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There may be any number of reasons for you to want a business you can operate out of your own home. Maybe you have kids who needed to be carted to football practice, dance lessons, school and essentially all over Austin, as well as a spouse with a long commute. Maybe you want the freedom to control your hours and set your own pace. Maybe youre just now reentering the business world and arent ready for the corporate buildings that house CEOs and loom ominously over Texas. Or maybe you just like the idea of doing paperwork in your pajamas. Whatever the reason, you are looking for a business you can operate in your home that will carry you successfully into the future. Why not real estate?

Yes, real estate may seem like a risky business in the present economy. People are being careful with their money, holding on tight to what they have and worrying pensively about what they dont. Homeowners are thinking twice about putting their house on the markets; leasers are weighing the pros and cons of jumping into a mortgage. And even Austin, Texas - the city that couldnt be touched - has felt the sharp sting of recession. However, it is important to remember that even as homeowners take time for that second thought and leasers make positive-negative lists, they are still buying and selling homes. The real estate industry is still alive and it will be well into the future. You just have to know how to play the market.

Right now, homebuyers are in control, because there are fewer of them than there are good agents. Cater to them. Figure out what they want and what they need, and then find them the perfect home in the best location for the best price. Specialize in helping the homeowners who have to relocate for a job. Jobs are scarce in this down economy, and many people are moving to find something new, that pays. Help the people that are leaving sell houses. Help the people that are coming buy houses. And finally, push yourself: advertise more, ask for referrals and dont give up. You do this, and youll establish yourself in the present as a great, tough agent. That reputation will carry you into the future, when the economy has started climbing back up and the real estate market - particularly that in Austin, Texas - sees a rejuvenation few could imagine. Real estate, if you become a real estate agent, can push you into the future.

And lets not forget the pajama factor.

Much of what you have to do as an agent is be outside of an office. You need to meet clients, see houses, list houses and network. What you have to do inside is paperwork - heavy-duty paperwork. You dont need a corner office in a fancy building in the middle of Texas to do that. Mind you, you do need an office, but it can very easily be the workspace you set up 100 feet from your bedroom and even closer to your kitchen. Being a real estate agent can be the perfect in-home business now and into the future. Just remember to take your bunny slippers off before you leave to meet a client.