I want to become a real estate agent in Washington state. Other

If you want to come across professional (and thus successfully sell houses and earn commission), then act the part.

Though you may not like it, it means getting a suit and tie -- and wearing it whenever you're working. Die the hair brown or black -- something 'conservative' enough to not scare away the customers, as it were. The car doesn't matter much, unless you're looking to sell million dollar houses. I suspect, however, if you're an upstart, then you'll start selling $100,000-$200,000 or even start by arranging rental agreements or so on.

>>16773340
This. The hair and clothes will have to change, and you'll have to start small, like really small.

If you want to work alone and not for an agency then network like crazy. Try an get friends and family to let you sell their homes and tell them you'll give them a percent of your commission. It won't be much but it's incentive to go with you over a company.

You won't sell that much when you start, and even when you get rolling you won't sell that much.

Have a good eye for design. So you can stage houses to make them look more appealing. Of course it's up to the seller to put in the extra money to make changes but if you know what you're doing you can increase value and sale speed.

My sister is a part-time realtor. She made around $40,000 last year. That's off $1.5 million in home values. She's been doing it for more than a decade though and has a really good network.