All Forum Posts by: Phil G.

Assuming you are not listing the property for the seller, which can get a bit stickier, all you need disclose is that you, as buyer, is a licensed real estate agent. I disclose to the listing agent that I am looking at the property for my own purchase, when I first contact them and I add a disclosure to any eventual offer.

Steven- The wording of your last paragraph reminded me of a state licensing test. The answer is (C), pay the dinosaurs a referral fee.

When looking at firms with which to hang my license, I found policies vary widely on how you deal with your own deals. Some require you to do all personal deals through the firm and are governed by whatever the commission split or transaction fee policy is. Some prohibit you from representing yourself through the brokerage.

I've used Safeguard for 401(k), multiple IRA LLC, and had clients use them as well.

ira123.com

if you're looking for fill-in the blank forms, electronic signature, email type of functionality, DotLoop.com is a very handy service. Many of the Realtor boards have templates available on DotLoop. Basic version is free. With the Pro version, you can create your own templates.

One note of caution on significant others. While unmarried partners aren't disqualified persons because of their relationship with you, if they are a beneficiary of your plan (which is my situation), they become off-limits.

I hang my license with Allison James Estates and Homes. There is a broker in Washington.

100% commission. There are 3 plans:

http://www.allisonjamesinc.com/our-programs/P154

Personally, I wouldn't put that much stock in it. The CIAS designation is offered by a private for-profit company, the Charfen Institute. It's not something offered by or endorsed by a professional association like National Association of Realtors. IMHO, I would look for an agent that has a track record of working with investors and/or are investors themselves.

I'm about to begin offering two flat-fee listing packages with different levels of services, focused on investors, starting in the New England states, and have spent a lot of time doing research on all of the east coast states. Haven't found any states so far, where it's illegal to charge a flat fee. There have been debates in numerous MLS systems as to whether to allow "Entry Only" listings, where the only service the agent provides is the MLS listing itself. It seems like most MLS systems have relented on this and now allow it, though some systems require either verbiage or a flag indicating that it's an Entry-Only Listing.

There are some states that require "minimum service", this DOJ website shows which states they are. Florida is not among them:

http://www.justice.gov/atr/public/real_estate/fee-details.html

I'm another satisfied IRA Services client. I invest through an LLC, so my interactions are limited, but transactions are processed in a timely fashion and their fees are reasonable. If you're looking to set up an IRA LLC, I recommend Safeguard (ira123.com).

I've had them pull a property off the market with an offer on the table, myself, due to title issue. Unfortunately, Wayne's right. You're out of luck until (if) they relist it. All offers need to be made on homepath.com, so if it's not listed on the site, there's no deal to be made.