According to HousingWire, a program called NIL Real Estate has grown significantly since its start as a small test with college athletes in Salt Lake City. The initiative, now directed by Katy Cookston from her Keller Williams office in Virginia, has expanded to include over fourteen hundred student-athletes from more than three hundred universities across the country. What began with just a handful of schools willing to participate has turned into a national effort, with more than two hundred athletes joining in the current year alone.
The program works by helping college athletes earn real estate licenses and connecting them with experienced agents who mentor them. While athletes participate, they can earn referral income when someone they direct to an agent completes a real estate transaction. Cookston explained that these aren't small payouts, with athletes earning several thousand dollars per successful referral, but importantly, they only receive these payments because they're licensed referral agents doing legitimate work, not just showing up for an easy payday.
What makes this different from typical name, image and likeness deals is that the real estate license itself has lasting value. Unlike conventional NIL agreements that end when an athlete graduates, the license remains active as long as participants complete their continuing education requirements. This means student-athletes aren't just earning money during college but gaining a credential and skill set they can use for the rest of their lives, whether or not they pursue real estate professionally.
The program also addresses a real challenge the real estate industry faces. The median age of real estate professionals is considerably high, with many agents nearing retirement age. By introducing young athletes to the business and helping them become licensed, the program brings younger people into the field and gives them practical knowledge about housing and transactions that will benefit them personally throughout their lives.
Right now, the main limitation isn't finding student-athletes who want to participate. Cookston noted that demand from athletes is substantial and growing. Rather, the challenge is finding enough experienced agents willing to mentor these young people. The program requires agents to commit time to mentoring, stay compliant with both NCAA and real estate regulations, and work behind the scenes on compliance matters. Cookston is looking to expand the number of Keller Williams agents participating nationwide to meet the athlete demand.
What I am seeing locally here in the Bay Area is that any initiative bringing younger people into real estate and teaching them the fundamentals of how real estate works is valuable, especially when it's done through legitimate licensing and mentorship. College athletes in our region, like everywhere else, could benefit from understanding property transactions and building relationships in business. For our market specifically, this kind of program could help create more knowledgeable future buyers and sellers, and perhaps introduce some talented young people to real estate as a career path.
