Real Estate: A College Student’s Investment in the Future

By Phillip MacArthur

Are you a current college student looking for an opportunity to build your own business, gain more experience, and earn more money than you ever could by working a typical part-time job? Do you want to start paying your student loan debt while you are still in school? If so, you should forget about working at the university dining hall or a local restaurant near campus and start thinking about getting your real estate license!

To start your career in real estate, I suggest beginning with rental properties, especially if you’re living in an urban area. For instance, in my city of Boston, the rental business can be very profitable. Also, because most college students aren’t about to buy homes, you have a built-in client base with your friends and colleagues. Once you obtain your real estate license, reach out to them and begin building your business. Once you get rolling and your friends turn into clients and then those clients send you referrals to more prospective clients, you’ll be on the fast track to representing home buyers and sellers, doing bigger deals, and earning larger paychecks!

In addition to paying down your student loans and having more spending cash, a career in real estate creates opportunities you’d never get working a “regular” college job. In real estate, you aren’t just punching a clock and getting paid by the hour or with a set salary. How much you earn is directly dependent on how much effort and determination you put into your job. The good news is, in the process, you’re learning how to run a business, which involves fostering your marketing, sales, and interpersonal skills … all assets that future employers find invaluable, should you decide to go down a different career path. At the very least, the real-life business experience real estate affords gives your résumé the boost it needs to compete with other students who might have had a higher GPA or went to a more prestigious school. At the very most, the robust network of clients and contacts you create can be leveraged into future career and growth opportunities in whatever industry you choose.

Ultimately, like in any business, know that real estate takes time and effort to see results. But once you do start finding success, who knows – you may even make a career out of it!

PHILLIP MACARTHUR is an agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Warren Residential in Boston, MA. He is also a member of the national REthink Council. You can email him at pmacarthur@warrenre.com.