While at first, you might not think about apartments when you think about real estate, there are some very attractive jobs in the apartment and rental communities for people with real estate experience. One such job is that of a leasing consultant. Leasing consultants are, for many apartment and rental properties, the “face” of that property when potential tenants come to investigate the property and review their options. A good leasing consultant knows many of the same things that a good real estate investor or real estate agent would know. For example:
- Caliber of the local schools
- Crime rates in the area
- Public services
- Transportation options
- Parks and recreation
- Benefits and amenities related to the property in question
- Comparable properties and prices
Leasing consultants are, no matter how much they want you to believe otherwise, ultimately in a sales position. It is their job to “sell” tenants on leasing properties. As a result, while knowledge plays a key role in a successful leasing consultant’s career, the ability to follow up, persuasively present information and, ultimately, close the deal and get the lease signed is also important. Some leasing consultants also double as property managers – either on- or off-site – and may be required to handle some customer service issues as well.
The amount of money leasing consultants earn varies widely depending on the types of properties that they are promoting and how well they handle those promotions. Usually leasing consultants will receive a base hourly pay – between ten and twenty dollars an hour in most cases – plus commission on each lease that moves in. Consultants with more experience and good track records can, of course, command more money, but one of the good things about a leasing consultant position is that generally you do not have to have a lot of prior experience in order to gain entry to this profession.
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Your comments and questions are welcomed below.
This is an excellent report. I read your positions on the market every time I receive emails and find them informative, to the point, and what I should pursue next. I would like more info on the multi-family (apartment complexes) and how I can get involved with the least amount of capital (go figure). I do know that this could be very lucrative in terms of cash flow and/or acting as the middle person, putting both the seller and buyers together and then cashing out?
“The amount of money leasing consultants earn…depending on the types of properties…” -Inventory and location.
“Usually leasing consultants will receive a base hourly pay – between ten and twenty dollars an hour in most cases…” In today’s day N age? Wrong sir. No, the boss wants his 16 year old daughter working at his office to learn the ropes and not have to pay her so much. Or if it’s a large outfit (and there many out there)the powers that be want eye-candy for $10/hr regardless if she’ll learn or not. There is no work to be had as an independent Leaseing Consultant especially if you don’t someone or you’re male. One is wasting their time.