Real Estate
As A Career

By Paul Armor
President, Armor Realty of Tallahassee, Inc.

CHALLENGING - EXCITING - SCARY - EXHILARATING

The real estate sales business has been described as all of these and more. The purpose of this report is to give you an idea of what it takes to get started and to succeed in the business.

YOUR LICENSE: In order to work for a real estate brokerage firm for pay in Florida, you must get a Florida real estate license. The first requirement is that you must take a 63-hour pre-licensing Principles and Practices course. The course is offered locally by several different schools at a cost ranging from $175 to $395. Call Lively & The Real Estate School.

After you complete the preliminary course, you are qualified to sit for the state examination. The exam is offered locally. A score of 75 or higher qualifies you for a salesperson's license.

PLACING YOUR LICENSE: Assuming you are interested in selling real estate, you must now

Where you place your license is probably the key factor in determining whether or not you are successful in real estate sales. The training you get as a new agent is critical to your success. On a national scale, eight out of ten new agents don't last one year in the business! Agent failure is most often due to inadequate training.

You should interview several companies and ask about their training program. Ask each company, you interview with to tell you about some of the new recruits (like yourself) they have helped become successful agents. Talk to these agents to get their viewpoint. A poor company selection at this point in your budding career can be disastrous.

FUNDING YOUR BUSINESS: As you enter the real estate profession, you should realize that you are starting a new business. You are not an employee of your company; you are an independent contractor. As such, you are not paid a salary - you earn commissions (hopefully!) for selling real estate.

This poses a financial challenge, especially for a new agent. At a minimum, there are start-up costs of $1000 -- $2000 including education, licensing, Board of Realtor dues, cellular phone,

Working part time initially is usually not a good idea. Success in real estate sales requires a huge time commitment - there is so much to learn.

FINDING YOUR BUSINESS: You should ask yourself: "Where is my real estate business going to come from?" Your new company cannot supply you with enough buyers and sellers for you to make a living. Your daily job in real estate is to prospect for new business. That is really what "working in real estate" means. You may love people and really enjoy showing houses, but unless you search for business on a regular day-to-day basis, you won't be very successful. The best agents have a daily-weekly-monthly plan that they follow to generate new clients on a consistent basis. If you don't like to prospect for business, a real estate sales career isn't the right job for you.

THE FINAL WORD: Real estate sales can be a wonderful profession. You have the privilege of helping people with some of the most important financial and emotional decisions of their lives. You'll make some life-long friends

As a self-employed sales professional, you have tremendous freedom. No two days are alike. You don't punch a time card or watch the clock. You decide what you're going to do each day. This freedom is exhilarating.

There are great financial rewards for successful, top-producing agents. The money usually doesn't come easily or quickly, but it is definitely available if you learn, work hard and work smart. Being a self-employed Realtor® is the American free enterprise system in the purest sense - you are paid for performance.

If you would like more information about the real estate profession contact:

Mark Trafton at 850-893-2525 or 322-9036

or Paul Armor at (850) 893-2525 or 321-5271

Armor Realty of Tallahassee, Inc.
1519 Killearn Center Boulevard
Tallahassee, Florida 32309