You have just graduated from high school and you are wondering what to do with the rest of your life. Have you considered getting immediately into a career where you can work for yourself and make a highly successful and profitable future? Real estate provides that kind of opportunity. So how do you get started?

Career Opportunities at 18

You must be 18 in order to go to real estate school and get a real estate license. You might ask, “Why would I want to do that”? Many real estate agents work for themselves and are making six-figure incomes every year. Can you do that working for someone else?

You just recently graduated high school and are looking at your options. There are several directions you can go to pursue a career.

  • Work for Wages –You can go out and get a job and work for someone else all your life. Most people do that. Since you are young and don’t have experience, any job that you find will probably be at minimum wage or slightly higher. You will lucky to make enough to live on unless you are going to continue living with your parents the rest of your life.
  • Go to College – You can go to college for four years to get an undergraduate degree. What is going to be your field of study? Many college graduates find that they can’t get a job in their field when they graduate and often aren’t too much better off. If you want to get a graduate degree, you are looking at 2 to 6 more years of school.
  • Go to Trade School – One can choose to go to a vocational or trade school. You can be trained in some occupational field like an electrician or plumber. This will provide a higher paying job when you graduate but you are still working for someone else.
  • Go to Real Estate School– You can start real estate school even before you are 18. You can pass the test to get a real estate license and then start your own business. Your real estate school will prepare you with the steps to follow to be a successful agent. In a few years, you could develop a highly successful career.

You are the one that must decide what sounds exciting to do the rest of your life. You also want to reach a point that you are supporting yourself and have money to spend.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Starting Early

As discussed earlier, there are many options available to you after graduating from high school. Attending real estate school and getting your real estate license is the fastest and cheapest way to earn excellent money. However, if being a real estate agent is attractive to you, it is important to think about some of the advantages and disadvantages of starting early in a real estate career.

Advantages

You should consider some of the advantages of starting a real estate career early like at the age of 18.

  • Real estate school is very cheap compared to college or technical college.
  • You must complete only 120 hours of course work. You can take an online course where you work at your own speed and complete the course in only a few weeks versus years to go to college.
  • Being young, you have the energy and stamina to build your business and market your services.
  • You understand social media and technology better than older people. You are equipped to use all the tools available to be a successful real estate agent.
  • You haven’t been beat down by an unfulfilling job or poor college grades. You haven’t been told that you aren’t going to succeed. You can dream and think big – traits that a successful real estate agent needs.

Disadvantages

However, there are some disadvantages to attending real estate school and starting your real estate career early.

  • It takes money to start a business especially for marketing your name and your new real estate practice. Also, you need to have the technology and start building a social media presence. You might have to do this as you go or have friends invest in your business.
  • Since you are young, you will initially find it hard to earn the trust of older couples. With work, you can develop that presence where people feel they can trust you. You can also initially build your practice with younger couples.
  • You don’t have the experience. It will be harder to build a support team since most mortgage bankers and title agents have more experience than you.
  • It might take longer than you anticipate to build up your business and prove yourself. It will take some patience to let things develop as you continue to build.

Summary

You can start now to build your real estate career. You just need to be convinced that it will be a fun and exciting career for you. Do your research and start now. Find a good real estate online school and obtain your real estate license.