Real Estate Brokers: Salary, Job Outlook & How to Become One (2026 Parent Guide)
Sales and Related · SOC 41-9021 · O*NET 41-9021.00
Operate real estate office, or work for commercial real estate firm, overseeing real estate transactions. Other duties usually include selling real estate or renting properties and arranging loans.
Real Estate Brokers fall under the Sales and Related category in the U.S. occupational classification. Real Estate Brokers earn a median salary of $72,280 per year, ranking in the top 31% of all U.S. occupations. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects +3.3% job growth through 2034, projected to grow at roughly the US average. Entry into this field typically requires a high school diploma plus on-the-job training, certifications, or postsecondary credentials, with specific licensing or certification depending on the state and employer. For parents whose teenager is exploring this path, the most actionable step is mapping the education requirements to specific colleges and majors before junior year — not waiting until application season.
What do real estate brokers earn?
The median annual wage for real estate brokers is $72,280. That puts real estate brokers at #253 on the BLS ranked list of all U.S. occupations by median pay. This salary is above the U.S. median for individual workers and reflects a stable, credentialed occupation. Actual pay varies meaningfully by state, employer type, and years of experience — entry-level salaries are typically 30–40% below the median, while top-decile earners often exceed it by 50% or more.
| 10th percentile (entry-level) | $36,920 |
| 25th percentile | $48,200 |
| 50th percentile (median) | $72,280 |
| 75th percentile | $114,220 |
| 90th percentile (top earners) | $166,730 |
| Median hourly wage | $34.75/hr |
Is real estate brokers a growing career?
The 10-year outlook for real estate brokers is +3.3%, projected to grow at roughly the US average. Employment is projected to move from approximately 111K positions in 2024 to 115K in 2034, a net change of 4K. Average growth signals a healthy, resilient occupation that mirrors broader U.S. employment trends. Job availability tends to track regional economic conditions.
What do real estate brokers do every day?
According to O*NET task surveys of working real estate brokers, these are the core responsibilities most professionals perform. This is what your teen would actually be doing in this role.
- 1.Sell, for a fee, real estate owned by others.
- 2.Obtain agreements from property owners to place properties for sale with real estate firms.
- 3.Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers over property prices and settlement details and during the closing of sales.
- 4.Generate lists of properties for sale, their locations, descriptions, and available financing options, using computers.
- 5.Manage or operate real estate offices, handling associated business details.
- 6.Compare a property with similar properties that have recently sold to determine its competitive market price.
- 7.Maintain knowledge of real estate law, local economies, fair housing laws, types of available mortgages, financing options, and government programs.
- 8.Monitor fulfillment of purchase contract terms to ensure that they are handled in a timely manner.
Top skills for real estate brokers
O*NET ranks these as the most important skills for this occupation, on a 1–5 importance scale derived from worker surveys.
What education does my child need to become real estate broker?
Many real estate brokers enter the field with a high school diploma plus on-the-job training, though employers increasingly favor candidates with certifications or some postsecondary coursework. For parents helping a teen prepare, the highest-leverage step before junior year is identifying colleges and programs that feed reliably into this occupation — Solyo's college search lets parents filter by major and admissions data side by side.
Based on O*NET surveys of incumbents — what people in this job actually have, not what employers list as required.
Related careers your child might also consider
- Sales Engineers$121,520 median
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products$100,070 median
- Models$89,990 median
- First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers$84,130 median
- Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents$78,140 median
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products$66,780 median
How parents help teens explore careers like this
Solyo helps parents map a teen's interests to specific careers, then back to the colleges and majors that lead there. Salary, outlook, and education data come from BLS and O*NET — the same sources high school counselors use — but presented for the parent's planning lens, not the student's exploration view.
Common questions parents ask about real estate brokers
What is the median salary for real estate brokers?
The median annual salary for real estate brokers is $72,280 according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Is real estate brokers a growing career?
BLS projects +3.3% growth for real estate brokers from 2024 through 2034, which is average growth projected to grow at roughly the US average.
What education does my child need to become real estate broker?
The typical entry path requires a high school diploma plus on-the-job training, certifications, or postsecondary credentials, plus any state licensure or certification specific to the role. Programs that align well with this career can be filtered inside Solyo's college search.
What careers are similar to real estate brokers?
Related occupations within the Sales and Related category share education paths and skill profiles, so they're a useful starting set when a teen is uncertain. The "Related careers" section below lists nearby options.
Salary data sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics program. Skills, tasks, and education distribution from the O*NET database. Job outlook from the BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 release.