Is a real estate agent always needed to buy?

[Miguel Del Real]

Hello im starting out and this might sound like a dumb question but I want to know if you always need a real estate agent when buying a fix and flip property that you find by driving by it or is sent to you by a wholesaler or basically any other way than using the MLS?

[Kyle Mccaw]

@Miguel Del Real No. Most real estate agents don't understand the investor side of the business. I would suggest you find a good local hard money lender. They want to lend money on fix and flips. But most importantly that don't want to make a bad loan. So many of them will help walk you thru the whole process.

[Caleb Brown]

Not needed. They can be helpful in just doing the paperwork and keeping you on track with deadlines. Just make sure if you buy off market you have the paperwork squared away and don't get bamboozled :)

[Andy Sabisch]

No they are not needed when you get a property from a wholesaler or one you find off market.  In fact, an agent can get you into on market properties and when you write an offer, the rest can easily be handled by a title company / real estate attorney (depending on your area) all the way to closing.  In fact many of our properties are done that way - we get a signed contract and then turn the package over to the closing attorney and move on to the next one until closing day.

Your local REIG can recommend some good closing attorneys / title companies and they will usually be happy to walk you through the process and even provide you with the forms you need to get the deal locked up and closed.

[Christian Padilla]

Everyone is correct, you don't need a realtor to buy OFF market properties.

However, don't try to go around a realtor with properties ON market.

[Bob Stevens]

Quote from @Miguel Del Real:

Hello im starting out and this might sound like a dumb question but I want to know if you always need a real estate agent when buying a fix and flip property that you find by driving by it or is sent to you by a wholesaler or basically any other way than using the MLS?

 Heck no, I have been flipping and holding props for 10 years ,100s and 100s and 100s , NEVER using an agent, and never buying listed props. OFF market is where you find 99% of the deals

Good luck

BTW you better be cash or it will be much more difficult, 

[Marcus Auerbach]

No, but.

The fact that you ask the question tells me you should have SOMEONE with experience on your side in that deal.. 

Maybe someone who has done 100s and 100s and 100s of deals :-)

[Miguel Del Real]

Quote from @Bob Stevens:

Quote from @Miguel Del Real:

Hello im starting out and this might sound like a dumb question but I want to know if you always need a real estate agent when buying a fix and flip property that you find by driving by it or is sent to you by a wholesaler or basically any other way than using the MLS?

 Heck no, I have been flipping and holding props for 10 years ,100s and 100s and 100s , NEVER using an agent, and never buying listed props. OFF market is where you find 99% of the deals

Good luck

BTW you better be cash or it will be much more difficult, 

But what about having someone with access to the mls to help you find recent comparable sales. Wouldn’t you need that in order to get a good estimate on the ARV?

[Brian Jackson]

No an agent is not needed if you know what you are doing. If you are starting out, which I assume since you asked this question, you should find a local investor friendly agent to assist you.

[Theresa Harris]

How experienced are you with buying (or selling) homes? For off market, make sure you have a lawyer check the contact. For something listed through MLS, what does it cost you to use a realtor? If you use the seller's agent, they are working with the seller or they must remain neutral (ie either way they are not in your corner trying to get the best deal for you). Do you know what a fair market price is? Make sure you don't get talked out of things conditions (ie inspection and financing-unless you are paying cash or know enough to do the inspection yourself).

[John Morgan]

@Miguel Del Real

I've bought my last 26 houses without a realtor. For me it's so much easier to deal with the listing agents or wholesalers directly. I do my MLS searchers on Zillow and text or call up the listing agents. They are always motivated to show me the houses right away for obvious reasons. If the numbers work for me, I look at the houses right away and text them an offer within a few hours of viewing it if I like the property. Done.

[Matthew Gentile]

As an agent, I'll still tell you do not need one. The caution, which a few people have mentioned is definitely experience. Without any experience, mistakes and learning in this industry can be very expensive. Having someone particular to investing is crucial and that does not necessarily need to be an agent, could just be someone who has experienced in the realm you want to operate in.

In my wholesaling operation, I disclose that I'm an agent but make it abundantly clear that I am in no way operating as one because off-market is typically oriented to get away from agents for a few reasons, commissions being a large one. 

A good experienced attorney is AN ABSOLUTE MUST when starting out, you want to know that your contracts are reviewed and sound if you are doing them yourself. It is worth the expense always. Or just pay the attorney to do them for you. 

Make sure if you do use an agent to vet them and make sure they have worked with investors who do or have done what you want to do. Not all agents are equal, find the agent who fits your goals best.  

[Dan Marriggi]

NO !

[Jassem A.]

if you're in talks with the owner then just bring them a purchase agreement and take that to a RE attorney or title company. If you want to potentially save some cost on MLS purchase then you can communicate directly with listing agent and go unrepresented.

[Lucia Rushton]

@Miguel Del Real if you are just starting out, and maybe you’ve never bought your own personal resident, it is risky to not have somebody in your corner. You can most definitely do it just know it’s a higher risk. You don’t know what you don’t know.

Just my opinion, and not written by Ai

[Cassie Parker]

As an agent and an investor, I would say for your very first transaction, I would use an agent. As many have mentioned previously mistakes can be very costly. I would learn as much as I could during the first transaction, ask a lot of questions, make sure you note the steps to a successful transaction. I would work with an agent who has investments of their own because not all agents are knowledgeable in that realm. 

[Frank Barletta]

Quote from @Miguel Del Real:

Hello im starting out and this might sound like a dumb question but I want to know if you always need a real estate agent when buying a fix and flip property that you find by driving by it or is sent to you by a wholesaler or basically any other way than using the MLS?

