Real Estate Brokers

What the job really is

Operate real estate office, or work for commercial real estate firm, overseeing real estate transactions. Other duties usually include selling real estate or renting properties and arranging loans.

At a glance

• Sector: Sales
• O*NET-SOC code: 41-9021
• O*NET job zone: 4 — considerable preparation
• Work sample tasks on file: 12
• Tools and technologies listed: 12

What you actually do

Work sample tasks recorded for this occupation:

• Sell, for a fee, real estate owned by others.
• Obtain agreements from property owners to place properties for sale with real estate firms.
• Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers over property prices and settlement details and during the closing of sales.
• Generate lists of properties for sale, their locations, descriptions, and available financing options, using computers.
• Manage or operate real estate offices, handling associated business details.
• Compare a property with similar properties that have recently sold to determine its competitive market price.
• Maintain knowledge of real estate law, local economies, fair housing laws, types of available mortgages, financing options, and government programs.
• Monitor fulfillment of purchase contract terms to ensure that they are handled in a timely manner.
• Check work completed by loan officers, attorneys, or other professionals to ensure that it is performed properly.
• Rent properties or manage rental properties.
• Maintain awareness of current income tax regulations, local zoning, building and tax laws, and growth possibilities of a property's area.
• Arrange for title searches of properties being sold.

Tools and technology

Adobe Photoshop, Facebook, Intuit QuickBooks, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, Salesforce software, Yardi software

What employers expect you to already be comfortable with.

Where this job leads

Related occupations — the usual moves up and sideways:

• Real Estate Sales Agents
• Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers
• Appraisers and Assessors of Real Estate
• Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents
• Financial and Investment Analysts
• Appraisers of Personal and Business Property
• Loan Officers
• Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products

Getting in

O*NET assigns this occupation job zone 4 (considerable preparation). The related occupations above are the realistic routes in and out.

Find openings

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Check this against the source

O*NET OnLine: Real Estate Brokers — the authoritative public-domain profile this page is derived from, including the full task list, reported skills and the wage estimates for your region.

Derived and rewritten from the public-domain O*NET database (U.S. Department of Labor / Employment and Training Administration). Figures are observations, not promises — always confirm salary, licensing and visa requirements with the employer and the relevant authority.