my buddy keeps telling me i need to get certified before i start charging clients but ive seen plenty of guys on instagram just flying and posting and nobody seems to care. i have a mini 3 pro and mostly just want to do some neighborhood real estate stuff nothing crazy. the study material looks like a lot and im not sure its worth the time if im just going to be doing simple stuff in uncontrolled airspace mostly.

not trying to cut corners just genuinely wondering if its enforceable or like how often does the faa actually come after someone for this

yeah this comes up all the time. the short answer is the moment you exchange money for the footage you are legally required to have the 107, doesnt matter how simple the flight is or what airspace youre in. the faa has gone after people for this, usually its not random enforcement but if a complaint gets filed or something goes wrong and theres an insurance claim involved youre going to have a very bad time without that cert. the test honestly isnt that bad, took me like 3 weeks of casual studying.

the instagram guys you're seeing either have it already or are rolling the dice. i know someone who got hit with a fine after a neighbor reported them, wasnt even a big job. the cert process is annoying but its like $175 for the test and its good for 2 years, for what real estate shoots pay its really not worth skipping it. plus some realtors are starting to specifically ask for proof of certification before they hire anyone so youll run into that eventually anyway