When Gary Vee says something about real estate, agents usually pay attention. But this week, he lit a match when he said agents should spend more than 50% of their time creating content.
Here’s the clip:
View this post on Instagram
That’s what set everything off.
Because once you hear that, you can’t really ignore the implication. If that’s true, then everything else (showings, follow-up, negotiations, lead gen) has to fit into the time that’s left.
Real estate coach Brian Buffini followed with a blunt response on X for agents who take that advice at face value:
“You know what you’ll be? A broke content creator who doesn’t sell any homes…”
And Jared James stepped in to say both sides are missing the point.
Let’s dive in.
The 50% Claim and Why It’s Getting So Much Attention
On a recent episode of The Millionaire Real Estate Agent podcast, Gary Vee said more than 50% of an agent’s time should go to creating content.
“I will say right now, if you’re a modern real estate agent, more than 50% of your time is to make content. And you have to then do everything else in the 49-50%.”
Agents hear that and immediately think about their schedule. Showings, negotiations, contracts, client calls. Gary doesn’t adjust the number to account for any of that.
He treats content like prospecting. The kind of work agents used to do every day without questioning it.
He also sets a higher bar for output.
“Five pieces of social media content in 2026 in a week is equivalent to three total push-ups for the week. I don’t mean three sets. I don’t mean three days of a hundred push-ups. I mean three push-ups.”
Five posts a week doesn’t register to him as real volume.
Then he explains why he’s pushing this so hard. While door knocking and direct mail were “the foundation of the grind of real estate in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s,” the new foundation is social media content.
“But unlike direct mail, one piece of content for some unknown reason…gets 3 million views instead of your normal 1300. Changes the course of your career. There’s no door you could have knocked on, no flyer you could have sent… that would have compounded your business 50x.”
He’s focused on the leverage. One post can reach a massive audience. That kind of reach didn’t exist in the old playbook.
Gary’s coming at this from a reach-and-scale mindset, which is why he lands on 50% in the first place.
The Pushback From Brian Buffini
Brian Buffini kept his response simple and direct. As someone who’s worked in real estate for decades, he focused on outcomes.
Here’s what he said:
Everyone in the real estate industry is encouraging people to become content creators. You know what you’ll be, a broke content creator who doesn’t sell any homes. Social media is very valuable but it isn’t 50% of my time and it sure as heck doesn’t produce 50% of my revenue.
— Brian Buffini (@brianbuffini) March 23, 2026
The “broke content creator” line landed because it speaks directly to the fear a lot of agents already have.
Not that content doesn’t matter, but that time spent creating it doesn’t always translate into closings.
Buffini’s perspective is rooted in what’s traditionally driven the business: conversations, follow-up, and client work. The activities that have a clear line to revenue.
From that lens, the pushback isn’t really about content itself. It’s about what happens when it starts replacing the work that is producing deals.
The Middle Ground Most Agents Are Missing
Jared James stepped into the middle of this conversation and took a different angle.
View this post on Instagram
Rather than argue for a specific percentage, he focused on how agents think about the role of content in the business.
“Do you have to be a content creator? Simple answer is no. Nobody has to be. I know many of you succeed just fine without doing content…
“Now, should you be a content creator? Absolutely! And the answer for that is just because time has changed. Visibility trumps ability.”
In a nutshell:
- Visibility drives attention.
- Attention creates familiarity.
- Familiarity turns into conversations over time.
Then Jared brings it back to a basic principle of business.
“Our job… is not to decide what you want to do or where you want to go. It’s to figure out where your consumer is and to go there.”
Buyers and sellers spend hours on their phones every day. Agents who show up in that environment stay in front of them.
Referrals, relationships, open houses, and database work still carry weight. Content supports those activities and keeps agents visible between conversations.
He describes social media in a specific way.
“Social is an amazing way… It’s the glue that starts relationships, that continues relationships… It doesn’t ultimately make the relationship. It doesn’t replace you. But it is the glue.”
People get a sense of who you are before they ever meet you. They see your face and hear your opinions. They watch you break down news that’s relevant to them. And they start to feel like they know you.
Jared also pushes back on the 50% number.
“Now, to this whole ‘Should it be 50%?’ I think that’s kinda crazy… I don’t do 50%. This video right here… is gonna take me less than 15 minutes.”
He takes a different tack from the one in Buffini’s Tweet, though.
Rather than assume any agent who follows Gary Vee’s advice will end up broke, he says he knows some agents are spending that kind of time on content creation and thriving with it.
Jared’s primary focus is on efficiency. On what works for each of the agents in his audience.
Because he knows. The exact time share for content creation is not a one-size-fits-all.
As Jared puts it, this is not an “or” situation. It’s not social media OR agent tactics. Agents should prioritize both. Modern-day marketing means building a social media presence where your audience is. That’s where Jared’s statement, “visibility trumps ability,” comes in.
Fortunately, it is possible to put out a LOT of high-value content consistently without spending half your time on it.
A short video can be recorded, edited, and posted in 15 minutes or less. Consistency comes from keeping the process simple and repeatable.
Jared leaves his final message open-ended on purpose.
“You do you… I don’t care where the argument goes. I’m for whatever works.”
Judging by some of the comments on Jared’s reel, agents are taking the 50% advice with a grain of salt. Some emphasize the value of social media in their business growth. Some reiterate the value of “old school hard work.”
For at least one of them, social media gave them an edge over a competing agent in their market who had little to no social media presence.
Here’s a sampling of the comments:
Most agents keep doing what already works in their business. They add content in a way that fits their schedule and keeps them visible.
The exact percentage matters less than tracking what works for you and doing more of it, while continually learning how to do all the important things better.
What This Means for Real Estate Agents
So, to recap:
- Gary Vee is pushing agents to spend 50% of their work time on content creation.
- Brian Buffini is grounding the conversation in what actually produces income for him.
- Jared James is pulling both ideas into something agents can use.
There’s no fixed percentage that works for everyone.
Some agents lean into content because they need visibility. Others focus on referrals and repeat business because that’s already working for them.
Judging by the comments, the majority of agents land somewhere in between and adjust as they go.
The real question comes down to results:
- Content should lead to conversations.
- Conversations should lead to opportunities.
- Opportunities should turn into closings.
A break anywhere in that chain signals a problem that needs attention.
What’s not going to change? Agents need to show up where their audience spends time.
So, where do you land on Gary Vee’s 50% recommendation? Do you agree with Brian Buffini’s take or lean more into Jared James’ way of thinking?
