Which offers more opportunities and wealth in Florida? Real estate sales or mortgage brokerage?

Question

I'm debating which course to take, if your in either field how has your experiance been and what suggestions do you have.

Answer 1

This is a tough question. Both are decent fields to be into in Florida as the state is constantly growing in population. There are pro's and con's to both. As a Real Estate agent you will be selling properties from which your employing Real Estate borkerage company office will pay you a part of their commission. Typical commissions are 6% to 7%, you will negotiate when you are hired for what percent you will get, typically 1% to 2% depending on the brokerage. Life is good when the market is hot and your selling on a regular basis. Its a nightmare when the market is down and nothing or little is selling and you have bills to pay. You need to be agressive and good at the game. The percentages may seem small, but it adds up if you have consistent sales. Consider if you sell a home for $500,000 1% is $5000 to you 2% is $10000. Sell one home a month in that price range at 2% and your making $120,000 a year which is good money for Florida. You will need to be prepared to put in long hours and do a lot of leg work and travel. A mortgage broker on the other hand gets to sit in an office and sell loans to buyers. You will get a commission based on the rate and amount of the loan. Again, when the market is hot, you'll be making money hand over fist, when the market is slow, you'll be biting your nails. You will not however have to travel and show prospective buyers properties, and you'll most likely have fairly normal banking hours. There is a lot of research in mortgage lending. Backgrounds need to be checked and buyers need to be qualified and verified. On the down side, some mortgage brokers will charge you back for loans that go into default. So there are rewards and pitfalls to either career.