For many buyers, there comes a point where purchasing property isn’t enough. As they start to understand how deals work, how markets move, and how money flows, the question naturally follows: how can they take this further? One answer is becoming a buyer’s agent.
Interested in becoming a buyer’s agent? Join REB’s New Agent Academy. Free tickets here.
For buyers, investors, and property professionals, becoming a buyer’s agent is not just a career shift but a way to level up their knowledge, network, and access to opportunities across the broader market.
According to InvestorKit CEO and buyer’s agent Arjun Paliwal, those with investing or property experience often have an advantage when shifting into the buyer’s agent role, as they were already familiar with how buyers, sellers, and agents operate.
“They don’t start from zero. They already understand risk, deal flow, and long-term thinking,” Paliwal told REB.
“That gives them a huge advantage, not just in learning the role, but in executing it.”
Paliwal said that while the pathway to becoming a buyer’s agent has been relatively straightforward in terms of licensing and qualifications, gaining the right industry experience is essential.
He said the fastest way to build confidence was to get into any role within a buyer’s agency or real estate environment, where aspiring buyer’s agents can learn how both sides of the transaction operate, build exposure, and develop credibility over time simply by getting started.
“Being immersed in property every day sharpens that even further. You’re constantly analysing deals, seeing what works, and understanding what doesn’t.”
“Over time, that builds a level of confidence that’s hard to replicate from the outside.”
While experience in investing or real estate can give buyer’s agents an edge, Paliwal said communication and attention to detail were what ultimately separated good operators from average ones, ensuring clients remained supported throughout the process.
“I just feel like so many people have investing experience but don’t have great communication or great attention to detail, which are two important things to consider on people’s journeys of building wealth, and they’ve got to nail that.”
On a day-to-day basis, Paliwal said buyer’s agents were constantly moving between analysing deals, working with agents and professionals, and managing clients.
“A large part of the role is filtering opportunities through detailed due diligence, reviewing pricing, rental performance, and overall deal viability before deciding what moves forward.”
Alongside the analysis, he said there was ongoing negotiation and coordination with selling agents and external professionals, such as brokers, accountants, and lawyers.
“This involves constant communication, deal progression, and ensuring nothing falls through the cracks while keeping all parties aligned.”
When it comes to client-facing work, he said communication was key: regularly updating buyers, presenting opportunities, and guiding them through decisions so they always understood where things stood and what came next.
Paliwal said being a buyer’s agent was a high-risk, high-reward role due to the scale of transactions and the responsibility of managing people’s biggest financial decisions.
He said newcomers also need to be patient and learn to say “no” to many properties before making the right calls for their clients.
“When you’re being engaged by a client, you want to make sure that you come across with that confidence and are always one step ahead.”
In addition to a career switch, Paliwal said that becoming a buyer’s agent feeds directly into an investor’s portfolio, as they would not rely on theory or occasional experience but have the insights of their day-to-day job.
As time passes, Paliwal said young buyer’s agents will make their marks and stop seeing deals as one-off opportunities and start recognising repeatable structures, including pricing levels to attract competition, the property features that drive demand, and how market conditions influence outcomes.
“You start to see what makes a deal work. You understand how agents think, how they prioritise offers, and what motivates their recommendations to vendors.”
He said that having the day-to-day insight allowed buyer’s agents to position themselves more effectively in negotiations, rather than reacting to the market, and to navigate complexity with confidence because they had seen similar situations play out many times before.
“That immersion also helps reduce analysis paralysis and improves timing, strategy, and conviction when buying for themselves.”
“Becoming a buyer’s agent isn’t just about a job. It’s about positioning yourself closer to opportunity in a way that directly strengthens your own investing outcomes,” he concluded.
Interested in becoming a buyer’s agent? Join REB’s New Agent Academy.
One of the industry’s key education and networking events, it connects early-career agents with some of Australia’s top performers, offering real-world insights to help fast-track your success.
Whether you’re breaking into the industry, building momentum in your first few years, or looking to sharpen your edge in a competitive market, the academy is designed to give you the tools to get ahead.
To secure your free tickets to the REB New Agent Academy, click here.
The REB New Agent Academy will be held in Brisbane on 28 May, Melbourne on 5 June, and Sydney on 12 June.
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