so ive been flying for about two years now, got my Part 107 last spring and been doing a handful of real estate jobs on the side while keeping my day job. the money has been decent enough that im starting to wonder if its actually possible to just... do this full time. like not just real estate but branching out into inspections, events, maybe some mapping work.

i talked to a guy at a local fly-in who said he went full time three years ago and never looked back but he also had a construction background which helped him get into the inspection side of things. im coming from marketing so i guess i have some transferable skills for the client side of things but i genuinely dont know if the market can support a solo operator where i live (mid-sized midwest city, not huge but not tiny either).

anyone here actually done the jump? what did your first year look like financially, was it scary, did you have a slow season you werent expecting. just trying to get a realistic picture before i do anything dumb.

did exactly this about four years ago and honestly the first year was rough in a way i wasnt fully prepared for. not because the work wasnt there but because the feast or famine cycle is real and i didnt have enough runway saved up going in. real estate alone will not carry you through winter in most markets, just being straight with you. the guys i know who made it work quickly either had a specialty that kept paying year round like infrastructure inspections or cell tower work, or they had a partner or spouse income to lean on while they built the client base up.

your marketing background is actually more valuable than you think though. half this industry is terrible at selling itself and if you can package your services and actually communicate value to clients youre already ahead of most solo operators. the midwest market can be good if youre willing to drive. ive done jobs two hours out plenty of times because the local competition was weak.

im kind of in the same boat as you actually so following this thread. just got my 107 a few months ago and doing mostly real estate right now. curious what rates people are charging in smaller markets because everything i read online seems aimed at LA or NYC pricing and it feels way off for where i am.