almost half of the states you don’t even need a high school education. The other half, you must have at least a high school diploma or an equivalent GED. Finally, you need to complete a certain hours of pre-licensing classes. This varies by state, but the national average is around 80 hours. All of which can be done online, both live and some even as self-study on your own time.

That’s pretty much it. To help put this in perspective, I want to do another comparison with another service industry, cosmetology. Did you know, it takes 1,000 - 1,500 hours of class/floor time before someone can sit for their state exam? And it is not all online either. So, now that you know how easy it is, let me explain how to get one.

NOTE: If you’re curious about the cost to get a license, this will vary by state, but expect to pay at least a few hundred dollars or so for the classes and around $60 for every attempt to pass the state and national exams. 

How to Get a Real Estate License  

Like everything else up to this point, again, this is not difficult. Once you complete your pre-licensing classes, the next step is to sit for your state and national exams. These are typically held at a testing center, and there are typically plenty around for you to find a convenient one. All you need to do is look up the nearest PSI Services examination center and sign up for a time that is convenient for you. 

Again, each state is different, so make sure you fully understand what you need to do prior to signing up for your exams. Also, each state has its own limitations on how many chances you have to pass the exams. For more information on the requirements for your state, visit my New Agent Resources page HERE.

In case you are curious, it took me three times to pass the exams. I’m not a great test taker, so this was not easy for me, but most agents I have helped passed the exams on their first or second tries. 

So now you know how simple it is to get a real estate license. But like a driver’s license, just because you have one doesn’t mean you know how to drive (if you have driven around Chicago, you know what I’m talking about). To narrow it down for you, to succeed in real estate, you must completely understand why doing so is important for you (your “why”) and be willing to put in the work to make it happen. If you are missing either, you will fall right back into your current life. But if you believe this is the path you are destined to be on, there is no limit to what you can achieve. That’s the beauty of being an entrepreneur! 

I hope this makes sense. If not, leave me a comment so I can explain it more clearly for you!

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

P.S. IF you are serious about becoming a real estate agent and want to learn how you can avoid the mistakes 87% of new agents make, I encourage you to check out the coaching program I have developed to help agents before they enter the industry. The program is designed to help you avoid the frustrations I and so many other agents felt when entering the industry, struggling to survive while clinging to the belief we will succeed. It is completely based on proven results from my experience as a top-producing agent, owning a brokerage for almost a decade (where I helped agents average 2x4 times the amount of sales and income), and from spending over 25,000 hours learning from history’s most legendary people! If this sounds like something that would benefit you, please click HERE to set up a FREE 30 Minute Virtual Call to learn more about how I can help you.