Estate agent

You could do a foundation degree, higher national diploma or degree in:

• business studies
• civil and structural engineering
• estate management
• property development or management
• surveying
• urban and land studies

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• 1 or 2 A levels, or equivalent, for a foundation degree or higher national diploma
• 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree

More Information

• equivalent entry requirements
• student finance for fees and living costs
• university courses and entry requirements

Some estate agents offer an intermediate apprenticeship as a junior estate agent.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

More Information

• equivalent entry requirements
• guide to apprenticeships

You may be able to start as a trainee sales negotiator and learn on the job.

You could also start as an administrator in estate agency or lettings company and work your way up.

Local knowledge of the area where you'll be working would be an advantage.

You could start by taking qualifications offered by an industry body like NAEA Propertymark.

Introductory qualifications can be done whether or not you're working in property. There are also courses aimed at people in the industry who want to develop their career.

Career tips

Estate agents often work on commission which means that you have a basic salary and also earn a percentage of the sale or rental price of any property you sell or rent. You might start on a guaranteed salary for a few months and then move to a commission based salary.

You may also have the chance to add to your earnings through bonuses linked to meeting individual or company sales targets.

Further information

You can find our more about working as an estate agent from NAEA Propertymark.

You'll need:

• customer service skills
• the ability to sell products and services
• the ability to work on your own
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• persistence and determination
• patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
• the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
• excellent verbal communication skills
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

You'll need to:

• have a full driving licence

You may:

• visit sellers and landlords to value properties
• communicate regularly with potential buyers and tenants to share details of properties that meet their requirements
• arrange viewing appointments and show properties to buyers or renters
• get feedback on viewings
• negotiate between buyers and sellers
• generate sales leads for mortgages and conveyancing
• deal in person, on the telephone and through email with solicitors, financial advisers and surveyors
• manage auction sales
• work to meet sales targets
• update computer records

You could work in an office, at a store, at a client's business or at a client's home.