How to become a real estate agent in Australia: careers in real estate

If you have the gift of the gab and are confident selling to people, becoming a real estate agent might be the job for you, helping to match individuals, couples and families find the right home. As licensed professionals, real estate agents provide advice to buyers, sellers, owners and renters about the current state of the property market and guide people to the home or office space that suits their needs and budget. Currently, the Australian real estate market is booming, meaning you will be competing with other agents but in terms of employment, can provide you with plenty of opportunities for qualified and licensed agents across the residential, commercial and business sectors.

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Career in focus: What a real estate agent does
Real estate agents work hard, and perform a wide variety of tasks over their working week that involves more than just selling houses. Real estate agents perform market analysis, liaise with tenants and contractors about maintenance work, organise and conduct open houses and write property advertisements, which are just a few common responsibilities. As a real estate agent, you can usually chose which area you would like to focus on, such as selling residential properties and putting people in their dream home, while others deal exclusively with commercial properties and business listings.
Tasks:
Negotiating leases and sales
Preparing property listings for advertising
Setting minimum sell prices using comparative market analysis (CMA)
Undertaking property inspections and open house events
Collecting rental payments and arranging maintenance for tenants
Core qualities: Skills to succeed as a real estate agent
As a real estate agent, your communication must be excellent, as you will be working closely with a wide range of people, from property owners to tenants, bankers to tradespeople and everyone in between. It is good to remember that you are selling your professional service, as well as property, so it pays to be personable and presentable, building a rapport with both colleagues and clients. Working in real estate makes you the middleman, acting on behalf of the owners and looking after the needs of tenants, which can be tricky to balance, so you will need to remain impartial and diplomatic. You also need to have a great understanding of the local property market and be able to analyse market trends.
Skills/attributes
Good at negotiating and communicating
Able to work with clients, tenants and professionals
Focussed on sales
Good attention to detail
Understands the local property market
The field: Specialisations within real estate
Real estate agents can choose to focus exclusively on residential or commercial properties, or you may choose to take on a mix of listings. Starting out in the Australian real estate industry, you will need to be prepared to work your way up the ranks to bigger property deals and management positions. To build your career you will need to be flexible and accommodating in your role.
Property Manager
A property manager works on behalf of a property’s owner as well as advocating for the tenants. This role means ensuring that rent is collected, analysing, undertaking or coordinating maintenance of a property, performing inspections, coordinating open houses and ensuring terms of a lease are being met by both the owner and tenant.
Residential Real Estate Agent
Helping families or individuals find their dream home can be very rewarding but often requires some level of patience and flexibility. It helps to have sound knowledge of the local area to help sell the property like information on the schools, community centres, parks and public transport options in a neighbourhood to help provide prospective buyers with a complete picture of the property and get sellers the best price.
Commercial Real Estate Agent
This specialisations will find you working in commercial property, dealing with office, retail and industrial premises, finding suitable tenants and ensuring that zoning codes are properly observed. This position means should have a very thorough understanding of the neighbourhood demographics and traffic as well as local council regulations to help you assess how viable a property will be for the buyer or seller.
Business Broker
A business broker acts as a go-between in the sale of a privately owned business. This requires well-developed skills in negotiation, which will find you working on behalf of the seller or buyer to find the best price and settle the terms of the sale, ensuring compliance with legislation and a smooth handover process.
The right track: Find study options for becoming a real estate agent
In order to become a licensed real estate agent you will need to complete a qualification and register in your state.
Top courses
Starting Out
Completing a certificate of registration will allow you to work under the supervision of a licenced real estate agent while you learn on-the-job skills.
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Building Skills
A licensing program will instruct you in all the duties you’ll need to perform as an agent in your state and allow you to work unsupervised on completion.
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Developing Your Resume
Develop your passion for real estate and improve your industry knowledge by putting yourself ahead of the pack with an advanced qualification.
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Industry Recognition
In order to work as a real estate agent, you need to be registered and licenced in your state. Learn more about your professional responsibilities and how to register in the Resources section.
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Entering the Workforce
Put yourself ahead of the competition and improve your employment prospects in the real estate industry. View our sample resume and cover letter to make sure you’re on the right track.
Job Prospects in real estate: Working life as a real estate agent
The real estate industry in Australia is expected to continue the trend of strong growth experienced in the past five years, providing plenty of job opportunities for the future.