13 Best Part-Time Jobs for Real Estate Agents (2024 List)
We talked to industry experts to share their insights on the best real estate side hustle ideas for realtors.
Find out which side real estate careers are an ideal fit for you in your pursuit to augment your existing income or to gain additional skills in other niches of real estate.
What Is the Best Side Hustle for Real Estate Agents?
Fix and Flip Investor
As a real estate agent, you already have the upper hand when it comes to knowing which properties are selling below market value.
You can use this knowledge, along with various house flipping software, such as Flipster, to get into the house flipping business as a realtor side hustle.
You can find distressed properties to buy cheap, make repairs and renovations, and then sell them for a good price. Here is how to find foreclosures, for example.
This isn’t only a great way to earn extra profit but also a good opportunity to start a real estate investing career, in addition to pursuing your real estate agent goals.
If you have a real estate business to run, you don’t really have time for a side hustle. We are in the business of lead generating to sell real estate and we are looking at property physically or online all the time.
We help our clients build wealth through real estate investing whether they fix and flip or hold properties. It is only natural that we would do this for ourselves as well.
This doesn’t take away our attention from our business or our clients. When evaluating a property for my clients to purchase, I always put myself in their shoes.
Is this an investment I would make? If I think it is a good deal and don’t want to buy it for myself, I reach out to clients.
Once I was evaluating a property and after not finding a client interested, I purchased it for myself. All Realtors should be purchasing income property for themselves to build wealth.
This is our business, and wealth building through investing is another source of income from our current business.
Again, our focus stays on our business and we are not distracted or splitting our time with a side hustle. Besides, your income from real estate sales is unlimited.
Why would you want a side hustle? You certainly wouldn’t need one if you stay focused on your business.
A fix and flip investor role can be a lucrative side hustle for realtors due to the synergy between their knowledge of the market and property trends.
This combination allows them to identify undervalued properties, negotiate effectively, and leverage their network for potential buyers, maximizing profit margins in the process.
You use the realtor skills and knowledge of the real estate market to make more money than you could when selling a home. You also meet contractors and potential buyers and sellers.
However, the other ones you are missing are completing BPOs, valuations, and construction draw inspection.
As an active agent, working to keep yourself on top of the inventory is paramount.
You will undoubtedly come across deals that will be perfect for your experience taking the property to the next level as an investment.
We are already in the real estate business. We have access to the properties for sale and contractor help. Then once fixed up, we can list and sell them ourselves. It’s a win-win!
Agents know the local market better than anyone else, so if an agent knows how to do fix and flip, it’s a good side hustle that can become a main job.
Landlord
Being a landlord is one of the best side gigs for realtors as it opens up long-term revenue streams.
There are many pros and cons of being a realtor, and one of its biggest advantages is gaining the experience you need to achieve financial independence through investing.
Having become a successful real estate agent, you surely have enough market knowledge to identify a lucrative investment opportunity and know how to conduct real estate investment due diligence.
If you don’t have decades of experience in real estate, with the help of investment property analysis software and other real estate investing tools, plus whatever real estate expertise you have, it’s totally doable.
Being a landlord can indeed be a lucrative side hustle for a real estate agent due to several reasons.
Firstly, as a real estate agent, you likely already have the knowledge and expertise in the property market, making it easier for you to identify good investment opportunities and manage properties effectively.
This familiarity can give you an edge in finding profitable deals and attracting tenants.
Secondly, being a landlord allows you to diversify your income streams beyond just commissions from property sales.
Rental income can provide a steady cash flow that is relatively passive compared to actively selling properties. This passive income can provide financial stability and potentially grow your wealth over time.
Additionally, being a landlord can also offer tax advantages, such as deductions for expenses related to managing the rental property.
This can help reduce your overall tax liability and increase your profits from the rental property.
Overall, being a landlord as a side hustle for a real estate agent can be a smart move to maximize your earnings, leverage your expertise, and build long-term wealth through real estate investments.
I speak from a commercial real estate mindset only, but if you invest in commercial real estate and you are a landlord, you are continuing to use what you know in CRE.
Most CRE brokers do not have “side hustles”, and if they are investors, that is still a part of their CRE segment of their career.
When we think of “side hustles” we think of other industries, i.e., being an insurance broker as well as a CRE broker, or working in a completely different industry where CRE is the side gig.
It’s the only side hustle that guarantees you payment every month and your ability to find great tenants is super high with all the tools at your disposal.
It is passive income and provides an asset you can use short term to earn income or sell long term.
