Picking a broker, or stuck with the one you have.
In New York your license only works under a sponsoring broker, so the office you pick shapes your first years more than any class. This page puts together what the brokers on License to Earn told us to look for, the questions to ask before you sign, and what to do if you are licensed and it is not working.
General information, not legal advice. Read any agreement before you sign it, and confirm state rules on the Department of State pages linked at the bottom.
Why you need one at all
You can take the state exam before you choose a broker. To get the license, you apply on eAccessNY with your sponsoring broker's license number, and the broker approves the association from their own account. Until a broker sponsors you, the license is not active and you cannot work. You can be with only one sponsoring broker at a time.
What to look for
Training beats the split
A big commission split with nobody to show you how to get a deal done is a trap for a new agent. Even a small office should have a broker who is engaged in your compliance and your paperwork.
"...the split is great, but there is no structure to help them get going."
Gigi Pierre, Manager, RE/MAX Team (City Square), Queens · watch the interview
Know what you actually keep
The split on paper shrinks once desk fees, transaction fees and franchise fees come out. At her first office, Gigi netted 42% after a 6% per-transaction franchise fee, and did not realize it until later. Get every fee in writing and do the math on one real deal before you sign.
"I didn't even realize it."
Gigi Pierre · watch the interview
Pick the people, not the sign
Visit the office. See who is there on a weekday, who teaches, and whether the agents who started a year ago are still there and closing.
"Surround yourself with the right people because they already went through what you're gonna go through."
Maria Galisteo, Team Leader, Keller Williams Landmark II, Jackson Heights · watch the interview
Ask what the broker changed for agents
When Dan D'Amico opened his own office, he listed what agents complained about and reworked it. His office pays agents the same day the deal closes. Ask every broker how fast you get paid, and why.
"I just sort of looked at everything that the agents would complain about..."
Dan D'Amico, Broker-Owner, Damico Group Real Estate · watch the interview
Six questions to ask any broker
Take these to every interview. Listen to the shape of the answers, not the enthusiasm.
- Who trains me, how often, and is it a live person?
- What does it cost to work here per year, every fee, in writing?
- What will I keep after every fee?
- Who do I call at 8 on a Saturday when a deal blows up?
- How many agents joined last year, and how many stayed?
- How soon after closing am I paid?
Already licensed and struggling?
A new office does not fix a problem you have not named. Before you move, figure out where the blockage is: what happened, what you are doing, and what you are not doing fully. Then decide whether the office is the problem.
"So we've got to figure out what happened. Where is the blockage?"
Gigi Pierre · watch the interview
Signs it is the office
- Nobody answers when you need help on a live deal
- No training, or training that never covers your market
- Fees you did not know about keep showing up
- You get paid late, or the payout math changes
Signs it may be the plan
- You cannot say how many people you talked to last week
- You stopped following up after the first call
- You have no niche, area or audience you work every week
- You skip the training the office already offers
If you do switch
Read your current independent contractor agreement first, especially what happens to deals that are pending when you leave. The move itself is two steps on eAccessNY: your current broker's association ends, and your new broker files a change of association. You cannot do real estate work in between, so line up the new broker before you give notice.
Hear it from them
Each interview is a broker or team leader explaining how their office works, in their own words.
Maria GalisteoTeam leader, Keller Williams Landmark II
Gigi PierreManager, RE/MAX Team (City Square)
Dan D'AmicoBroker-owner, Damico Group Real EstateEvery episode: youtube.com/@licensetoearn. Is there a broker you want to hear from, or a question you want asked? Suggest it here.
A note on where this comes from: Jorge Vasquez is a licensed New York real estate broker and owns Vasquez & Associates Real Estate Inc. This guide is not a pitch for that office. The same six questions apply to it.
Want help choosing?
Mentoring and broker contacts come with the License to Earn membership.