A real estate agent is a licensed professional who helps people buy, sell, and rent private or commercial properties. They act as representatives in negotiations between buyers and sellers. Along with finding buyers and sellers, real estate agents are also responsible for advising about prices, mortgages, and the current real estate market situations.
Real estate agents are typically compensated by a commission, which is a percentage of the price finalized for the purchase of the property. So, their income depends on their ability to seal the deal. Also, they must work for or affiliated with an individual real estate broker or a brokerage firm that is more experienced and licensed to a higher degree.
A real estate agent may work for buyers or sellers. In fact, there always comes a time in the business of a real estate agent where they may be helping clients who want to sell their home, along with another set of clients who are looking for properties to buy.
Agents who work for the seller are known as listing agents, and they advise clients on how to price the property and prepare it for sale. Also, they could provide tips on last-minute improvements that can boost the price or enable speedy offers.
While agents who work for the buyers are required to search for available properties that must match the buyer's budget and other requirements. And for this, they often need to research past sales data about the properties to suggest a fair bid to the potential buyer.
Everyone has different reasons for choosing real estate as a career option. But, one question, "How do I become a real estate agent?" is consistent, and the answer to this is slightly different for every state.
Though each state has negligibly different rules and regulations, a few basic requirements are always constant, such as becoming a real estate agent includes a combination of completing a number of hours of classroom learning, passing a licensing exam, and your age must be above 18 years. In some states, you must be sponsored by a broker while working for your license.
Before taking the real estate license exam, you need to take classes for subjects like real estate fundamentals, real estate law, and mortgage financing at any community college, state college, or university to acquire a certificate or degree in real estate. The required hours for classes you must complete are different in every state but commonly include 60 to 90 hours and could take three to six months. Above all, you must keep yourself inspired by answering yourself how many real estate agents in US are working day and night, and if they can, why not me!
The real estate game is constantly evolving, and that implies new real estate agents will need to keep on learning. So, here are some of the best real estate books for agents that they must go through at least once in their career: The Millionaire Real Estate Agent, The Conversion Code, 6 Steps to 7 Figures, The ONE Thing, Your First Year in Real Estate
Apart from books, real estate agents can also explore some courses, either online or offline, to get detailed knowledge about their careers. There are courses that can help you grow your business and your finances.
Company: Compass
State: New York
She is a top real estate agent in the US and a broker for Compass in New York City with the highest quality options for buyers. Having experience of over 25 years, her secret to success has been working her way up from her mailroom training program at William Morris Agency. She is a fine negotiator and famous for finding fun and creative way-outs for her buyers. Alexa is also a member of the Chairman’s Circle and the best real estate agent NYC can offer.
Company:The Corcoran Group
State: New York
Cathy is a real estate agent with The Corcoran Group and focuses on luxury homes in New York. She has been in this business for over 28 years, and she is considered an expert in negotiations. It is believed that Franklin is a great deal breaker who never backs down in negotiations. She always focuses on making her buyers feel great while discussing the properties as she deals in luxury residential real estate in New York.
Company: Coldwell Banker Realty
State: California
Jade Mills works for Coldwell Banker Realty in Beverly Hills. She is renowned as 6 Billion Dollar Woman as she has a worldwide reputation for selling $6 billion worth of properties throughout her career. Jade has the achievements of selling the Spelling Manor and Playboy Mansion to her name. In the United States, she majorly focuses on Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Pacific Palisades, and Hollywood Hills areas but does not limit herself and keeps working on luxury real estate all across the globe.
Company: Sotheby’s International Realty
State: New York
Serena joined the real estate world in 2001, and since then, she has sold over 2.6 billion dollars worth of homes and properties for Sotheby's. Her expertise lies in the co-op, townhouse, and condo markets, which allows her to cover a crucial target area. She credits her success to her focus, and because of that, she is one of the best real estate agents to work for in the market.
Company: Compass
State: WA
Tere Foster has over 30 years of professional experience and works with Compass in Bellevue. Mainly she sells residential homes in Washington state and is supported by a fantastic team to please her luxury buyers. Tere holds the capability to build long-term client relationships and community connections, which has made her the Residential Specialist. She is a graduate of Realtor Institute and a certified Managing Broker.
Company: Sotheby’s International Realty
State: California
Neil Bassi is one of the best real estate agents San Francisco has ever observed in its history. He guarantees both confidentiality and privacy to his high-end customers as he knows if he wants to seal the deal, he ought to amuse his luxury buyers with discrete and high-quality treatment. Bassi has sold properties for $25 million and more in his career. He occasionally works for lower range clients but primarily focuses on $2 million to $10 million deals for home and co-op.
Company: Compass
State: California
Judy Citron works with Compass in Menlo Park, California. She started working back in 1995 when she first entered the San Francisco Peninsula real estate scene. Judy is one of the favorite real estate agents of luxury buyers due to her dedication and buyer-first mentality. She continued to have long-term working relationships with many of her clients, making her an influential figure in California real estate business.
Company: The Agency
State: California
Santiago has been working for The Agency, Los Angeles as a real estate agent since 2014. After joining, he formed a selling trio with two other real estate agents named Billy Rose and Mauricio Umansky. This partnership has proven so successful that they have closed on over 3.5 billion dollars of property deals together. Arana thanks his international upbringing for his great global relationships.
Company: The Corcoran Group
State: New York
Deborah Rieders continues to be successful while working with The Corcoran Group in Brooklyn. She does not believe in stopping herself from dealing with not-so-good types of markets. Deborah collaborates with developers, buyers, and sellers to negotiate excellent deals for her clients. Her confidence, determination, and fierce personality attract buyers to her, helping her close some of the best deals of her career. She has the habit of maintaining two side projects while thriving in the real estate business.
Company: The Corcoran Group
State: New York
Tim is counted among the most dominant brokers of The Corcoran Group in Southampton, New York, and he has 40 years of experience in the business, one of the longest real estate careers in the US. He always attributes his success to his hometown knowledge of the New York region along with his confidence. Tim Davis was so good even in the early days that he managed to broker six of the most crucial luxury sales on the East End of the Hamptons in just one year of his career!
It is not easy to become one of the best real estate agents in the country; it requires a lot of confidence, determination, perseverance, and regular hard work. Even if you learn a single thing from each of these agents, nothing can stop you from being a successful real estate agent.
Here you will get every detail about real estate agents from their qualifications, licensing exam, and their exact work. And to get motivated, you can read about the best real estate agents in the United States.
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