Anyone Can Become a REN — Almost No One Can Survive
On the surface, becoming a property agent looks simple. Attend a two-day course. Pass the exam. As long as you have SPM, you can register as a REN.
Legally, yes — the door is open. But in reality, definitely not everyone can survive as one.
The Illusion of Easy Entry
The industry's low entry barrier creates a dangerous illusion: "If everyone can enter, everyone can succeed."
That assumption is wrong. Out of every 10 people who enter the industry, 8 or 9 will quit before two years. Not because they are lazy. Not because they are incapable. But because the business model is structurally unforgiving. This is a career with no monthly income.
No basic salary. No guaranteed commission. No minimum survival buffer. You only get paid after a deal is completed — and many deals never reach completion.
No Connections Means No Oxygen
Most new agents start with the same disadvantage: they have no connections.
No buyer database. No seller pipeline. No referral network.
So what are they told to do?
- List on iProperty
- Run Facebook ads
- Buy Google ads
- Try TikTok ads
Now ask a simple question: Which one of these does not require marketing money?
None.
Exposure costs money. Leads cost money. Visibility costs money. If you choose not to pay, then answer this honestly:
Where are your buyers?
Where is your exposure?
Who even knows you exist?
Zero Income, Full Commitments
While income is zero, expenses are relentless. You still need to:
- Eat
- Pay rent
- Pay car instalments
- Pay petrol
- Pay phone bills
- Pay marketing costs
- Pay to meet clients
Every month, money flows out — with no certainty of money flowing in. This mismatch doesn't just hurt financially. It creates psychological pressure.
The Part No One Tells You: Even "Success" Comes Late — and Shrunk
Here's the part that breaks most people emotionally. Let's say you do survive. You grind for 12 to 18 months. You finally close your first deal.
On paper:
RM500,000 property
RM15,000 gross commission
But in reality, after:
- Agency split
- Marketing cost recovery
- Tax
You take home around RM7,000–RM8,000. That single cheque arrives after 7 months of negative cash flow — and it is expected to repay:
- 7 months of living expenses
- 7 months of petrol
- 7 months of ads
- 7 months of emotional stress
Most people can't handle that math. Not financially. And certainly not psychologically.
That's why many don't quit before their first deal — they quit after, when they realise how long it took and how little was left.
Why Grab Feels Like a Rational Choice
Driving Grab may not sound prestigious. But Grab offers:
- Daily income
- Predictable cash flow
- Lower psychological stress
- No upfront marketing spend
For someone under constant financial pressure, stability beats upside. So people choose certainty over hope. Survival over aspiration. And the industry quietly loses another agent — not because they failed, but because the structure failed them.
The Strategic Truth (The Bridge)
This is not a career for everyone — at least, not under the current rules. We blame agents for quitting. We call them "soft." But if a system fails 9 out of 10 people, the people are not the problem. The model is the problem.
The industry doesn't need more motivation. It doesn't need louder recruitment talks. It needs a re-architecture. It needs a model where:
- Survival does not depend on how much cash you can burn before your first cheque
- Exposure is not pay-to-die
- New agents are not sacrificed to fund portals and churn
The system is broken. It's time we stopped pretending it works — and started building the one that does.
Final note
This article should be mandatory reading for every wide-eyed 22-year-old who thinks "I like houses and I'm good with people" is enough to survive this business.
