3 numbers to know before year-end

Welcome to CRE Broker Playbook!

Year-end is coming fast. Most brokers are scrambling to figure out their taxes, wondering if they saved enough, and hoping they didn't miss anything.

I’d recommend already knowing these things :)

Here are three numbers to lock down before December 31st, two things I noticed this week, and one question worth asking yourself.

3 Numbers to Know Before Year-End

1. Your Effective Tax Rate Most brokers can't answer this: What percentage of your income actually goes to taxes?

Before December 31st, calculate your federal + state + self-employment tax as a percentage of your gross income. You can only do so many things to lower this after January 1st.

2. Your Net Income (After Expenses) Commissions minus all business expenses. This number is necessary to choose your salary.

Pay yourself too little? You pay more in federal income taxes. Counterintuitive I know. Pay yourself too much? You're paying unnecessary payroll taxes. Get this right and the S Corp actually saves you money.

3. 6 Months of Runway How many months could you survive without a commission check?

We see brokers making $500K with 60 days of runway. We see brokers making $300K with a year of savings. One group sleeps well. The other doesn't.

2 Observations from the Week

1. Clarity > Tax Savings Tax savings matter. Clarity matters more.

“Am I doing everything I can?" Our job isn't just minimizing your tax bill. It's bringing clarity to your cash flow and ensuring you're doing what you need to do while hitting your goals.

2. Admin Work Kills Momentum Time spent on admin instead of business development, family, or solving real problems is painful.

Scheduling meetings. Uploading listings. Tracking receipts. If you're doing these instead of closing deals, something's broken. EA, VA, better systems. Whatever it takes. Your time is worth more than $15/hour.

1 Question Worth Asking

If you had to take a month off tomorrow, what breaks?

Those are the things you systematize or delegate first.

Most brokers can't take a week off without deals dying or clients panicking. That's not a business. That's a job with no backup.

The brokers who scale aren't smarter. They built systems that don't require them for every decision.