14 Tips to Jumpstart Your Real Estate Business. Here's What the Pros Know.

You’ve passed the test, received your license and you are about to choose a brokerage or team —congratulations.

Now comes the real work.

Real estate is one of the most rewarding careers out there, but success doesn’t happen by accident. It comes from intentional actions, consistent effort, and a deep commitment to serving others well.

Whether you’re feeling excited, overwhelmed, or both—this list will help you move forward with clarity and momentum.

Here are 14 practical ways to jumpstart your real estate business starting today.

1. Don’t Be a Secret Agent

Let your entire network know you’re now a real estate professional. Text your family, email your friends, post on social media. People can’t work with you—or refer you—if they don’t know what you do.

Rely on your broker network and don't be afraid to get on video. 

Be raw and real and post on platforms like Instagram and Facebook right out of the gate. 

Start with this:

“I’m officially a licensed real estate agent, and I’m excited to help clients buy, sell, and invest in our area. If you or someone you know has questions about the market, I’d love to be a resource.”

2. Study the Market Like It’s Your Job (Because It Is)

Make your MLS your daily homework. Know which homes are selling, where prices are shifting, and what buyers are looking for. Tour open houses, preview listings, and get comfortable speaking about your market with confidence.

Know your numbers. 

Begin touring homes and don't shy away from holding homes open for other agents in your network.

You don't have to know everything, just start.

3. Set Up Your Business Systems Early

Before the chaos kicks in, lay a strong foundation:

• Create a simple CRM to track your leads and follow-ups.

• Set up a branded email address and professional voicemail.

• Order business cards or use a digital card like Dot. Exchange phone numbers or social media handles with everyone you meet. You never know when they may need to buy or sell a home in your area.

• Start building your online presence (Google, Instagram, Facebook). Google My Business is a great launching place to establish now and use for reviews.

• Use ChatGPT as your real estate partner. ChatGPT is 80% there when it comes to marketing, strategy, and even ideas for building a strong business. Use the voice commands and get familiar with the tools.
• Write down your goals. How many homes are you planning to sell in your first year? 
• Be relentless and have a reason why. Why are you diving into Real Estate as your new career?

4. Choose a Niche (Even If It’s Temporary)

You don’t have to work with everyone. Focus helps people refer you.

• First-time buyers?

• Military families?

• Downsizers?

• Investors?

Pick one group you enjoy working with and learn their needs inside and out.

Learn how to prospect and actively search for the type of buyers, sellers, or investors in your niche.

5. Time Block Prospecting—Every Day

The most successful agents treat lead generation like a non-negotiable meeting.
Even 1–2 hours a day of:

• DMing your sphere,

• Following up with open house leads,

• Calling expired listings,

• Or walking your farm neighborhood…

…can completely change your business trajectory in 90 days.

Work together with your team or mentor to stay on track and dominate each day consistently.

6. Sharpen Your Skills With Practice

Confidence is built behind the scenes. Practice your scripts. Rehearse your listing presentation. Join a role-play group. The more you train your voice, the less nervous you’ll feel when it really counts.

Get so good at sales that you become undeniably good.

7. Use Social Media to Educate and Connect

You don’t need to be viral—just valuable. Start posting content that:

• Answers common real estate questions,

• Explains market trends simply,

• Shows behind-the-scenes of your day,

• Or celebrates your clients and community.

Show up consistently, and people will remember you when the time is right.

Follow agents in other markets. Model what you see.

Study the videos about real estate that really draw in your attention.

Rip off and duplicate, but always make the content yours.

This is what the pros do to win in the game of real estate. 

8. Become a homeowner or investor yourself

Start with your first home or investment property. Study the process and learn what worked, and where the challenges were. Work with another agent in your office or brokerage who can mentor you through the process.

Start now and set a timeline for the purchase of your first home.

9. Host Open Houses (Even If They Aren’t Your Listings)

This is one of the easiest ways to meet new people, practice conversations, and build confidence. Partner with listing agents in your office. Come prepared with market data and follow up within 24 hours.

Set up systems and scripts to get the phone number and email of every person that walks in the door.

