Real estate virtual assistant: tasks and costs

Contents

• What a real estate VA does
• What an unlicensed assistant can't do
• Calling and texting leads
• What it costs
• Hours
• Tools and access
• How to test one before you hire
• Where to find one
• Questions people ask
• Sources

A real estate virtual assistant takes the desk work off an agent's plate: listing details, the CRM, the paperwork that keeps a deal on track, and the posts and emails that keep your name in front of past clients. This guide covers what they do, where the license line sits, what it costs, and how to start one without risking a deal.

What a real estate VA does

Most agents hand off work in this order:

• Listings: turning your notes, photos and spec sheet into a listing draft, writing the description, and updating price and status changes you approve.
• Your CRM: logging new leads, tagging them, setting follow-up reminders and keeping contact records clean.
• Inbound enquiries: answering website and portal messages with your approved replies, then routing serious buyers and sellers to you.
• Scheduling: booking your showings, inspections, appraisals and calls into your calendar.
• Transaction coordination support: a checklist for every deal, tracking deadlines, collecting signed documents and chasing missing ones.
• Marketing: scheduling social posts, a monthly email to your sphere, just-sold posts and review requests.
• Reports: a weekly pipeline summary and simple market updates from the data you use.

Start with listings and the CRM. They're repeatable, easy to check and low-risk, so you learn how the person works before they touch anything client-facing.

What an unlicensed assistant can't do

Most virtual assistants aren't licensed in your state, and the rules on what an unlicensed person may do are strict. Texas is a clear example. The Texas Real Estate Commission says an unlicensed assistant:

• can't show property. "Show" includes "unlocking or allowing access onto or into a property for a prospective buyer or tenant."
• can't host an open house.
• can't make prospecting calls. That means no calls "to determine whether a person is interested in buying, selling, or leasing property", even to set up a meeting with a license holder.
• may confirm advertised details. TREC Rule 535.5(f) "allows unlicensed assistants to confirm information previously advertised about a specific property."
• may do administrative tasks, such as inputting data, when a license holder specifically directs them to.

Doing licensed work without a license in Texas is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by "a fine up to $4,000 or confinement in jail for a term up to one year, or both", and the agent who uses the assistant can face TREC action too. Other states draw the line in their own words, so read your state commission's guidance before you write the job description.

Calling and texting leads

Even where an assistant may make calls, federal Do Not Call rules apply to telemarketing. The FTC says "It's against the law to call (or cause a telemarketer to call) any number on the registry" unless an exemption applies, such as the consumer's written agreement to be called. If you rely on the registry, "you must synchronize your lists with an updated version of the registry at least every 31 days."

There's also an exemption for an established business relationship: you may call "for up to 18 months after the consumer's last purchase or last delivery, or last payment", and for three months after someone makes an inquiry or submits an application.

In practice, keep a remote assistant on inbound follow-up and written replies to people who contacted you. Our appointment setter guide covers calling rules in more detail.

What it costs

The Upwork number is a freelance hourly rate. The Philippine numbers are full-time monthly salaries that remote workers report. For every role and country side by side, see how much a virtual assistant costs, or try the cost calculator.

Hours

Real estate runs on your local clock, so decide what needs doing while you're awake and what can be ready by morning. Here's a 9 to 5 US Eastern day in the assistant's local time:

None of these cities changes its clocks. A Manila day shift works while you sleep: listing drafts, CRM clean-up and tomorrow's schedule are ready when you start. Bogotá and Mexico City overlap your working day, which suits answering enquiries quickly.

Tools and access

• Their own logins. Give the assistant a named account in your CRM, email and transaction tools. Never share your own password.
• Ask your MLS about assistant access rather than handing over your login.
• One shared checklist per deal, so you and the assistant see the same deadlines.
• Approved reply templates for the ten questions buyers and sellers ask most.
• Clear limits in writing: what they may send on their own, and what needs your approval.

How to test one before you hire

1. A listing test. Send a spec sheet and five photos. Ask for a listing description and the data entered into a sample template. Check accuracy line by line.
2. A CRM test. Send a messy export of 50 contacts. Ask them to dedupe, tag and flag the ten to call this week.
3. A written reply. Forward a real enquiry with names removed and ask for a reply in your voice.

Typing speed and accuracy matter for data-heavy work: our free typing test shows both. For client-facing writing, ask for C1 English on the CEFR scale.

Where to find one

You can post on a marketplace such as Upwork, search a job board such as OnlineJobs.ph, use an agency, or pick from people who have already been tested.

Hiring for general admin too? Our virtual assistant page shows tested VAs and their rates.

Questions people ask

What does a real estate virtual assistant do?

Back-office work for an agent or team: entering listing details you supply, keeping the CRM up to date, answering and routing inbound enquiries, scheduling, tracking transaction deadlines and documents, and preparing social posts and market updates. In most states, anything that counts as licensed activity, such as showing property, stays with a licensed agent.

Can a virtual assistant make cold calls for a realtor?

Often not. In Texas, the Real Estate Commission says calls to find out whether someone wants to buy, sell or lease, even just to book a meeting with an agent, must be made by a license holder. Separately, federal Do Not Call rules apply to telemarketing calls. Check your state's rules before you give an assistant any prospecting calls.

How much does a real estate virtual assistant cost?

On Upwork, general virtual assistants typically charge $10 to $20 an hour. A full-time real estate VA in the Philippines reports $465 to $960 a month, from beginner to expert, on OnlineJobs.ph (April 2026). Agencies publish higher, all-in prices, such as $999 a month for a full-time assistant at Wing.

Do I need a licensed assistant?

Only for licensed work. An unlicensed assistant can do administrative tasks you direct, and in Texas can confirm details you have already advertised about a property. If you want someone to show homes, host open houses or prospect, you need a licensed assistant or agent.

Sources

Each figure in this guide comes from one of these pages, checked on 27 Oct 2026. Prices and rules change, so open the source before you rely on a number.

1. 1Texas Real Estate Commission: Can you use unlicensed individuals to help your Texas real estate transactions? It depends (17 Nov 2024)trec.texas.gov
2. 2US Federal Trade Commission: Q&A for telemarketers and sellers about the Do Not Call provisions of the Telemarketing Sales Ruleftc.gov
3. 3Upwork: virtual assistant cost (typical hourly rates)upwork.com
4. 4OnlineJobs.ph: virtual assistant salaries in the Philippines (salary guide, last updated April 2026)blog.onlinejobs.ph
5. 5US Bureau of Labor Statistics: secretaries and administrative assistants (pay, May 2025)bls.gov
6. 6Time Etc: plans and pricingtimeetc.com
7. 7Wing Assistant: pricingwingassistant.com
8. 8IANA time zone databasegithub.com