How to Start Your Residential Real Estate Career

So, you have decided on a career in residential real estate. You are a great communicator, super organised, have an amazing attention to detail, and you love property. You dream of selling multi-million dollar homes or managing a diverse portfolio of properties.

Maybe you want to be the next award-winning business development consultant, generating new business for real estate agencies. You want to turn your dreams into reality, but one thing stops you. You don’t know how to get your foot in the door of the industry!

Well, I am here to give you a little advice on stepping into the real estate industry and starting a very rewarding career.

Step One - Sales or property management?

Firstly, decide on what specific area you are interested in. Do you want to be a sales consultant? Or is property management more you’re passion? Having a clear understanding of your pathway is important. It’s essential to do your research on the industry. See if you can pop into your local agency and ask the property managers or sales consultants some questions.

Ask your friends if they have someone within their network that they can introduce you to who is employed in the industry. Maybe even attend an open home on a weekend to see a sales consultant in operation (remembering that this is a snapshot of their very comprehensive role).

Chat to a property manager at an open home - just as sales agents open homes to attract potential buyers, property managers open homes to attract potential tenants. Make sure though that you ask if it’s okay before firing off a lot of questions about their job. Having been in the property industry for more than ten years, I have found most agents and agencies are open to answering questions from interested parties.

Step Two - Know the licensing laws and get qualified

Every state has its own relevant licensing requirements and it’s important to understand the licensing in your location. As most states and territories in Australia require you to be licensed to hold certain roles, there are a variety of organisations that offer courses that will help you get the qualifications you need. Here in Perth, there is the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia , Kaplan , and West Coast Property Training to name a few. Each of these organisations offers both the Real Estate Sales License and the Property Management Registration courses which can either be completed in person or online.

Step Three - Complete your assessment

Once you have completed your License, you are often required to complete an assessment. You have up to six months to complete this, but the sooner you finish your assessment the sooner you will be able to start in the industry.

Step Four - Get registered

Before you can get to work, you need to be registered with the relevant government body. Often you are required to present a police clearance – take this into account as it can take up to a month to receive it. It’s better to be organised and complete the police clearance application before finishing your assessment.

Step Five - Find your first real estate job

You are now ready to look for work!! It is an excellent idea to approach real estate and property agencies in your local area, see if they have any cadetships for salespeople or assistant roles for property managers. Sometimes too, it’s good to approach and look at entry-level positions such as receptionists to get your foot in the door. Generally, most agencies like to recruit and promote

internally before turning to a recruitment agency to help build their team with experienced professionals.

What are you waiting for? Get off realestate.com.au and Domain and get on with putting your real estate career on track.

Who knows, I may see you at an open home one day or hire you to sell my multi-million dollar house (well that’s what’s in my dream). Good luck!