Do not be salesy. Just bring value.

10. Attend Local Events and Get Involved

Real estate is still a relationship business. Go where the people are:

• Chamber of Commerce meetings

• School or church events

• Neighborhood block parties

• Volunteer days

People do business with people they know and trust. Be present.

Talk about real estate in and what you love about it. 

Allow real estate to become part of your every day life.

11. Track Your Numbers Like a CEO

You’re running a business now. Start tracking:

• How many new conversations you have each week

• How many follow-ups

• How many appointments you set

• How many offers or listings you write

What you track, you can improve.

When it comes to money, be ruthlessly frugal. Get the money flowing first, before you spend. Keep your lifestyle costs at a minimum. You are a broker Real Estate Professional, until you are not.

Never forget this.

Cars, clothes, toys (four wheelers), and technology can all wait until you have money in the bank.

12. Stay Consistent and Keep the Faith

This business is full of highs and lows. The agents who win are the ones who don’t quit. Stay consistent. Keep learning. Keep showing up. Your results will compound over time.

If you are single, go all in. Every available hour should be spent investing in your business.

Get into the business flow.

Time block in the morning, and afternoon and track the schedule that works for you.

Chart your progress over time.

Keep a notebook and write down what you discover. 

Pro tip: write down your biggest goals by memory every single day.

13. Choose (and Stick With) the Right Brokerage from Day One

The average agent switches brokerages every 2-3 years. Sometimes it's because a real estate professional becomes exhausted with the hard charging life. Sometimes agents feel like they are outgrowing your environment.

But the top 1% know that choosing a brokerage and sticking with it is where the magic happens. 

Interview several brokerages and teams before deciding on the one.

Plug into the brokerage you choose and take a risk on you.

Your brokerage isn’t just where you hang your license—it’s your support system, leadership, and platform for growth.

Make sure you’re aligned with a place that offers:

• Strong leadership and mentorship (not just recruiting hype)

• Modern tools and systems you’ll actually use

• A healthy culture of collaboration

• Scalable models that grow with you

• A financial model that works and supports its agents, with multiple revenue streams.
• AI systems. AI is the new industrial age. To win in real estate, AI is not optional. It becomes part of your toolbox to build a business that lasts.

There are several brokerage choices that fit the new era of Real Estate.

For example, Real Broker is one of the modern cloud-based company that offers:

• Revenue share for building a network

• Low fees and full commission flexibility

• Access to national masterminds and business coaching

• A supportive culture with agents nationwide

They are the fastest growing publicly traded brokerage in the world.

There are many others that you can research and check out within your own city and across the nation.

The right brokerage should feel like an accelerator, not an anchor.

You are looking for a brokerage that praises achievement and pushes its agents to accomplish more.

14. Pay a Mentor to Help You Level Up

If you want to collapse time, pay someone who has already walked the path.

You don’t need to figure everything out alone—and you’ll avoid expensive mistakes.

Even if it’s just a portion paid out of your next three transactions, the right mentor can help you:

• Build your confidence

• Improve your offer and negotiation skills

• Build systems that will help you accelerate your sales, marketing and fulfillment.

• Learn how to close more deals and become an investor yourself

Experience multiplies. Pay to be in proximity to people who perform at the level you aspire to.

Final Thought

There’s no magic formula, but there is a path. Action creates clarity. The more you do, the more you’ll learn what works for you, who you love helping, and how you want to build your business.

Your first 90 days matter. But this is a long game. Stay faithful. Stay focused. And remember—your job isn’t just to sell homes. It’s to guide, protect, and empower your clients through one of the biggest decisions of their lives.

And that’s a mission worth showing up for.

These 14 tips are my exact learnings from over a decade of experience.

Once I discovered what the top 1% knew, and began to implement them one by one, my entire business changed.

You have the time advantage.

As a new agent, you can chart your path and accomplish great things.

These strategies are simple, but not easy. This is why 95% of agents are out of the business within five years.

Start by setting big goals, and build one day at a time.

Be consistent and go all in on you.

Your efforts will compound to create the financial freedom that is possible when you choose real estate as your path.