Real estate agents assist both sellers and buyers in the property sales of their homes, and are the primary resource for housing purchases.
They are heavily relied upon to help customers prepare their homes for a sale, as well as assisting homebuyers to find the perfect home, that matches their criteria.
They spend their time listening to clients needs for a home, financial expectations, and seeking homes that suit the buyer interests through the homes of sellers that are also seeking real estate services.
Buying a home is stressful and complex, which is why so many homebuyers and sellers in the United States rely on the help of a real estate agent.
Real Estate Agent Salary
Real estate agents are paid an hourly wage, and are typically not salaried.
However, they are frequently paid bonuses, or commissions, for the sales that they make. The starting hourly rate of a Real Estate Agent may be $10 an hour, plus commission.
The average hourly rate is $24.18
The median salary of a Real Estate Agent is $50,300 per year.
The pay scale relies upon the economic climate of the geographical location where the real estate agent does business.
It is expected that an agent may not make any sales for weeks at a time if there is poor economic stability.
The salary of real estate agents depends upon the home buying activity of the area.
Those who are seeking a career in real estate and wonder how much does a real estate agent make, should consider that location and local economy is a huge component of this profession, and should seek work accordingly.
They are typically self-employed and may even work part time in addition to other careers and trades.
Top 5 Paying States
| Flag | State | Employment per 1000 Jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | New York | – | $45.39 | $94,410 |
 | Wyoming | 0.80 | $36.34 | $75,580 |
 | Illinois | 0.99 | $36.19 | $75,270 |
 | Massachusetts | 0.78 | $34.85 | $72,500 |
 | Colorado | 1.36 | $34.56 | $71,880 |
Top Paying Industries
| Industry | Percent of industry employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transportation of Natural Gas | 0.11 | $43.69 | $90,880 |
| Legal Services | 0.05 | $43.16 | $89,770 |
| Oil Extraction | 1.00 | $38.86 | $80,820 |
| Federal Executive Branch | 0.13 | $37.50 | $78,000 |
| Scientific, and Technical Services | – | $37.02 | $77,000 |
What Does a Real Estate Agent Do?
Real estate sales agents work under the supervision of a real estate broker, or a real estate sales business manager.
They are responsible for many different tasks as it pertains to the buying and selling of real estate.
When soliciting real estate services with clients, agents will discuss prices, mortgages, and amenities of homes in terms of how they correlate with cost, and current economic conditions.
They are regularly listing properties for sale while compiling advertisements with marketable information, in an effort to make properties appealing to prospective buyers.
They are also regularly scheduling appointments with buyers, and showing the features of homes, as well as coordinating open house events to grow a clientele of prospective buyers.
Agents present offers to sellers, and often barter and compromise with sellers and buyers to find an acceptable price.
In addition to sales, real estate agents are also responsible for the paperwork that involves the buying and selling of homes, such as deeds and purchase offers.
They do not only sell homes, they may also sell agricultural property, plots of land, commercial property, and industrial property.
They are expected to remain knowledgeable of all selling trends and conditions as these types of properties are considered.
If a real estate agent would like to further their career and earnings potential, they can obtain a license to become a real estate broker, and manage their own real estate sales business, and may even employ real estate sales agents.
The pay scale of a real estate broker is much more than that of a real estate sales agent, and ranges from an average starting wage of $12.00 an hour, up to an average of $85.00 an hour.
Schedule
They may work as little as part time, as much as sixty, to even eighty hours per week in order to have the highest sales potential.
The work of a real estate agent may be very demanding, requiring long hours to make sales and manage properties.
They are expected to have evening and weekend availability to work with clients around their work schedules.
Most are able to set their own schedules based upon appointments made.
Many work outside of their homes, although most work in a brokerage, or a franchise of a national real estate company, in which the office pays fees for a popular and well-known name.
Job outlook
The growth expectation of real estate agents is expected to grow at least 6% over the course of the next ten years.
Customers will frequently obtain the sales services of a realtor when selling or buying homes, and services increase as the economy grows.
Owning real estate is seen as a goal of nearly all citizens of the United States, and real estate agents help in the purchase of obtaining that goal.
A career in real estate sales has a lot of earnings potential and job security.
This career is flexible, allowing real estate sales agents to even have other careers, with a wide range of earnings potential.
Considering the expected growth of this career, becoming a real estate agent in the United States is considered a stable career choice.