You have access to a large pool of renters that can be easily converted into clients.
Estate Sales Professional
Estate sales happen when a homeowner passes or is downsizing to a smaller home. More often than not, they turn to their realtor to help sell some or all of the items in the home.
It is one of the good side jobs for realtors that they can do themselves. Or, they can hire someone else to do the bulk of work, which involves doing the inventory, pricing the items, and marketing and hosting the sale.
It is not saturated and it is needed.
Bird Dog
Bird-dogging entails finding distressed or low-value properties for real estate wholesalers and real estate investors who are always looking for new ways to find motivated sellers.
As a real estate bird dog, you can earn a fee or a percentage for every motivated seller lead you find that turns into sale.
This is one of the best real estate side hustles as agents constantly scan the market anyway, regularly coming across various types of motivated sellers, and have established connections with investors and wholesalers.
This is also one of the best real estate jobs with no license required. One can start as a bird dog to get the knowledge of the local market and then proceed to investing or getting a license and becoming an agent.
To easily find properties to wholesale and to find cheap homes to flip for your clients, you can use driving for dollars apps and real estate skip tracing tools to skip trace real estate owners whose contacts aren’t easy to find.
Here is more advice on generating motivated seller leads on autopilot, how to find motivated sellers for free, how to find real estate investors, and how to work with investors as a real estate agent.
Spending time as a bird dog looking for people who want to sell their homes is a direct complement to being a real estate agent because finding willing sellers serves both careers.
Bird dogging is a simple business to get into and requires very little skill, just time, hustle, and some good scripts.
I’d encourage an agent wanting some side money to dedicate time each day to finding willing sellers and either listing those properties themselves or connecting them to investors and making a cut of the sale.
This is best for newer agents, as it takes no money to scout out properties.
If you find something to list, great! If not, you may be able to collect a finder’s fee by getting it in the hands of an investor. All upside possibilities.
Real Estate Lead Referrer
You can be a referral agent and earn a fee for real estate leads you refer to investors or other fellow agents.
Newbie agents who don’t have a solid lead generation process set up yet wonder how to buy real estate leads, where to buy real estate leads, and if buying real estate leads is worth it.
Working with you may be a better answer for them than using real estate lead generation companies: online lead generators for real estate agents provide less personalized service than a fellow local realtor.
It’s a good side gig for realtors looking for part-time real estate jobs. But for some of them, the ones who excel in real estate social media marketing and other lead generation strategies, referring leads to local real estate agents is actually their main business.
Various real estate lead referral programs and tools, like AgentAssistant, OJO Select Network, ReferralExchange, HomeLight Leads, or Clever Referral Network, are designed to make this business more streamlined and automated.
Besides fellow agents, you can also refer clients to other professionals in the business, such as real estate photographers, home stagers and interior designers, property appraisers, or home inspectors.
I’ve seen people refer millions of dollars worth of business from their social circle with almost no effort at all.
If someone has a network of wealthy friends, family, and associates, they can make a serious amount of money by just referring them to the right agent.
This takes very little effort and almost no follow-up, so it becomes very passive.
This is a great side gig because many times we are the “go-to” real estate resource for our friends and family.
If someone or someone’s relative or friend is moving to another state, we have a wide network of Compass agents everywhere and we can connect our people to those wonderful, vetted agents.
It requires the least amount of work that will take away from your primary job and it is a great way to make connections with other agents and secure passive income.
Generating referrals outside your geographic area and expertise is already built into what you do on a daily basis.
Home Appraiser
Realtors looking for real estate side gigs can use their knowledge of assessing property values to supplement their income.
The best part about it is, you don’t need to be licensed in order to provide accurate valuations of properties.
Do note, however, that you will need to at least have a bachelor’s degree and earn an appraisal certification.
This can go either way. I know of appraisers that are real estate agents on the side and vice versa. They both typically belong to the same real estate associations/MLS, so they don’t have to pay any additional fees.
The private party estate and divorce appraisals can lead to future real estate listings as well.
Property Manager
Being in the real estate industry allows you to know the ins and outs of the business, including knowing where to find good tenants and managing a property.
As a side job, you can provide your property manager services in charge of collecting rent from tenants and dealing with their maintenance concerns.
There are many property management software tools, property management accounting software, tenant screening services for landlords, and rent collection apps that will streamline your process, helping you free up more time for your main job.
Here is more information on what property managers do for their clients.
Being one of the best part-time jobs for realtors, property management also opens doors for you to connect with renters and property owners who might want to buy a property or sell one in the future.
