Question about having a Real Estate License and Investing

[Brandi R.]

I am very interested in learning about investing in Real Estate. My husband owns and operates a painting business. I have often thought that getting involved in Real Estate Investing would be a great option for us because my husband knows so much about house construction and has a great network of building contractors and subcontractors to use if he needed to fix up a house to flip. 

I've been doing some research into getting my Real Estate License to help with my overall understanding of how this business works and help find properties. But now I'm not so sure getting my license would benefit us. I've read that if get my license I wouldn't be able to purchase a property without a brokerage license.  My question is, can my husband buy property if I have my Real Estate License since we are married? Just looking at the pros and cons since our goal is to invest in Real Estate and not so much sell houses.  I am in the learning phase and excited to take some classes. I have started the free online courses on this website. I was one click away from signing up online for my Real Estate License when I decided to google if a Real Estate License helps with investing in Real Estate. The advice I read was not to get it.  Now I'm not so sure what to do.  

  I am really trying to find a way to start working from home to help out financially. The painting business is doing very well but we have had some IRS issues and now our credit isn't so great. We have always had great credit until now. Not wanting to share too much personal information but just wondering if you really can invest in a property without using your own credit.  I've seen YouTube videos where people have done this.  I am so inspired by success stories of other people who started off making small investments and became very successful.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated! 

Thanks 

[Eric Thomson]

Hi Brandi, I am a Texas Real Estate Broker and investor. Like you, I initially got my real estate license for the same reasons (finding properties, saving in Realtor commissions, etc). I certainly think, even if your intention is not to be an agent, that getting your real estate license is beneficial. You mentioned not being able to buy a house without a brokers license and that's not the case. What that means is that you cannot earn a commission on the purchase or sale of a property unless you are working under a Real Estate Broker. There are plenty of options on Brokerages you could work with. If your intention is not to be an agent that represents others buying or selling homes, and strictly want to work on buying and selling your own properties, I would suggest avoiding the big Brokers (Keller Williams, Remax, Century21, BHGRE, etc). These are all great brokerages, but they charge high monthly fees and commission splits and if you're not an agent you don't necessarily need the "perks" they offer for those fees (training, etc). You need to find a Brokerage willing to let you "hang your license" with them for low/no monthly costs and a very low commission split. You may look for some 100% commission brokerages in your area. 

As far as investing without your own credit, I'm not sure. I know there are some options where credit won't play a big part. Your best options are probably purchasing homes through owner financing or sub2 (subject to). There may be some other hard money lending options where your credit won't play as big of a role. You'd probably see higher interest rates, but you may still be able to be financed. You may also look at private money (finding an investor/partner to work with), or pulling out money against the paint business if that's an option. But ultimately, I think you should get your license! :)