Real Estate Agent Salary by State
| Flag | State | Employment per 1000 Jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Alabama | 0.81 | $27.21 | $56.600 |
 | Alaska | 0.60 | $33.28 | $69.220 |
 | Arizona | 1.24 | $20.50 | $42.650 |
 | Arkansas | 0.70 | $18.71 | $38.910 |
 | California | 0.88 | $24.86 | $51.710 |
| Colorado | 1.30 | $29.24 | $60.830 |
 | Connecticut | 0.50 | $25.85 | $53.770 |
 | Delaware | 1.65 | $26.55 | $55.220 |
 | Florida | 3.57 | $19.92 | $41.430 |
 | Georgia | 1.84 | $23.05 | $47.930 |
 | Hawaii | 0.55 | $23.70 | $49.290 |
 | Idaho | 0.96 | $16.91 | $35.180 |
| Illinois | 0.99 | $37.26 | $77.500 |
 | Indiana | 0.48 | $21.97 | $45.700 |
 | Iowa | 0.65 | $20.24 | $42.100 |
 | Kansas | 0.47 | $22.82 | $47.470 |
 | Kentucky | 0.75 | $19.02 | $39.550 |
 | Louisiana | 0.58 | $20.29 | $42.200 |
 | Maine | 0.30 | $17.93 | $37.290 |
 | Maryland | 1.24 | $24.14 | $50.220 |
| Massachusetts | 0.69 | $31.73 | $66.010 |
 | Michigan | 0.67 | $21.71 | $45.160 |
 | Minnesota | 0.68 | $21.65 | $45.030 |
 | Mississippi | 0.82 | $16.62 | $34.570 |
 | Missouri | 0.89 | $19.21 | $39.950 |
 | Montana | 0.66 | $23.73 | $49.370 |
 | Nebraska | 0.57 | $20.36 | $42.350 |
 | Nevada | 1.56 | $25.41 | $52.850 |
 | New Hampshire | 0.34 | $18.54 | $38.550 |
 | New Jersey | 0.55 | $23.36 | $48.590 |
 | New Mexico | 0.68 | $25.46 | $52.950 |
| New York | 1.41 | $43.61 | $90.710 |
 | North Carolina | 1.23 | $26.19 | $54.480 |
 | North Dakota | 1.49 | $19.48 | $40.530 |
 | Ohio | 0.75 | $21.10 | $43.890 |
 | Oklahoma | 1.75 | $22.48 | $46.760 |
 | Oregon | 0.65 | $20.72 | $43.100 |
 | Pennsylvania | 1.20 | $27.76 | $57.750 |
 | Rhode Island | – | – | – |
 | South Carolina | 2.01 | $18.18 | $37.820 |
 | South Dakota | 0.69 | $25.65 | $53.350 |
 | Tennessee | 0.46 | $18.42 | $38.310 |
 | Texas | 1.58 | $26.40 | $54.920 |
 | Utah | 1.77 | $25.96 | $54.010 |
 | Vermont | – | – | – |
 | Virginia | 2.33 | $27.22 | $56.610 |
 | Washington | 1.31 | $22.65 | $47.100 |
 | West Virginia | 0.24 | $19.62 | $40.800 |
 | Wisconsin | 0.46 | $21.11 | $43.920 |
| Wyoming | 0.76 | $32.42 | $67.430 |
Top paying metropolitan areas
$97,180 is the mean annual wage of the top paying metro area Lake County Kenosha County, IL WI Metropolitan Division
| Area | Employment per 1000 jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York / White Plains / Wayne, – NY / NJ – Metropolitan Division | – | $48.47 | $100,810 |
| Indianapolis / Carmel, – IN | 0.75 | $47.86 | $99,540 |
| Reno / Sparks, – NV | 0.48 | $40.20 | $83,620 |
| Framingham, – MA – NECTA Division | 0.47 | $39.75 | $82,680 |
| Denver / Aurora / Broomfield, -CO | 1.09 | $38.90 | $80,910 |
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas
North Central Colorado nonmetropolitan area is the top non metro area with an annual wage of $86,940 and an hourly of $41.80
| Area | Employment per 1000 jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Central Colorado – nonmetropolitan area | 4.52 | $43.43 | $90,330 |
| Eastern Washington – nonmetropolitan area | 1.39 | $37.08 | $77,130 |
| Central Montana – nonmetropolitan area | 0.84 | $32.43 | $67,460 |
| East Central, Pennsylvania – nonmetropolitan area | 0.79 | $31.44 | $65,390 |
| Capital – Northern New York – nonmetropolitan area | 0.21 | $31.26 | $65,020 |
