chat

https://www.reddit.com/r/realtors/comments/td0dfb/so_why_why_did_you_become_a_realtor/

Look at this thread. I feel like all our analysis here rings true in these comments.

Hit rock bottom by jumping into an oil based labour position right out of highschool that gave me zero transferable skills by the time they laid be off in my late 20s due to a huge slowdown in the industry.

On one side of the coin, you will see the "rock bottom, no skills" Realtor path. On the other side of the coin you will see the "Retiree, Lifestyle maintainer" Realtor path.

Ex-developer turned Realtor here. Learn JavaScript and React. It's never been easier and the market's never been hotter. Currently contemplating jumping back into dev as the full-remote market has exploded salaries.

While not directly related, a reply, how is that hot market looking now, two years on? Anyway

Through the early years of our marriage, my wife and I worked through a handful of different things for her to do for employment/income. One such endeavor: She had tried her hand at real estate licensing coursework but decided halfway through it wasn’t what she wanted. The binder of education material (it was 1998/9) lived on my bookshelf for a long time. I had been working in the automotive industry fixing cars, was at the time working for a towing company, tired of being dirty and smelling of diesel, and hungry for change. [...] I hungered to own my own business, but wasn’t creative or experienced enough to overcome the startup costs of starting something more traditional. [...] 2008 rolled into town and we were decimated financially due to some poor decision making on my part combined with an economic collapse. Sold everything and started over. Got a degree. Moved out of state. Got my license again in 2015 and am now currently back to fixing cars and selling real estate. Having fun, making 150k a year while generally goofing off and making friends in the community. I feel very lucky to be where I am.

A wife seeking financial independence. Dreams of being a small business owner. A profiteer of the collapse of the housing market. Note that they were able to "Sell everything" and then "move out of state" and "get a degree". Sure, I may be reading between the lines here, but it's clear everything they sold contributed in some way to this development. Also note, though, back to fixing cars, and back to selling property, despite the degree.

I want to be my own boss and I want to connect and help people. I used to sell cellphones, made a 100k, was not rewarding at all. I used to sell cars, my customers who I worked very hard for were never appreciative and always thought they were getting scammed even though we were super legit. I've finally found that helping people by a home is the most rewarding thing ever, the customers WANT to work with you and know about your guidance and opinions. I love it so far.

Another dreamer. I am not sure how one makes 100K selling cellphones, but maybe this was in the early 90s when they were business commodities. A car salesman, another role in the capitalist market of high repute, they thought they were getting scammed for a reason surly.

I was a flight attendant making $25k a year in a super HCOL area and I fucking hated it. Miserable job. Needed something that wasn’t a 9-5 and I’ve always been an entrepreneurial based individual. I don’t do well with having a boss, just not my vibe. I wanted something that required some level of brain power, had a weird schedule to match the lifestyle I’m used to, and could allow me to be free. Came up with realtor. I freaking love it. Every time I have to go to a showing, do an open house, interact with clients, prospect in a new way, I legit realize more and more how right the decision was. I feel like I was made to do this. I 100% love it.

The entrepreneur, a motif that implies a creative spirit, but in reality, is just a huckster of another person's wears. Seeking to maintain their lifestyle, or at least gain the "lifestyle" they imagined. A lifestyle of "freedom".

Started investing in real estate as part of my retirement portfolio. Had friends asking me about it and was advising them about how to do the same. I knew areas, how to run numbers, construction materials & costs, and enjoyed negotiating. Found out I was decent at it, I may as well get paid for it.

What about the time you have to dedicate to be successful? How is your work-life balance? What if you want to take a vacation for a few weeks?

I learned to have a decent work/life balance a long time ago. I've always worked to live, not lived to work. I'm not a "top producer" nor do I ever want to be. I work enough to support my lifestyle and help people. I'm at a point where I dedicate very little time to "being successful". I provide value and good service to clients and they refer more business to me.

Another lifestyle maintainer. What kind of lifestyle do these folks all imagine, I wonder. One where you are not working a wage job, I bet.

[...] I thought I could help people through the complex process (especially first time homebuyers) while making money. [...]

This sits at the heart of the Realtor I feel. They are the Shepard of a "complex process" one whose complexity is by design, and the social relations it manifests begets their own role. A simpler process of housing people might be a genocide of the Realtors, which they will resist at all costs. What are they, then, if they can no longer decipher the arcane process of "buying shelter".

[...] One day we were walking out of an open house and my wife remarked, “you know, you could be doing that. You’re good with talking to people and enjoy seeing houses.” But I was in graduate school, and thought it would be crazy to quit my program to pursue a career with no guaranteed income, yet the idea stuck with me.

Fast forward a few years, I have my first contract gig working in an archive after getting my Master’s in Library Science and I’m miserable. I’m by myself most of the day creating metadata and digitizing items. I spend my breaks looking at listings and studying my local market.

“Remember when you said you could see me being a realtor? Well, I just signed up for classes and told my boss I won’t be renewing any contract.” She just shook her head and was like, “you just better make some money!”

The Risk and the Reward. This is the Coat of Arms of the House of the Small Businessman. Another casualty of the broken education system, seeking a way out. Thanks to this low bar for entry, they were able to pivot into selling shelter. Born into capitalist hell, you either earn a profit or die. One can hardly fault the choice. Library Science likely creates more social value than the "value" generated from the exchange of properties.

money and freedom

This comment I feel like is the Markov Chain that results from the distillation of all the other comments.

No job is going to pay me that much money for the amount of hours I work and flexibility I have with my associates degree

So I didn’t have to get a real job (half kidding)

Here we see two commenters who have identified the issue with wage labor, and have rejected it in favor of... independent contract labor.

Got a job in a grocery store as a courtesy clerk. Ike up 10 years later as a journeyman meat cutter and the wage ceiling was just too low. Whether I did a good job or not, my wages were the same, and didn’t meet inflation.

Commissions linked to home prices felt like a better way for me to earn a fair wage. Also, I have customer service skills and enjoy using them

An interesting analysis of inflation and wages. It's clear that a commission on a market that historically is inflationary only results in a wage that keeps up with inflation.

mother is a realtor, so she had me get my license at 19, currently 20 with no sells but also a full time student and work part time. Right now i’m just trying to get to know more people so by the time all my friends can afford a house they will come to me.

A mother escapes the bonds of economic patriarchy and passes this skill to their child. The child dreams of cannibalizing their friends, jokes on them though, they'll never be able to afford a house.

I honestly have huge respect for people that are able to feed their family off of being a realtor full time! I started out as a landlord, I added maintenance/contracting for extra money. Then I got my real estate license for extra cash. Real estate is the least reliable of all of the occupations. I’m studying for the brokers license at the moment. But props to everyone who is able to start from nothing and able to put food on the table.

How one "starts out" as a landlord is a question of inheritance, I believe. A strong spawning point like this will naturally only lead to good things.