so ive been doing drone work on the side for about two years now, mostly real estate stuff and the occasional construction site progress shoot. i kept my day job this whole time because honestly i was scared to make the jump but ive been pulling in decent money on weekends and a few evenings here and there and my wife is actually the one pushing me to just go for it which i did not expect.

the thing is i dont really know how the math works out long term. like right now its supplemental income so it feels great but if i actually need to pay health insurance and taxes quarterly and all that stuff does anyone actually come out ahead? i know there are guys who do this full time and i see them on instagram with their fancy setups but i have no idea if theyre actually profitable or just posting.

im part 107 certified, have a mini 3 pro and a mavic 3 classic, and im in a mid size metro area so its not like im in the middle of nowhere. just trying to get a real honest take from people who have actually tried this not just people selling courses about it

honest answer? the first year is rough. like really rough. i went full time about three years ago and there were months where i genuinely questioned everything. the real estate market in my area dried up for a while and i had zero recurring clients so i was basically starting over every month just finding new gigs. what saved me was getting into the inspection side of things ? cell towers mostly, and some roofing companies that needed documentation for insurance claims. that work is way less glamorous than the cinematic stuff people post about but its consistent and the clients actually come back.

the health insurance thing is a real hit, not gonna lie. i went through my spouses plan for a while which helped a lot. if you dont have that option look into freelancer unions or professional associations because some of them have group rates that are actually decent. quarterly taxes you just get used to setting aside like 25-30% automatically and pretending that money doesnt exist. takes a few months to build that habit but once you do it becomes second nature.

your gear setup sounds fine for real estate work honestly. you dont need to go crazy upgrading unless you start landing clients who need specific sensor stuff. good luck ? the jump is scary but most people i know who did it dont regret it

not full time yet but following this thread because im kind of in the same boat. one thing i heard from a guy at a local meetup was that the pilots who do well long term are the ones who pick a niche and really own it instead of trying to do everything. he was doing exclusively solar farm inspections and said he was booked out months in advance. seemed like kind of a random niche but apparently the demand is huge and growing and theres not that many people who know how to do it properly