Should I become an Agent to be a successful investor in Illinois?

[Ulysses Pagan]

I am just starting off in my real estate education and i would like to know whether or not it is a good idea to become a real estate agent in order to become successful in Illinois near the Chicago Suburbs. I am planning on studying urban planning/development so I would really like to become successful in the real estate investing world. I am open to any suggestions or feedback with your experiences in the area. Thanks!

[John Warren]

@Ulysses Pagan I am going to be the counterpoint here to some of the other people who have chimed in. Having the RE license will cost you under 2k per year, and the ongoing requirements are not that bad. I started out thinking I would just represent myself on the side, and now I have a real estate team and a full time business that I love selling millions of dollars of volume monthly. If you end up hating the license you can always drop it later on. If you leave the business for a while, you can hang your license with a holding company for a minimal cost. You get access to the MLS, which does have some good data (although it is a dinosaur in terms of usability).