What the role does
Leasing consultants (leasing officers, letting agents) fill vacant rental properties. You market the listing, run viewings, process applications, check references and hand over to the property manager on signing. It is fast-moving, highly measurable work and the most common entry point into an agency.
A typical day
- Listing new vacancies: photography, copy, portal upload, rent recommendation with the property manager.
- Booking and running viewings, often in blocks across an afternoon or Saturday morning.
- Processing applications: identity, income, reference and rental-history checks.
- Presenting shortlists to owners and communicating outcomes to applicants.
- Lease preparation, bond lodgement and handover to the portfolio manager.
Typical responsibilities
- Marketing vacancies and minimising days on market
- Running viewings and managing applicant enquiry professionally
- Assessing applications fairly and consistently against documented criteria
- Preparing leases, condition reports and bond lodgements
- Keeping owners informed through the vacancy period
Skills employers look for
- Pace — vacancy days cost owners money and the metric is watched
- Fair, consistent and non-discriminatory application assessment
- Organisation across many simultaneous applicants
- Confidence presenting a rent recommendation with evidence
- Care with applicant personal information
How people get in
- Direct entry from customer service, retail or hospitality
- Agency reception or administration
- Casual open-home or viewings assistant work while studying
How the pay usually works
Usually a base salary plus letting-fee bonuses or a per-lease incentive. Ask how the incentive is calculated and whether it is paid on signing or on the tenancy commencing.
Career pathway
Leasing consultant → senior leasing or leasing manager → property manager → BDM or department leadership. Leasing also transfers cleanly into residential sales for people who enjoy the viewings and negotiation side.
Useful development
Entry registration is required in most states. Development focuses on tenancy legislation, anti-discrimination obligations in application assessment, privacy handling of applicant data, rent evidence and vacancy marketing.
Resources and practical advice
Check your state licensing requirements
Registration, certificates of registration, agent representative and licence rules are set state by state. Confirm current requirements with the regulator in the state you will work in (for example NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria, the Queensland Office of Fair Trading, Consumer Protection WA, Consumer and Business Services SA).
Learn the discrimination and privacy rules early
Application assessment is a legally sensitive task. Understand what you may and may not ask, how long applicant data may be kept, and who inside the agency can see it. Getting this wrong is a serious matter, not a training detail.
Set up a job alert for leasing roles
Leasing vacancies move quickly. An alert gets them to you the day they are approved.
Open
Common questions
- Do I need experience to get a leasing role?
- Usually not. Agencies hire for reliability, presentation and customer service, then train the process. Entry registration is generally required before you start.
- Does leasing involve weekend work?
- Commonly yes — Saturday viewings are standard in most markets. Confirm the roster before accepting.