How And Why To Move From Agent To Broker

If you have been a successful agent for a while, you may be looking for the next steps you can take to grow your business, personal development, and professional life. While there are always things you can do to make yourself a better agent, you may also want to consider moving into the upper echelons of your profession.

Becoming a broker means that you are ready to take charge of your business, and that you are prepared not only to work with clients on both sides of the closing table, but that you are ready to build and head a team of your own to help you do so.

Becoming a broker

To become a broker, most states require that you have a certain number of years’ experience as a real estate agent before attempting to qualify for a broker license, usually between one and three years.

After attaining the required level of experience, prospective brokers must train for and take the broker licensing examination in order to receive their certificates. A background check may also be required in some states.

Of course, becoming a broker is only the beginning. A successful broker becomes one each day: he or she becomes more thoughtful, more efficient, more creative and, eventually, more successful.

Benefits of brokership

Working as a broker has significant benefits over simply being a real estate agent. One of the most salient is autonomy. This is true, though to a different degree, whether you decide to pursue associate brokership or manage your own team.

Instead of relying on other people, often with conflicting interests, to bring your transactions to fruition, as a broker, you would have much more influence on both the buyer and seller sides of the transaction, giving counsel to both and bringing them both together.

Via S&S Panama Real Estate: The broker pulls everything together.

A broker is responsible for him or herself as well as others. It is likely that if you are working as a broker, you will have employees of your own. These employees will be agents and even other brokers, called associate brokers, especially if your agency sees continued business success.

Financial aspects

A career as a broker is much more lucrative, usually, than a career as an agent, because brokers represent more parties and thus earn more commission in a typical transaction. Even associate brokers have an advantage, because they often have access to shares of profit that regular agents do not.

Brokers tend to make more as a general rule, with the median of broker-owners taking home $90,910 in 2017 and the median of sales agents taking home only $33,750 in comparison.

The earning potential for brokers is also much higher than for agents. While only 3 percent of agents made more than $250,000 in 2017, this statistic jumps to 15 percent for broker-owners. In other words, broker-owners are five times more likely to earn a quarter million dollars or more than real estate agents are. That’s a huge margin!

Via simplilearn.com: Brokership is significantly more lucrative than being an agent only.

But it’s not just about profit. Brokers serve more people, and are more involved with those people on the basis of their own job descriptions. They increase their professional network and reputation and reap great personal and financial rewards while doing it. If you are eligible and looking to expand your life, make sure you check for the next licensing training and exam in your state, and take the chance!