Looking for an investor friendly brokerage to hang my license.

[Elizabeth Blazina]

Hi Bigger pockets folks,

So I have recently passed my  Realtors exam and am finding that the brokers that I interview are not to kosher with me also having a  side gig of investing / wholesaling( this I have already been doing).  I am looking to hang it in  the Seattle area.  I fully intend to do Real Estate  full time but know that there will be those times where a seller will not want or cannot afford to list  and I am really wanting to be able to capture all leads that come my way.  On the other front I am  new to the Real Estate " agent" aspect and would not mind some mentoring or training in some of the areas I have not dealt with..  I would love to hear any paths  fellow investors/ brokers  have taken, or recommendations

Perhaps I am needing to restructure the way I inform the brokerage firm that this is what I  intend to do so it is viewed less as a  verification and instead a statement.   

Thank you all,

Liz 

[Christina Carey]

As a broker in Ohio who also "wholesales on the side", as well as other investing activities, I have no issues with my agents also investing in real estate, provided the following things happen:

1. Full disclosure - there should never be a doubt in anyone's mind that you have a real estate license. If you are listing a property as their agent, a seller will tell you more about their situation than they might if they were speaking directly to a potential buyer, therefore, it should be known before a seller ever utters anything about their situation that you are a potential buyer, and not an agent looking to list their property for sale. I'm straight up with everyone - if their best option is to list it after they've already approached me as being a potential buyer, then I will pass them on to another agent (whether in my company or not), just to avoid the perception of a conflict of interest. The net listing is a gray area and illegal in many states, for the aforementioned reasons I have just said - too much possibility for the agent to act in their own best interest above their seller's.

2. Operate ethically and legally, always. If it's not a situation where everyone wins, then something is very wrong.

Otherwise, as long as my company name isn't involved in the deal, then more power to you - go forth, be a capitalist, and prosper.

Brokers who balk at the idea of their agents making money in real estate without them are either greedy, or scared because they don't understand anything beyond a "traditional" sale.

In Seattle, I would highly suggest looking into the local REIA - aka REAPS. They have a really good group there; by talking to some people there, they should be able to point you in the right direction.