Ever since I could remember I’ve loved looking at homes for sale and the average home prices around my area. The reason I am debating over the two is because they both have things that I really like. You can be your own boss and make your own schedule. I know that being a real estate agent I would have to work my butt off at first to get cliental and the earning potential can be huge. I also know that I can make nothing if I am not good. Also, I love helping people so being a dentist seems like a pretty satisfying job.
The thing that I am scared the most is the commission part of real estate and don’t know if I go into the career right after high school that people will not take me seriously. Also, as for being a dentist, there is always the “what if” on getting accepted to dental school and the amount of years that you need to attend school, but i guess a steady salary is worth it at the end, rather then a commision based one.
I think in reality I’m afraid of losing the chance of going to college since I already have good grades and have worked so hard throughout high school trying to gain acceptance into a university.
Do a business degree alongside the dental pre-reqs, or get the business degree first then do your dental pre-reqs in year 5. No need to decide right now.
I agree with Dunboyne but I also suggest that you ask at a local real estate office about shadowing a realtor. My H has been in the business since childhood because his dad was a realtor before him. It’s not an easy business and the commissions have dropped from a standard 6% when he first started to 3 - 4% now, and sometimes you have to share that when you co-broke. There is also a difference between a real estate agent and a broker, at least in my state (NY). An agent must work under the supervision of a broker. An attorney can automatically become a broker.
The pros of working as a realtor are that it’s much easier to get licensed than to get through college or dental school. In NY, you take a 45 hour course and pass a test to become an agent. It’s more difficult to become a broker but my H and I are both attorneys, so we just pay a fee. My H worked as a real estate agent and a mortgage broker to put himself through college and law school and then became a broker.
If you enjoy it, you can work at a real estate office while attending college.
I know very wealthy dentists and not so wealthy dentists. Likewise, I know wealthy real estate agents and not so wealthy real estate agents. When the tech markets crashed in 2001 and 2008, lots of techies became real estate agents and mortgage brokers, and many didn’t do so well.
I honestly don’t know how my dentist stays in business. She’s great, but she runs a very small practice and sometimes only sees four or five patients a day. And she has to pay her two dental assistants and the rent.
One of my friends is a dentist and so is her boyfriend. It seems some dentists can be their own boss and set their own hours, but dental practices are very expensive. My friend is looking for a practice to buy now and even the smallest ones cost in the millions of dollars. She would then have to hire in a staff as well. While she considers that, she currently works in a practice for another dentist - so she’s not really her own boss. She has set hours and days and earns a paycheck. A lot of dentists (and physicians) are in group practices these days that have that kind of setup.
On the other hand, enjoying looking at homes for sale isn’t the same thing as enjoying selling homes. I like looking at homes for sale, too, because I like envisioning living in them. I like watching HGTV. I would not enjoy being a real estate agent! Also, real estate agents in theory make their own schedule but in practice have to be available when clients are and have to be able to make open houses and closing meetings. There’s weekend and evening work involved.
Thing is, though, from your post it sounds like you are in high school. So you don’t have to worry about this now. I didn’t even know my current career existed until about 3 years ago, and I didn’t decide I wanted to do it until early 2015 (I started working here in mid-2015). I graduated from college in 2008 and got my PhD in 2014. You have plenty of time to choose a career!