Right now i can reply to this. lol
I started when i was 17 as a junior neg working only saturdays, just to get into it while i was still at college, eventually taking up wednesdays as well.
started full time in at 18 and been here for 2 years now. When i first started it was great, appointments all the time, meeting new people seeing new places etc. but obviously the market was strong then, therefore the job was great. Like all jobs you have to take rough with the smooth! and at the moment its rought.
but in reply to people saying this is not a good time to get into it, i think your wrong. If you are looking at join as a full time senior neg (valuations as well as sales appointments) its the ideal time to get into it. You have longer to get into the roll while its quiet, learn the market in your area, and also to relise the value of property in your area. Being a senior neg you will be required to do market apprisals, and obvioulsy you dont really want to be chucked into this whilst its really busy!
but saying that, there are not many agents looking to recuit at the moment, if you find one, i would say go for it. yes you will be bored in this market, but at least then once it picks up again you will be full trained up and know how the job works.
everyone has there own selling technique, mine is a lot more laid back than what people think estate agents are like. once i get inside the house, i dont jump in with buy it buy it buy it, i tend to keep quiet walk them around pointing out obvious things and wait for them to question me. once there questions are running low, i jump in with recomendations of what they could do to sort out what they dont like! also find out abit more about the person, there situation, exactly what they are looking for (if they have called up to book in the viewing chance are they havent told you everything you need to know) finally see if there is anything else you can think of to cross sell then (get them around another property)
i cant stand estate agents that are pushy! this is why i am the way i am, i like to come accross as the nice guy. and the feedback i get with it is great. and really makes me happy.
Paywise, i started out with rubbish salery and flat rate commision, this soon changed to a rubbish salary but great commision. It is very commision based, and with the market the way it is it does make it tough. but when the market is good (start of last year) i was making a lot of money
good luck with whatever you decide, if you have any questions just ask
(sorry for the spelling, as most of you know i cant spell for **** lol)