Does being a Realtor give you an advantage as an investor?

Question

The more I look into buying my own rental properties, the more I wish I knew about the details of the process. I know Lorain County Community College offers real estate courses designed to meet the pre-exam requirements for the State of Ohio Real Estate Salesperson's License examination (as I am sure other community colleges in the area do).

Is it worth taking the courses and getting licensed if I don’t ever work for a broker? I am certainly open to working in real estate full time but I am not 100% sold on the idea.

Account Closed · Answer

I took the classes just for the heck of it, through columbus state. I later figured out that if I'd done it through the education company that redfin has on their careers page, it would have been cheaper. I think it was 999$ for all four Ohio courses through that company, and about 1200 total from CSCC if I remember right. I took all four at once, online, and I took it seriously and studied for exams etc. I got a perfect score in my law class! If you have the time and the money won't be missed, I would say go for it. It filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge, although I admit I haven't really used the information very much otherwise.

Robert Ellis · Answer

Depends on the company and your role in the company so your miles will vary quite a bit on that one!

Robert Ellis · Answer

I wish i could have taken them online when i got licensed 6 years ago, but the only thing they had at the time was taking them in person at hondros in westerville. LOL

Andrew Nocella · Answer

Thank you for the responses! Self study is certainly an option and I'm in no rush to get licensed. I didn't realize that some companies would actually help cover some of the cost if you work for them. Is it pretty common for a real estate company to pay for you to get licensed or help with the cost of the required courses?

Ryan Evans · Answer

Nah don't bother. As with most education, you'll never use 90% of what you learn in the realtor course and zero of it is investment related. You don't even really get into the important details of contracts which would be the only helpful part of formal realtor education anyway. Having a license can help you see properties the second they hit the market and that can sometimes be an advantage, but there aren't any huge advantages otherwise. Except if you've got an easy couple of sales from your network that will pay for your license fees and make some money. You don't even need an agent as an investor. I got my license after investing for a while and moving to Ohio. But really only because I had so many people that I was already advising on buying investments and I could turn them into easy clients to make a few bucks here and there.

Anthony Vicino · Answer

You're going to get some mixed opinions on this, but I think the first step is learning enough about what particular niche of investing you're interested in pursuing.With that in mind, focus first on education. Learn the ins-and-outs of the different types of real estate. Once you understand them, you can better formulate an effective strategy.In some investments, being a broker might be an advantage. In others, it's worth nothing, In others still, its actively detrimental.Grab some books, attend some webinars, attend some local meetups, and talk to other investors. Figure out what you're psyched to pursue, then worry about whether or not the broker's license is useful.Though, I'll jump straight to the punchline and say, in the vast majority of instances, I don't think the license will actually be all the helpful, but that's just my $0.02.

Remington Lyman · Answer

I would not take the classes unless you are going to broker deals for other people

Adrian Fajardo · Answer

@Andrew Nocella my opinion on this is you don't know what you don't know. Why not try the path of less resistance first? Actually buy properties by hiring a realtor. It's no cost to you anyway when you buy. After several purchases, if you feel having a license would give you an edge then by all means go for the license. I'm pretty sure there are highly experienced and successful people here who have done it WITHOUT a license. And there are those that do have it. But they all have DONE deals. I hope this helps! I wish you the best of luck in your investing journey.

David M. · Answer

@Andrew NocellaReally depends on your approach. Sure The licensing class teaches terms and regs to keep you out of “realtor jail.” You learn on the job how to be salesperson/agent.As people have said, you learn by doing, and investing with “other people’s money”Is key, right? So, why not learn with other people’s money how sales transactions can go? Honestly, hopefully, you get some crappy ones so you can see how they are handled. For example, I have one where we found an underground oil tank during an inspection. While I have to help my client through this process, at least I don’t have anything really at stake other getting my commission.Oh, in NJ since agents writes the initial contracts, our licensing course covers some legal/contractual stuff... point being is your experience in the licensing courses will varySo, to the point of your question, it definitely is a potential path in your career goal.

Ellis San Jose · Answer

If you don't plan on using your license then I don't know if it would be worth the effort to get licensed. Take real estate, marketing, sales, & law classes. I am a full time investor and I have a brokers license. I wouldn't say it gives me a huge advantage. but I'm glad I have it.