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Real Estate Sales Agents

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Rent, buy, or sell property for clients. Perform duties such as study property listings, interview prospective clients, accompany clients to property site, discuss conditions of sale, and draw up real estate contracts. Includes agents who represent buyer.

Related: Appraisers & Assessors of Real Estate Appraisers of Personal & Business Property Property, Real Estate, & Community Association Managers Real Estate Brokers Securities, Commodities, & Financial Services Sales Agents

Industries: Real Estate & Rentals

Summary
Details

Promote sales of properties through advertisements, open houses, and participation in multiple listing services.
Advise clients on market conditions, prices, mortgages, legal requirements, and related matters.
Interview clients to determine what kinds of properties they are seeking.
Prepare documents such as representation contracts, purchase agreements, closing statements, deeds, and leases.
Display commercial, industrial, agricultural, and residential properties to clients and explain their features.
Generate lists of properties that are compatible with buyers' needs and financial resources.
Contact previous clients for prospecting of referral business.
Review plans for new construction with clients, enumerating and recommending available options and features.
Locate and appraise undeveloped areas for building sites, based on evaluations of area market conditions.
Rent or lease properties on behalf of clients.
Solicit and compile listings of available rental properties.
Evaluate mortgage options to help clients obtain financing at the best prevailing rates and terms.
Contact previous clients for prospecting of referral business.
Accompany buyers during visits to and inspections of property, advising them on the suitability and value of the homes they are visiting.
Confer with escrow companies, lenders, home inspectors, and pest control operators to ensure that terms and conditions of purchase agreements are met before closing dates.
Review property listings, trade journals, and relevant literature, and attend conventions, seminars, and staff and association meetings, to remain knowledgeable about real estate markets.
Investigate clients' financial and credit status to determine eligibility for financing.
Compare a property with similar properties that have recently sold to determine its competitive market price.
Contact property owners and advertise services to solicit property sales listings.
Review plans for new construction with clients, enumerating and recommending available options and features.
Arrange meetings between buyers and sellers when details of transactions need to be negotiated.
Secure construction or purchase financing with own firm or mortgage company.
Contact utility companies for service hookups to clients' property.
Present purchase offers to sellers for consideration.
Advise sellers on how to make homes more appealing to potential buyers.
Arrange for title searches to determine whether clients have clear property titles.
Coordinate property closings, overseeing signing of documents and disbursement of funds.
Display commercial, industrial, agricultural, and residential properties to clients and explain their features.
Visit properties to assess them before showing them to clients.
Inspect condition of premises, and arrange for necessary maintenance or notify owners of maintenance needs.
Develop networks of attorneys, mortgage lenders, and contractors to whom clients may be referred.
Locate and appraise undeveloped areas for building sites, based on evaluations of area market conditions.
Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers, generally representing one or the other.
Coordinate appointments to show homes to prospective buyers.
Answer clients' questions regarding construction work, financing, maintenance, repairs, and appraisals.
Conduct seminars and training sessions for sales agents to improve sales techniques.
Appraise properties to determine loan values.

Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.

Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.

Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

76980/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

37.01/hr

Currently Employed

24,800

Yearly Projected Openings

2430

Enterprising: People interested in this work like activities that include leading, making decisions, and business. They do well at jobs that need:

Integrity
Dependability
Stress Tolerance
Initiative
Achievement/Effort
Attention to Detail

Desktop computers
Digital cameras
Global positioning system GPS receiver
Laser printers
Measuring wheels for distance
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers

Accounting software
Analytical or scientific software
Calendar and scheduling software
Cloud-based data access and sharing software
Customer relationship management CRM software
Data base reporting software
Data base user interface and query software
Data mining software
Desktop publishing software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Expert system software
Financial analysis software
Geographic information system
Graphics or photo imaging software
Internet browser software
Map creation software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Project management software
Route navigation software
Sales and marketing software
Spreadsheet software
Video conferencing software
Video creation and editing software
Voice recognition software
Web page creation and editing software
Word processing software

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