Should I pursue a real estate salesperson license?

Question

I'm new to Northern VA.  I'm finishing up the Virginia salesperson licensing course through Moseley.  I thought I'd do that course to get some knowledge, especially on the VA-specific stuff.   If I'm interested in growing my investments in real estate, should I go ahead and pursue/maintain the license?  Or should I just invest without?  What are the upsides/downsides?

James Hamling · Answer

The only real upsides to NOT being licensed is if your doing shady business and want to keep in the shadows, or are not all that active.

Being licensed is going to save $ on transactions, give better access and networking which brings deals you wouldn't have caught before, and gives more ways to monetize leads that don't pan out as good buys (can represent them).

If your an investor in action and not just theory or talk, a license makes a lot of sense and dollars.

Fabian Friedrich · Answer

It might make sense if you also want to build a RE Agent business which is what I pursued. Definitely not needed if you want to purely invest.

Pros of a license:

- direct MLS access

- let yourself in to view publicly listed properties

- Represent yourself and save some commission on purchase and listing

cons:

- yearly licensing upkeep cost (about $2k per year + your time for CE courses etc)I am also actively investing in the area and got my kickende last year. I would be happy to chat/work with you and also give back most of the financial benefit as I assume you know what you want etc.

Best wishes and good luck!

Fabian Friedrich · Answer

oh the ~2k is for NAR/VAR/Local AR dues, Sentri Lock, MLS access and broker fees only :-)

Laura R. · Answer

Getting and maintaining my license has  definitely been worth it IMO as an investor.  Having access to not only the MLS listings, but the other info MLS provides and ability to run accurate comps has been invaluable.  Having other investor agents in the office has been great to bounce ideas off of and for the occasional lead on a deal and sales meetings that keep me up on the ever changing market.

Having instantaneous access to properties is probably my favorite perk.  No more calling an agent and setting up a time to see something.  I can be in the MLS, click right on the online appointment schedule and set myself up with an appointment and be looking at the property in often 1/2 hour.  Writing and negotiating my own deals, doing the back and forth without a middleman and closing them myself with commission payout is another perk.  I just can't imagine doing any real investing without my own RE license.

Sean F. · Answer

Hi, everybody!  Just wanted to let you know that based on your input, I took and passed the Virginia RE Salesperson test.  Will be submitting my application to the board soon.  Thanks!

Sean F. · Answer

Fabian, thanks for your input!  Moseley provides free continuing ed, so I think I'll be able to avoid that $2000/year to maintain the license, but the time commitment is still there.  So we'll see.  I have to take and pass the test first...

Thanks again!

Should I pursue a real estate salesperson license?

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