Industry powerhouse and Million Dollar Listing star Fredrik Eklund didn’t even have a bachelor’s degree in the profession when he touched down in the U.S.—he took a brief course, and was off to the races. But Eklund tells Fortune even that isn’t needed. 

“There’s a four-year college degree to get your license here. I took an accelerated course [at] NYU, which is two or three weeks,” Eklund says. “So [going] to college? You don’t even need to.”

Despite moving from Stockholm to New York City with no job, connections, or real-estate degree—getting his start by selling paninis on the street—Eklund was able to make a name for himself in the industry. The 48-year-old has built his own real-estate empire, recording $3.77 billion in sales across New York, California, Florida, and Texas in 2023 alone. Some of his notable clientele includes Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Lopez, Joe Jonas, as well as Hollywood power couple Chrissy Teigen and John Legend. And he’s proud to currently lead a $15 billion real-estate powerhouse of around 100 agents across global 10 markets with his Eklund-Gomes Team at luxury firm Douglas Elliman. 

While Eklund hasn’t written off a four-year degree as a way to learn how to crunch numbers and get a foot in the real-estate world, he says there are a few crucial skills that industry hopefuls can’t learn in college. 

“Of course, school is always good from a social point of view, and it’s really good to always learn. But what is the curriculum, and how is that [you’re] keeping up with today’s society?” Eklund explains. “For real estate, it’s a very data-driven job to know every address, know every co-op and condo board, know every street, and know every price point. And then it’s about communication skills and really learning to negotiate. It’s hard to learn all of those things in school.”

Success doesn’t always come quickly—but being on the ‘mean streets’ is the best education

While a seven-figure career without a degree sounds like a dream for Gen Z, Eklund also warns that success doesn’t always come swiftly. 

The real-estate mogul believes it takes five years to really make it. He says it’s a super competitive industry, especially in a hotspot like New York City with an estimated 82,000 active real-estate salespeople as of April 2023. So it’s critical that young industry aspirants don’t get bogged down by the pressure of the job. 

Just a few years in, Eklund says he wanted to throw in the towel despite doing relatively well for himself. But it took half a decade to really absorb the profession by constantly hitting the streets—learning things he wouldn’t encounter in a classroom, alongside people with invaluable industry expertise. 

“It’s an art and it’s a craft, and the only way to learn is the hard way. You cannot really learn it in school,” Eklund says. 

“[You’ve] gotta be out on the streets, the mean streets. That’s my first tip. The other one would be to start on a team, and just sit and learn and absorb all the knowledge. Because once again, you can’t learn it by yourself. I lost a lot of years by trying to do it myself.”

Gen Z ditching college degrees as the benefits dry up

Gen Z is turning sour on college degrees—for good reason. Tuition costs are soaring to unmanageable levels, once-stable education paths like computer science are now on rocky ground thanks to AI automation, and a diploma no longer guarantees a six-figure salary. In fact, 23% of Gen Z said they regret going to college, and 13% would have preferred a skilled trade or no-degree career, according to a July study from ResumeGenius. Only 32% were happy with their education path, and one in five Gen Z workers felt their schooling hadn’t paid off. 

It’s understandable why so many are regretful about their education: AI continues to nab more and more entry-level jobs, boxing out humans who went to school from gainful employment. This has left about 58% of recent graduates stranded, still looking for their first job in the first year after getting their diploma, according to a report from Kickresume. 

More in-person industries requiring human interaction—like healthcare, and even real estate—might be a safer route for success than majoring in consulting or engineering. Right now, jobs like nursing and equipment sterilization are seen as safe harbors from automation and recessionary impacts. For those Gen Zers not wanting to pursue degrees or take up trade work like plumbing and carpentry, real estate might be the play—if they’re willing to hustle.

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But things looked a lot different just two decades ago when he first moved to the city. Eklund was handing out paninis in front of the Late Show with David Letterman for just $15 an hour before he got a shot at selling luxe apartments. 

“This was at a time when New York—and I didn’t know it then—was very undervalued,” Eklund tells Fortune. “And it was about to explode in what I’ve been focusing on: new developments, and these new beautiful buildings.”

