What is the advantage of not having a real estate license for wholesaling? ?

Question

What is the advantage of not having a real estate license for wholesaling?

Bill Gulley · Answer

Ed, you're right. Very good point. I think that, my opinion, most astute real estate types see birddogs and wholesalers that stay in that end of the business as a main stay of the business as having limitations in knowledge of RE. That's the nicest way I can put it.

What they are doing is basically using contracts and assignments as a means to circumvent the need for having a license. They find sellers and find buyers and put them together, exactly what a Realtor does.

So, why don't they get a license and enjoy other benefits? I have no idea, other than being guruized. Could it be they think they can't pass a test? Is it because they think all that other stuff they have to learn doesn't make them any money and they want the easy way out? What they don't get is that all that other stuff does facilitate their making more money, and knowing that stuff makes doing deals much easier and safer.

The whole primes of wholesaling is pretty lame, just the nature of an invented specialization based on a generally limited inventory to a very limited market.

Can you imagine Baskin-Robins having only three flavors of ice cream?

Totally a guru invented business model.

In the fifty's there was a general contractor here that built homes with unfinished interiors and sold them to several other smaller contractors to finish off.

A contractor that goes bust with unfinished projects goes back to lenders. Use to be a lender just offered the unfinished project to another contractor they did business with. I'm pretty sure that if a lender has a problem where a contractor is heading south, the suggestion of selling to another contractor client comes up.

Landlords have sold to other landlords as long as I can remember.

I have sold many properties to homebuyers that need repairs.

I've taken all kinds of government required classes and tests, I'd have to say that the requirements for an agent is one of the easiest I ever took. Much like a class in the military that feeds you a laundry list of information and then tests you.....I mean really, you'd have to be pretty slow to fail since the schools give you basically the test questions to study! The brokers license is much the same but it is more involved and at least my questions on my test were similar to materials but not the same, you had to think.

And you're right Ed, by the time the "easy way to make it types" pay for all the crap on wholesaling, they could have obtained a license, be legal, have MLS access, and sell services to the general public in connection with every house in their area that is for sale. That's a lot to lose out on. :)

Bryan L. · Answer

@Dale Giles -  MANY advantages to being a Realtor and absolutely ZERO "agent" or "Realtor-work" required.

Mary B. · Answer

What is the advantage of not having a real estate license for landlords or rehabbers? What is the advantage of not being a real estate investor if one has a real estate license? Particularly those realtors that pass over clients to sit around waiting for the million dollar listing in a $200K & less market. Why would a licensed r.e. agent, after being an agent for many years, not learn the REI business but would wait until their car has been repoed to get a 2nd job at a Denny's or some other fixed low income position? I could go on but I don't like to type a lot... still I'm very curious to learn the answers.

Kudos,

Mary

Dale G. · Answer

First off, I don't want to be a Real Estate Agent.

Whatever anyone's reasons are for choosing the path they choose, I don't think beating on them in a public forum is the way to guide them.

I haven't found an investor friendly Real Estate agent to work with..I'm not painting all Real Estate agents with the same brush and calling them all useless.

This is a very helpful and instructive forum for new people.

I find this thread turned into the exact opposite of what I've found on here and I'm just voicing my displeasure at the tone of it.

Bill Gulley · Answer

@Dale Giles

Sorry, but can you jump in with the advantages of not having a license? Is there an advantage of basically dealing with a few investors as buyers and beating the bushes for that certain property?

It's a good place to start in RE, do a few deals to learn, but wouldn't you like to be able to profit on any property for sale instead of passing by them?

Just guessing, I'd say RE investors, including those casual individual landlords, is probably less than 10% of the population here of homeowners. Real landlords in the business, probably less than 25.

Where is there any growth potential in that?

Wholesalers aren't bad folks and some might be pretty well on top of RE, judging from the wholesale forum interactions here some understand, most seem not to so much. My hope is that they progress and grow, which is my point.  :)

Dale G. · Answer

Wow isn't this a welcoming thread for wholesalers!

Jon Klaus · Answer

And think of the listings they would pick up as a by product from their marketing.

Ed Wood · Answer

i would think it would be beneficial for wholesalers to be licensed and for what some of these guru clases cost license required courses are only $99 for all of them.  Then once licensed they would have a broker to answer their questions and a office full off people to learn from.  Also mls access, property profile access,  any form they would need, free attorney service and more opportunity to earn commissions on other deals that are not wholesale.  Plus local boards always have $30 courses on things like short sales, reo, probate, etc...

Jon Klaus · Answer

Less disclosure is required if you don't have a license, but along the lines of Bill's comments, I don't know that that's a good thing.

Bill Gulley · Answer

Well, a day of no replies seems to sum it up. About the only good thing about not having a license is that when you screw up no one will see you as an expert and hold you to a higher level of responsibility, you still may be seen as having greater knowledge, but probably not to the standards a Realtor would be. :)

What is the advantage of not having a real estate license for wholesaling? ?

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