Working in real estate is a mixed bag of successes and failures.
Sometimes the market is roaring and home sales are through the roof, then the opposite happens for several years straight.
If you don’t plan for the downturns you won’t be able to pay your bills. It doesn’t surprise me when I see a lot of people working in real estate that have spouses who do more to support their joint family financially, regardless of gender. For what it’s worth, my old college buddy was taking advantage of his wife for years because she’s a lawyer with a six-figure income. He went into real estate as an unskilled bum like a lot of people do, as they somehow convince themselves that it’s an easy ride to success and wealth. He heard about my career and jumped on the bandwagon while lying to his wife about his intentions. He doesn’t realize that it takes a lot of energy out of you doing real estate, especially when there are ethical dilemmas where you have to warn clients of potential dangers with a property. Whenever a central HVAC system is over 10 years old, I urge my clients to expect that fee after purchasing the property, or to find a property with a newer air conditioner and furnace. However, HVAC manufacturer warranties do not transfer to a new owner; if the seller bought the a/c a year before you purchased the house, the a/c is now officially out of warranty. I had one client who called me angrily after he finished moving in and tried to get the air conditioner fixed using the former owner’s manufacturer warranty. Since they refused, he was calling me to have someone to blame. I told him repeatedly about this issue before he signed the paperwork to buy the house, but he must have ignored me.
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