“I was a little bit lucky to happen to fall into it; I got my license at NYU and I got a job from someone stupid enough to hire me with no experience.”

Eklund now leads a real estate powerhouse of around 100 agents, the The Eklund|Gomes Team, at luxury firm Douglas Elliman. He leads offices in 10 markets, with celebrity clientele ranging from Jennifer Lopez to Joe Jonas, as he takes over America’s real estate scene. Aside from New York, the self-made millionaire also has his eyes set on Miami as a sales ambassador for a $2 billion luxury living project in Bahia Mar, working with real estate titan Jorge M. Pérez’s Related Group. 

But his rise to fame in the industry—and on Bravo—was anything but meteoric. It took years to achieve success after Eklund cleaned his slate and moved from Stockholm to New York City with nothing. No connections, no business, and no clear plan of what he wanted to pursue. 

“It was very scary to not really know the city, because I didn’t have any context here,” Eklund says. “Nobody would give me any business, because I didn’t know anybody.”

From handing out paninis outside David Letterman to helping close $15 billion in real estate 

Needless to say, Eklund didn’t propel straight into a top real estate firm when trying to find his first gig in New York City.

“We were handing out paninis for free for one of those cafe restaurants right outside David Letterman,” Eklund recalls. “As part of the job, we got a penny a panini. I think we got $15 to $20 an hour, which is not bad. They had some free lunch.”

But Eklund was determined to not hand out paninis for life, and then a friend suggested real estate as a potential career path, fitting for Eklund’s outgoing persona. Intrigued by the idea, Eklund soon got his real estate license from New York University, and a boutique property agency offered him a role. Six months later, he landed his first client. And it was all thanks to his friend being perceptive on what profession Eklund could stand out in. 

“After the paninis thing, I was like, ‘What am I actually going to really do?’” Eklund says. “A friend of mine told me that I would be really good at real estate, because I have this crazy persona—a very large, eccentric, entertaining, and bubbly personality. But I’m also super driven, cutthroat, and very competitive.”

Millions of viewers from across the country would soon tune into his competitive edge on Million Dollar Listing New York. Eklund was an original cast member when the Bravo show premiered in 2012, and stayed on for a full decade until his departure in 2022. 

Ever since, Eklund had been building his own real estate empire, recording $3.77 billion in sales across New York, California, Florida, and Texas in 2023 alone. Notable clientele include Sex and the City icon Sarah Jessica Parker, as well as Hollywood power couple Chrissy Teigen and John Legend. And Eklund says he’s proud that he’s built his $15 billion empire from the ground-up.

“I didn’t have all those contacts, or a sort of easy beginning. Nobody did me a favor, or my dad or mom,” Eklund says. “I did it all by myself—I put it all on this one thing, and it worked.”

A word of caution to aspiring real estate millionaires: Success doesn’t come fast

While Eklund has two decades of accomplishments under his belt, he has a word of caution for other aspiring real estate agents looking to replicate his success. Becoming well established in the profession takes years to get there, and doubt creeps in along the way. 

“I would say it takes five years to really make it,” Eklund warns. “It’s a very difficult industry because it’s super, super competitive, so you cannot give up like I almost did. I wanted to give up after two, three years. I was like, ‘This is not for me, I’m not doing well enough.’”

Being able to tough out the early years can lead to million-dollar closings across New York, Los Angeles, and Miami, but it takes a certain type of person to make the cut. While Eklund says he has the eccentric personality and drive to stand out, there’s another part of his persona that’s a double-edged sword in the job. It could be the trait that makes or breaks someone in real estate, but he leverages the perceived flaw to his advantage. 

“[Real estate is] an art and a craft, and the only way to learn is the hard way. You cannot really learn it in school. [You’ve] gotta be out on the streets, the mean streets,” Eklund explains. “It takes a long time, and if you’re an impulsive and impatient person—which I am, and can make you even more successful at work—it’s very easy to kind of find a new hobby or a new thing.”