News about economic tumult may be making you feel jittery about your finances. A “housing recession,” as National Association of REALTORS® Chief Economist Lawrence Yun characterizes the current market slowdown, may be daunting for real estate pros whose commission checks can vary greatly with the ebbs and flows of the real estate cycle.
After all, 37% of agents last November said they were struggling to pay rent for their offices, according to a poll(link is external) by Alignable, an online network for small business owners. Real estate professionals, along with other American workers, may not be feeling particularly rich: About six in 10 consumers say they are living paycheck to paycheck—about 45% of whom earn more than $100,000 per year—according to a late November poll from PYMNTS and LendingClub. Further, consider that the median gross income of REALTORS® was $54,330 in 2021, and incomes tend to grow with more years of experience, according to NAR data.
To weather potential business hiccups, financial experts offer 10 money-saving tips:
- Beef up your reserves. A reserve account consists of savings to cover any unforeseen expenses, which can be crucial during tough financial periods. For the self-employed, a good rule of thumb is to put enough savings to cover six months of expenses into a cash or stable value-type account, advises Brian Wiley, founder of Tree City Advisors(link is external) in Boise, Idaho, and host of “The Real Money Pros” radio show.
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