Why Do Some Real Estate Salespeople Earn More Than Others?

Abstract

This paper explores the reasons why some real estate salespeople earn more than others. Data from a survey of members of the Illinois Association of REALTORS conducted in the spring of 1985 are the basis of the analysis. The central part of the paper analyzes via multivariate regression analysis over twenty factors thought to determine real estate sales success as measured by income from real estate brokerage. The most important findings include: (1) number of hours worked is closely linked to income; (2) income increases substantially with years of experience in the early years of a career (over 20% per year for the first five years), but these increases flatten out for the veteran with more than ten years of experience; (3) no significant differential in earnings is detected between men and women of the same age and with the same education.