Sales and Related Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 41-9022

Real Estate Sales Agents

The published band from $32,970 to $123,590 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Real Estate Brokers.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Real Estate Sales Agents: Real Estate Brokers ($73K) , Counter and Rental Clerks ($41K) , Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products ($72K) , Advertising Sales Agents ($65K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Real Estate Sales Agents publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 41-9022 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Prepare documents such as representation contracts, purchase agreements, closing statements, deeds, and leases
  2. 2. Present purchase offers to sellers for consideration
  3. 3. Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers, generally representing one or the other
  4. 4. Generate lists of properties that are compatible with buyers' needs and financial resources
  5. 5. Confer with escrow companies, lenders, home inspectors, and pest control operators to ensure that terms and conditions of purchase agreem…
  6. 6. Promote sales of properties through advertisements, open houses, and participation in multiple listing services
  7. 7. Compare a property with similar properties that have recently sold to determine its competitive market price
  8. 8. Coordinate property closings, overseeing signing of documents and disbursement of funds
  9. 9. Interview clients to determine what kinds of properties they are seeking
  10. 10. Contact previous clients for prospecting of referral business
  11. 11. Review property listings, trade journals, and relevant literature, and attend conventions, seminars, and staff and association meetings…
  12. 12. Answer clients' questions regarding construction work, financing, maintenance, repairs, and appraisals

Real Estate Sales Agents: O*NET ranks Active Listening first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 41-9022 - lead skill Active Listening at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Customer and Personal Service. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 4.0
  2. 2. Speaking 4.0
  3. 3. Negotiation 3.9
  4. 4. Social Perceptiveness 3.8
  5. 5. Coordination 3.8
  6. 6. Critical Thinking 3.6
  7. 7. Persuasion 3.6
  8. 8. Service Orientation 3.5

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Customer and Personal Service 4.8
  2. 2. Sales and Marketing 4.7
  3. 3. English Language 4.3
  4. 4. Law and Government 4.0
  5. 5. Administrative 3.8
  6. 6. Administration and Management 3.7
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$32,970 to $123,590
median $52,830 · ~3.7× spread
$53K
National median
↑ +3%
Growth 2024-2034
36,600
Annual openings
193,370
Estimated US jobs
Real Estate Brokers
Highest-pay peer · $73K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Real Estate Sales Agents

1. Montana $79,100
2. North Dakota $73,920
3. Alaska $89,170
4. South Dakota $65,170
5. New Mexico $76,170
6. Nevada $79,990
7. District of Columbia $123,770
8. New Jersey $99,990
9. New York $102,990
10. Washington $79,130

Other Sales and Related Occupations titles

  1. 1. Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products $72,080
  2. 2. Advertising Sales Agents $64,820
  3. 3. First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers $48,520
  4. 4. Real Estate Brokers $73,220
  5. 5. Counter and Rental Clerks $41,300
  6. 6. Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel $69,990

The OEWS band for Real Estate Sales Agents runs from $32,970 (10th) to $123,590 (90th), about 3.7× wide, with median $52,830. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +3% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 36,600 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Montana at $79,100. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Real Estate Brokers at $73,220. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Real Estate Sales Agents pay-rank #10 in Sales and Related Occupations

Real Estate Sales Agents sits at pay-rank #10 of 22 detailed Sales and Related Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

The 10th-to-90th percentile spread for Real Estate Sales Agents is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Real Estate Sales Agents salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 41-9022

Montana · top state for Real Estate Sales Agents

$79K published median

North Dakota · #2 state pay

$74K · behind Montana

Real Estate Brokers

Highest-pay peer vs Real Estate Sales Agents · $73K

Counter and Rental Clerks

Lower-pay peer beside Real Estate Sales Agents · $41K

Compare Real Estate Sales Agents

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Real Estate Sales Agents with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Real Estate Sales Agents mid-table among Sales and Related Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #10 of 22 detailed Sales and Related Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Travel Agents ($50K), First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers ($49K), Models ($48K), Sales and Related Workers, All Other ($48K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do real estate sales agents do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Real Estate Sales Agents. Leading ones include: Prepare documents such as representation contracts, purchase agreements, closing statements, deeds, and leases; Present purchase offers to sellers for consideration; Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers, generally representing one or the other; Generate lists of properties that are compatible with buyers' needs and financial resources. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for real estate sales agents? ▼
For SOC 41-9022, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (4.0), Speaking (4.0), Negotiation (3.9), Social Perceptiveness (3.8). Knowledge areas emphasize Customer and Personal Service, Sales and Marketing, English Language. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Real Estate Sales Agents? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $32,970 and the 90th at $123,590 for Real Estate Sales Agents (3.7× spread). The national median is $52,830. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Real Estate Sales Agents? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Real Estate Sales Agents is +3%. Projected annual openings: about 36,600. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Real Estate Sales Agents? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Real Estate Sales Agents. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Real Estate Sales Agents? ▼
Montana ($79,100), North Dakota ($73,920), Alaska ($89,170) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Real Estate Sales Agents card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 41-9022. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Real Estate Sales Agents. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics