Hiring Real Estate Brokers

What do real estate brokers do?

• 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.

Core tasks, O*NET OnLine, 41-9021.00.

What does it take to become one?

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

O*NET Job Zone 4, SVP (7.0 to < 8.0). O*NET OnLine.

Employers commonly list experience with Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Yardi software, Adobe Photoshop, Facebook for this role.

What do real estate brokers get paid?

BLS OEWS, May 2025 publishes a wage for real estate brokers in 47 of the metro areas in this build. The median ranges from $47,690 to $168,320 a year depending on the metro, with a midpoint of $71,460. This is what employers pay, place of work, not a single national figure and not what any one person takes home.

BLS OEWS, BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 41-9021.

What does hiring one cost?

The same as any role: tier, not location or salary, sets the fee. Across all six tiers the published range is $6,240 to $54,340 per search. For scale, the highest published median for real estate brokers in this build is $168,320. A contingency firm hiring at that level would bill roughly $33,664 to $50,496 on the first year salary alone, 20 to 30%.

Frequently asked

How fast can a real estate brokers search fill?

23 to 35 days, 2 to 3x faster than a typical contingency search, per the recruiting provider's published figures.

What if the hire does not work out?

A 45-day replacement guarantee, at 50% off a repeat search for the same role.