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Real Estate Lawyers

Outlook

According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment for lawyers in general is expected grow about as fast as the average for all careers through 2028. A large number of law school graduates have created strong competition for jobs.

Although the housing market stabilized and recovered following the Great Recession, new economic woes accompanied the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in early 2020, including widespread unemployment. This created uncertainty in many sectors of the economy. While the ultimate impact of the pandemic remained to be seen in mid-2020, it will be a major consideration in the real estate market moving forward.

Nevertheless, continued population growth and typical business activities will create demand for lawyers who specialize in real estate law. Opportunities may be plentiful in areas of the United States experiencing high population growth, such as the Southwestern states. An increase in population can translate to private and commercial construction needs.

Law services will be more accessible to the middle-income public with the popularity of prepaid legal services and clinics. However, stiff competition has and will continue to urge some lawyers to look outside the legal profession for employment. Administrative and managerial positions in real estate companies, banks, insurance firms, and government agencies are typical areas where legal training is useful.

The top 10 percent of the graduating seniors of the country’s best law schools will have more opportunities with well-known law firms and jobs on legal staffs of corporations, in government agencies, and in law schools in the next few decades. Lawyers in solo practice will find it hard to earn a living until their practice is fully established. The best opportunities exist in small towns or suburbs of large cities, where there is less competition and new lawyers can meet potential clients more easily.

Graduates with lower class rankings and from lesser-known schools may have difficulty in obtaining the most desirable positions.