While it’s one of the best jobs you can get with a real estate license, not all brokerages may approve of your additional career. Make sure to choose a real estate broker that won’t have a problem with it.
I wish I would have ventured into property managing years ago. It is a natural fit to being a real estate agent.
When a rental owner is tired of owning investment property, you get to sell it! You are able to educate potential investors on the benefits of becoming a landlord. It is just a win-win!
It may not result in a conflict of interest for you and the real estate brokerage who holds your license. You can check to see if there are any issues with your broker. It may be a conflict of interest.
Real Estate Coach
Mentoring other real estate agents is a great way to earn on the side as a realtor. If you’re passionate about teaching and sharing your knowledge of the industry, working as a part-time real estate coach can also be a fulfilling work opportunity.
I chose this side hustle because I am also a real estate coach. My clients pay me $500/month and they receive 4 hours of coaching and training per month — 1 hour one day a week or two 30-minute sessions per week.
Additionally, I’m always free to have a quick chat with them, or they can text/email me with any other questions they might have.
I only recommend this side hustle to experienced agents (15+ years) and agents who are currently successful (unless they only coach and no longer sell real estate).
I’ve had many “coaches” call on me to sell me their services and they were born after I got my real estate license! BaHaHa!
I can easily train 15-20 agents per month and still have time to manage my business. I also train entire firms and teams.
Teaching and training other agents has a lot of upsides because of the low overhead to do so, as well as the virality potential of social media content that can entice more to use your services.
Coaching others doesn’t require much capital, but it does require real estate knowledge and the ability to teach.
Agents are always looking for ways to be better and find more clients, therefore, the small cost that may be associated with hiring a coach or attending a seminar is typically worth it for them.
You have experience, and coaching allows you to set your own hours and decide how much you want to work.
Your experience has value and other real estate agents may be interested in learning from you how to be successful in their own real estate business.
BPO (Broker Price Opinion) Provider
Providing BPOs (broker price opinions) is also considered one of the best side jobs for real estate agents.
This involves making a comparative market analysis among other properties in your market to set the value and price of a home before listing it on the market.
We are in a business that we already do BPOs. This would not add many extra responsibilities as it is something we do on a regular basis.
It would not pull an agent away from their job duties to the same extent as other side hustles.
Real Estate Web Content Writer
As a real estate copywriter, you can share with readers your knowledge of the industry, crafting various content on a wide range of real estate-related topics.
This is a good side job to consider if you’re on the lookout for something that won’t eat up much of your time, while allowing you to stay updated about what’s current in the industry.
If you have writing skills, writing real estate content can be a flexible position.
Your side hustle for real estate needs to have plenty of flexibility. Real estate agents’ schedules can be so up and down that you need to stay available for your real estate clients.
Researching and writing real estate content can also be invaluable in helping you stay fresh on what is going on in the real estate market.
You might not become rich becoming a content writer, but it gives you that flexibility to keep running your real estate business full time.
Real Estate Photographer
If you have an artistic eye for good property shots, you may consider becoming a real estate photographer on the side.
Fellow agents may come to you for this service, supplementing your income while letting you market your own listings in the most creative way.
For this job, apart from having photography skills, you will need to look into good cameras for real estate photography and 360° cameras for real estate virtual tours.
We also have more product guides to aid you in selecting the right equipment:
- Best lenses for real estate photography
- Best flashes for real estate photography
- Best tripods for real estate photography
- Best drones for real estate
To edit your shots, you will need the best real estate photography software.
Being a real estate photographer has a low capital requirement to get started.
Appointments are only a few hours long, so they can be booked around your schedule, and you can grow your business by marketing to agents in your office or in your sphere.
Registered Nurse
While not a popular option as a real estate side hustle, working as a registered nurse may benefit your job as a realtor.
You can apply what you learn from the nursing field into your work in real estate, such as providing unparalleled service and making sure your client’s needs are met.
Real estate and nursing have similar goals. In real estate, you provide care to the client and in nursing you provide care to the patient.
Therefore, one can see that knowledge you obtain from one discipline can be applied to the other.
In addition, the nursing pay is steady which is received every two weeks. Whereas, in real estate, the pay can be sporadic or sometimes not at all.
Home Stager
As a real estate agent, you already have the necessary understanding of showing a property in its best light. You can use this knowledge to stage homes for other agents or owners selling their homes or commercial real estate.
The staging market is not saturated, and there is so much need for it.
Lastly, here is a resource you may find useful when looking for a side gig: a list of the best real estate job.
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