Reported By: Reese Meno
As an upperclassman, I felt pressured to start thinking about my future career path. Yet, just like other students that work, I also felt pressure to start making some sort of income as soon as possible. After some research, I landed on the idea of getting into Real Estate while still attending school.
I watched a couple YouTube videos of people my age who were getting into real estate and thought, this would be a walk in the park. If I had known back then what I know now, I would travel back to stop myself from making such a rash decision.
Real estate is a great and competitive field, but if your experience is anything like mine, and you’re only hoping for some fast cash, you’re in for a rude awakening. Real estate agents work for a commission based on their sales versus a bi-weekly salary. In other words, if you don’t make a sale you don’t make any money.
To become a real estate agent, you need to fulfill multiple requirements that cost a number of fees. First requirement is to be 18 years or older and a U.S. resident. Next, you would need to enroll in a pre-licensing course that satisfies the 30-hour requirement.
The two courses offered on Guam are the National Institute of Continuing Education and Guam Real Estate Academy and Training. Fees to enroll can range from $500-550.
After completing the course and obtaining your certificate, you would need to sign up to take the real estate salesperson’s examination offered at UOG. The exam is split into two parts, state and general, for which you would need a 75% or higher for both parts to pass. Fee to take the test is $50.
Once you’ve passed, it’s time to start the application process to get your license, and then interview with
When you find a team you want to join, you will need to gather all required documents to submit to DMV and pay the license fee of $100. You would, then, begin the process of becoming a realtor, which is different from the typical agent.
Realtors have access to Multiple Listing Service, a system that holds a number of listings and information, which is extremely helpful in handling your business. The trademark realtor also signifies your membership in the G.A.R.
This is an entirely different process that includes its own required documents, and a new member fee of $1865. Keep in mind, that once you are a member you will also be required to pay quarterly dues that can range from $500+, dependent on G.A.R.
So before even getting into actual real estate, you are looking at spending around $3,000.
Don’t consider this a warning not to join real estate, but a guide into the reality of starting your journey. If you are prepared and willing to invest in yourself and your real estate business, this can be an incredible career path that can offer you all sorts of opportunities.