Can You Be a Part-Time Real Estate Agent in Georgia?

Can you be a part-time real estate agent in Georgia? Yes. Georgia has no rule that says you have to sell full time, and plenty of licensees hold a license alongside another job.

Asking can you be a part-time real estate agent in Georgia is really two questions: what the rules allow, and whether part-time sales pays once you add up the fees and the hours. Here's both, plus the two ways part-timers usually make it work.

Can You Be a Part-Time Real Estate Agent in Georgia? What GREC Requires

Yes. GREC has no full-time requirement. A part-time agent follows the same rules as everyone else: a broker holds the license, you renew every four years, and you keep your continuing education current.

The state doesn't track your hours or your sales. It tracks whether your license is active, and an active license is what lets you earn a commission or a referral fee.

One broker holds your Georgia license at a time. That means you can't sell part-time at one firm and refer through another, as the post on whether a Georgia real estate agent can work for multiple brokers explains.

Starting Part-Time as a New Agent

New Georgia salespersons must finish a 25-hour post-license course within their first year of licensure. That course comes on top of the startup costs every new agent faces, so the first year is where many part-timers decide whether sales is worth it.

The first few years can be rough. Dues, desk fees, and startup costs come due before your first closing, and a part-timer has fewer hours to make them back. If you've just passed the exam, or you're about to take it, and still need a sponsoring broker, see how Park Place can sponsor new Georgia licensees so your license goes active right away.

What Part-Time Sales at a Traditional Firm Is Really Like

Most traditional firms will take a part-time agent, but part-timers usually get fewer leads and less help than the full-time producers. You also carry the same desk fees and Realtor and MLS dues, which run $1,500 or more a year.

Buyers and sellers don't lower their expectations because you have another job. They want calls returned and showings scheduled fast, and firms tend to put their leads and attention behind the agents closing the most deals.

The math is the real problem. If you sell less than $500,000 a year, those fees often take most of what you earn. Georgia agents who want out from under them can pay nothing to the Board or MLS by moving their license to a firm that doesn't require membership.

The Referral-Only Option

The other path is to put your license with a referral company. You keep it active, skip the Realtor and MLS dues, and get paid when someone you send to a working agent closes.

This fits part-timers whose friends, family, and coworkers bring up real estate, but who don't have the hours to list and show homes. You pass the client to a full-time agent, and the receiving agent's brokerage pays a portion of the commission back to your brokerage at closing. If that sounds closer to how you'd use your license, here's why you might put your license under a Georgia real estate referral company.

How to Decide Which Path Fits

If you sell $500,000 or more a year and can answer clients quickly, part-time at a traditional firm can work. If most of your deals start as a conversation with someone you know, a referral license usually fits better.

A few honest questions sort it out:

• How many hours a week can you actually answer calls and show homes?

• What did you sell last year, and what did you pay in fees to do it?

• Do you want to list and sell homes yourself, or just pass along the people who ask you?

• Would you rather keep your license earning or let it go inactive and earn nothing?

Keep Your Georgia License Active With Park Place

Most of our agents work in another industry and activated with us using a real estate license they weren't otherwise using. Park Place Realty Network isn't a Realtor or MLS member, has been building relationships with top companies since 2010, and refers residential and commercial real estate anywhere in the U.S. or worldwide.

You earn 22.5% of the total gross commission on every closed referral and pay just a $125 annual admin fee. You also get 40% off CE through The CE Shop, a free agent website, and broker support Monday through Friday. Activate your Georgia license with Park Place.