Occupation intelligence

real estate agent

Snapshot

Do you enjoy connecting with people and have a keen eye for detail? As a real estate agent, you can guide clients through the exciting process of buying, selling, or renting properties, shaping their futures and building a rewarding career.

Summary

Real estate agents work on behalf of clients, facilitating property transactions. Your day might involve researching properties, assessing their value, showing properties to potential buyers or renters, negotiating offers, and ensuring all legal aspects of the sale or rental are handled correctly. It’s a role that requires strong communication, negotiation, and problem-solving skills, alongside a thorough understanding of property law and market trends.

Key responsibilities
  • • Investigate property conditions and determine accurate market values.
  • • Negotiate sales or rental contracts on behalf of clients.
  • • Liaise with legal professionals, surveyors, and other third parties.
76%
Resilience Score

Do you enjoy connecting with people and have a keen eye for detail? As a real estate agent, you can guide clients through the exciting process of buying, selling, or renting properties, shaping their futures and building a rewarding career.

Financial Services Short-cycle tertiary education 25% AI exposure
Start Career DNA assessment
Quick fit check

Could real estate agent fit you?

Answer three quick questions. This is not a full assessment — it is a teaser to help you decide whether to compare your profile.

Progress0/3

Do you enjoy tasks that require Integrity?

Do you enjoy tasks that require Initiative?

Do you enjoy tasks that require Stress Tolerance?

NexFuture

Future Outlook for real estate agent

The outlook for real estate agent is exceptionally stable. While AI tools will assist with daily tasks, the core of this role relies on human judgment, resulting in a high resilience score of 76.4%.

How are these scores calculated?

The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.

Play the future

How could real estate agent change as AI adoption grows?

Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.

Significant task-level transformation is estimated in 19 years (around 2045) under the selected Expected Pace scenario.
76%
Resilience
Automation Risk
EXP33%
Human advantage
MOAT73%
2026
2036
2050
AI Adoption Speed:

How AI may change this role

Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.

Human-owned 76% Human-owned
What still depends on people

This role remains strongly human-led where identify customer's needs depends on trust, nuance, and real-world judgement.

The Human Edge To stay ahead in this role, focus on customer service and office administration. These human-centric skills are the hardest for AI to replicate in the next 20 years.
Assist 51% Assist
Where AI may become a co-pilot

AI is more likely to assist supporting tasks such as liaise with property owners, documentation, search, and workflow coordination.

Automate 25% Automate
Tasks most exposed to automation

Automation pressure appears selective rather than broad, with the strongest signal currently coming from Generative AI.

Detailed Analysis

Vital Signs, AI Vectors & Megatrends

Show more

Vital Signs

AI Exposure Vectors

0-100%
Generative AI 51.2%

Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools

Cognitive Software 47.1%

Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation

AI / Machine Learning 1.5%

Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks

Robotic & Physical Automation 0%

Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement

Megatrend Signals

0-100%
Spatial Change 50%
Regulatory Pressure 28%
Geopolitical Change 5%
Demographic Shift 3%
Digital Transformation 3%
Green Transition 0%

Model-derived scores. Indicates structural exposure to megatrends, not direct demand.

Technical Details
Methodology: NexFuture v2.0 Sources: O*NET 30.0, ESCO v1.2.0 Updated: May 2026

NexFuture™ v2.0 combines O*NET ability and activity profiles with ESCO skill group distributions and six global megatrend signals. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture™ Methodology White Paper for full details.

Day in the life

What people in this role usually do

Financial Services

Day in the life

A typical day as a real estate agent

09
09:00 · Morning
perform property market research
Research properties in order to assess their usefulness for real estate activities, using various methods such as media research and visitation of properties, and identify the potential profitability in the development and trading of the property.
10
10:30 · Mid-morning
prepare real estate contract
Create a contract between two parties for the purchase, sale or rental of real estate. Make sure the real estate contract and the specifications comply with the legal requirements and are legally enforceable.
12
12:00 · Midday
identify customer's needs
Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.
14
14:00 · Afternoon
liaise with property owners
Establish good working relations with the owner, signal problems and renovation needs, and advise on the choice of tenants.
15
15:30 · Late afternoon
maintain relationship with customers
Build a lasting and meaningful relationship with customers in order to ensure satisfaction and fidelity by providing accurate and friendly advice and support, by delivering quality products and services and by supplying after-sales information and service.
17
17:00 · Wrap-up
prospect new customers
Initiate activities in order to attract new and interesting customers. Ask for recommendations and references, find places where potential customers can be located.

Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.

Software & Technologies & Knowledge areas
Software & Technologies
Adobe PhotoshopAMTdirectAppFolio Property ManagerCustomer relationship management CRM softwareDeep Forest Systems OnCiteDomin-8 Enterprise Solutions Tenant ProEnterprise Software Systems CRE SyncFacebookFirst American CoreLogic RealQuest ProGoogle Earth ProIntuit QuickBooksLease Cost Solutions LseModLondon Computer Systems Rent ManagerMicrosoft AccessMicrosoft Active Server Pages ASPMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Internet ExplorerMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft PowerPoint
Knowledge areas
  • customer service

    Processes and principles related to the customer, client, service user and to personal services; these may include procedures to evaluate customer's or service user's satisfaction.

  • office administration

    The paperwork processes related to the administrative areas of an office environment. The activities or processes may include financial planning, record keeping and billing and managing the general logistics of an organisation.

Cross-sector skills
  • contract law
  • mortgage loans
  • property law
Essential skills
assessing land or real estate
  • value properties

    Examine and evaluate land and buildings in order to make valuations about their price.

  • compare property values

    Obtain information on the value of properties comparable to a property which is in need of valuation in order to make more accurate appraisals and assessments, or to set or negotiate the price at which the property can be sold or leased.

  • perform property market research

    Research properties in order to assess their usefulness for real estate activities, using various methods such as media research and visitation of properties, and identify the potential profitability in the development and trading of the property.

developing professional relationships or networks
  • maintain relationship with customers

    Build a lasting and meaningful relationship with customers in order to ensure satisfaction and fidelity by providing accurate and friendly advice and support, by delivering quality products and services and by supplying after-sales information and service.

  • prospect new customers

    Initiate activities in order to attract new and interesting customers. Ask for recommendations and references, find places where potential customers can be located.

providing financial advice
  • advise on property value

    Provide advise to those that own a property, professionals in real estate, or prospective clients in real estate on the current monetary value of a property, the potential of development in order to increase the value, and other relevant information concerning the value of the in the future developments of the real estate market.

  • provide information on properties

    Provide information on the positive and negative aspects of a property and the practicalities concerning any financial transactions or insurance procedures; such as location, composition of the property, renovation or repair needs, the cost of the property and the costs related to insurance.

engaging with others to identify needs
  • identify customer's needs

    Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.

presenting information in legal proceedings
  • inform on renting agreements

    Inform landlords or tenants of a property on the duties and rights of the landlord and tenant, such as the landlord's responsibility for the upkeep of the property and the eviction rights in the event of a breach of contract, and the tenant's responsibility to pay rent in a timely manner and avoid negligence.

gathering information from physical or electronic sources
  • obtain financial information

    Gather information on securities, market conditions, governmental regulations and the financial situation, goals and needs of clients or companies.

collaborating and liaising
  • liaise with property owners

    Establish good working relations with the owner, signal problems and renovation needs, and advise on the choice of tenants.

negotiating and managing contracts and agreements
  • manage contracts

    Negotiate the terms, conditions, costs and other specifications of a contract while making sure they comply with legal requirements and are legally enforceable. Oversee the execution of the contract, agree on and document any changes in line with any legal limitations.

Skill DNA

Skill DNA

Work personality traits and values that define this role

Key traits you need
Integrity Initiative Stress Tolerance Persistence Attention to Detail Achievement/Effort Self-Control Independence Dependability Concern for Others Cooperation Leadership Adaptability/Flexibility Innovation Social Orientation Analytical Thinking
Key rewards you can expect
AchievementWorking Condit…RecognitionRelationshipsSupportIndependence
Career progression

Growth Pathways & Similar Roles

Explore typical career progression paths, adjacent skills, and similar roles to plan your next transition.

Career landscape

Where does real estate agent fit?

This role
real estate agent This role

Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.

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Common questions

Frequently asked questions

What kind of legal knowledge is expected of a real estate agent?
You’ll need a solid understanding of property law, contracts, and relevant regulations to ensure transactions are legally sound. This often involves working closely with legal professionals to review documents and address any potential issues.
How do real estate agents typically build their client base?
Building a client base often involves networking, marketing your services (online and offline), and cultivating referrals from satisfied clients. Strong interpersonal skills and a reputation for integrity are key to long-term success.
Is it common to work independently as a real estate agent?
While some real estate agents choose to work independently, this occupation is primarily employee-based. Many agents work for established real estate agencies, benefiting from their resources, training, and support.