 No, you don't.

[James Hamling]

Quote from @Miguel Del Real:

Hello im starting out and this might sound like a dumb question but I want to know if you always need a real estate agent when buying a fix and flip property that you find by driving by it or is sent to you by a wholesaler or basically any other way than using the MLS?

Yes! It's an absolute MUST. 

If you don't use a real estate agent, they will come and take your birthday away! 

[Michael Sloan]

@Miguel Del Real short answer is no you don't have to have an agent to buy, even properties listed on the MLS. Real Estate is a team sport though, and having a good agent or two on your team you can call on will be useful down the road.

[Kyle Mccaw]

Quote from @Lucia Rushton:

@Miguel Del Real if you are just starting out, and maybe you’ve never bought your own personal resident, it is risky to not have somebody in your corner. You can most definitely do it just know it’s a higher risk. You don’t know what you don’t know.

Just my opinion, and not written by Ai

 @Lucia Rushton I love it!! "and not written by Ai"   I'm going to have to put that on my posts.

[Kris Kraatz]

@Miguel Del Real I'm an agent and I'm not sure how investors analyze wholesale deals with out MLS access and knowing local market nuance like not competing with new construction during dispo. this reply is specific to F&F.

[Miguel Del Real]

Quote from @Kris Kraatz:

@Miguel Del Real I'm an agent and I'm not sure how investors analyze wholesale deals with out MLS access and knowing local market nuance like not competing with new construction during dispo. this reply is specific to F&F.

This is exactly what I was thinking and the whole reason for my question

[Jacob Sherman]

definitely not needed but better to have for guidance throughout the transaction . Not all go smoothly so a realtor is great to have 

[Steve K.]

No but if you haven’t done lots of transactions then you’re not going to do it as well as someone who has. If you’re just starting out, I’d recommend having someone with experience at least look over everything for you  (not necessarily an agent, just someone with experience, the more experience the better). This could mean another investor, an attorney (I suppose, if you must), a mentor, or an agent (one with experience though, not just any agent, it’s easy to get a license and just because someone is licensed doesn’t mean they’ve done any more deals than anyone else). When I was on my 5th or 6th transaction, I found a deal off market and was prepared to close but had an agent/ investor friend look over everything for me. She actually saved me from messing up big time. I see a lot of other new cocky investors like I once was make the same mistake. They think they’re smarter than they are and mess up something really important, often without ever even realizing they left money on the table. Usually this happens with successful people (in their own fields) who are just arrogant and think they know more than experienced agents do. But if you’re not doing it every day, and haven’t done lots of transactions, and aren’t intimately familiar with the local market on a house by house level, then you couldn’t possibly know as much about things to avoid and best practices etc. as someone who does it every day for a living and has done lots of transactions. Not all agents are equal though. I’ve also seen plenty of agents mess up deals, so stick to the ones with lots of experience and good track records.  

[Marcus Auerbach]

Quote from @Steve K.:

Not all agents are equal though. I’ve also seen plenty of agents mess up deals, so stick to the ones with lots of experience and good track records.  

Only agents (and maybe loan officers) have an actual understanding of the enormous differences in the skill levels of agents in the industry. The public tends to believe they are all more or less the same, after all they all passed the same license test, right?

If you have read the book Outliers and understand the concept of doing something for 10,000 hours makes you an expert and then you look at real estate agents, most of them part-time, many have less than 2 years of experience, on average 7 deals per year.. Some investors close more transactions on their own. 

Frankly, I got licensed in 2015 because after 7 years of investing in Milwaukee, I had worked with a few okay agents, but I felt most of the time looking at a property I was the more knowledgeable one of the two of us. 

So, I get it, why many here don't see the value, it is probably based on personal experience. Invest some time in finding a good one, ask them how many transactions they close in a year (24+ is a good number).

[James Hamling]

Quote from @Miguel Del Real:

Quote from @Kris Kraatz:

@Miguel Del Real I'm an agent and I'm not sure how investors analyze wholesale deals with out MLS access and knowing local market nuance like not competing with new construction during dispo. this reply is specific to F&F.

This is exactly what I was thinking and the whole reason for my question

It's a good point you bring up Miguel, but your post is not correctly worded for this, because what your really asking is: "I am new, do I need to pay a "Guru" to learn the things to take action, OR can I hire a Professional Investment Real Estate REALTOR/Real Estate Agent and do just as good or better?" 

The answer is; NO, you DON'T need to hire a "Guru". YES, you CAN hire an REI REALTOR and get all the things, AND MORE, for a whole lot LESS $. And, things will be MORE action focused, more experience based, more "in-the-moment" of the market then some "program" someone developed "once upon a time" to sell to the masses.

Because a good REI REALTOR is in the trenches, doing the things, ACTUALLY doing it NOW, live-time, so they can do it for you. And the will go over things with you to sort where your at knowledge wise, know what you need to learn, direct you to those FREE resources for gaining that knowledge WHILE they are at work doing the things to make your next deal happen.

"Guru's" hate people discovering this, because it cost's them another $7k "package" sale. 

There is a MOUNTAIN of FREE and cheap resources out there to gain all this knowledge, the trick is knowing where to find it and to identify which is legit and which is BS. That REI REALTOR can be your Sherpa.

And THAT is the key difference; A "Guru" who try's to sell you knowledge, or a "partner" who is willing to Sherpa you. 

It's a question of "Guru" vs "Sherpa"....