Investor -- Getting Licensed As An Agent.

[Worth Styles]

Hi everyone,

I often hear about investors getting licensed as an agent for several reason - access to MLS, saving on buying/selling expenses, etc. I'm interested in getting a license to have access to their resources in order to find deals and get an inner insight on the current market. However, I have enrolled in the 60-hour course to obtain a license in my state, VA, and found out that to be licensed you MUST work for a brokerage firm for a minimum of 3 years, otherwise you're given an inactive license (which is like not having one) I'm not interested in wasting 3 years working as an agent before I can get a broker's license to work on my own. So how do some of these investors with licenses do it? Is it just my state that requires you to work as an agent to keep an active license?

I don't plan or want to be an agent. I plan on always using an agent to buy/sell all my properties.

All advice, comments or thoughts are welcomed.

I thank you all in advance!

[Richard Balsam]

States like Georgia are tightening up the education requirement to become an agent and remain an agent. Yes- I think it's important to have a license. I use mine strictly for investment purposes, look up everything from mortgage data, past sales of the property, neighborhood statistics, etc. Then, use my license to list my own properties for sale, determine actual comps, etc. Yes- people can use Zillow...it's usually close - but its data can bewildly off with its Zestimate. 

The question of whether you need a broker - as an agent,  is somewhat moot - to someone in the business. There is a reason why there are agents and there are brokers. I am an agent in Georgia. I have a Broker license in Florida - but inactive now due to me living out of state and not doing any business there right now. Brokers maintain the office and have the capacity- by law- to hire agents. Agents are not allowed to conduct business alone- never have. If the agent does something illegal, unethical, etc- the broker can be fined, as well as the agent. Brokers must review and approve all the contracts, stipulations, maintain a proper escrow account and account for all the money for each transaction, etc. Agents must follow the rules of the Broker at all times. That said, there are different payment arrangements among brokerages. 

As an investor - look for brokers that will hold your license, allow you to conduct business without generating a commission due ( for example- doing wholesale deals off MLS), and only charge a monthly fee and let you keep most of the commission. I would not recommend any broker with splits above 90/10 - since there are so many willing to reduce this further. My broker charges me $60/month. Each MLS deal I must pay him $350 - and keep the balance. Wholesale deals- I am on my own - no paperwork needed, no MLS listing, etc - which is great. Of course- when I list my homes for sale, the entire commission of the deal goes to the broker- who then pays me everything except his small $350 cut.

There are other reasons to have a license that can assist you in selling wholesale deals - which I won't discuss here - due to the length of this post! If interested, PM me.