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I've been reading this forum for a while now and finally decided to join. I'm about to graduate college this May and plan moving (back) to New York in late May/early June in order to pursue what I think might be my passion, Manhattan real estate. I'm currently in the SF Bay Area finishing up school. I actually moved out to New York last summer for an internship at a television ad sales/media company. It was a great experience and of course I fell in love with the city exploring different neighborhoods while living in West Village for a few months. I've visited before, but living there was an even greater experience.
I'm looking to get started in rentals in Manhattan. I'm currently enrolled in RE classes in California, so they're not quite emphasizing talking about condos, co-ops and rentals. I was planning on taking an online class to complete the 75-hour course requirement. However, I called the Bureau of Educational Standards at the NYS Department of State and asked if they've waived the class for those who've taken classes in California and I was told yes, so I figure I'd save a few hundred dollars and just send in my transcripts and a letter requesting the waiver once I'm finished. I’ll be ordering text books for New York real estate and the review crammer for the state exam within the next week or so to become better versed in NYS real estate laws and such
I’m looking for advice from professionals in the industry of the pros and cons of getting into the business. I have enough saved up to live for 6 months without earning anything. I’m a big cost cutter and a minimalist so renting a room Uptown is fine by me. Will my biggest starting costs be an REBNY membership, E&O insurance, business cards etc? Does you all anticipate a pretty good rental market this summer? Do a lot of firms just have opening listings with few exclusives where hundreds of agents are competing to rent the same apartments? I’m trying to be cautiously optimistic, but I do feel that I can do well, especially right brokerage. I’m not anticipating an easy first year or 10k a month. I’m trying to set feasible goals and have realistic expectations, although those unrealistic ads stating new agents can earn up to 250k look enticing.
Lastly, I was wondering how the ‘typical’ rental process and transaction works as far as who the players involved are. My primary question is whether it is common for an apartment hunter to have a tenant’s agent negotiating with the agent who has the listing? I just assumed the most common way in which someone gets an apartment is through contacting the agent who has the listing directly (perhaps after seeing an ad on Craigslist) and going from there without a tenant’s agent. Would that be considered a dual agent situation? I’m sure I could answer these questions myself once I get a text book.
Any feedback and advice would be great and appreciated. A possible broker sponsor looking for a mentee would great as well. Thought I'd plug that in. Thanks!
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