All Forum Posts by: Jessica Martin

Thank You! Do you have any opinions on what brokerage is best to work for?

Ha, Auto typos are the worst!

Thank you Brian for the reply. I actually just signed up online the day I posted this to start online RE courses. Someone above had mentioned that staying independent can be a positive thing, so I went with that. Training on the other hand may be a benefit I'm missing out on with that decision. I guess I will find out in a few months time if I made the right choice. Training would be great, but I also feel being able to stay independent may be a benefit to me as an investor? 

So I had been thinking about getting my RE license and finally decided that it would be beneficial for me to go ahead and get licensed. So I signed up with realestateexpress.com about two days ago and started the course. Of course I posted on my FB that I was going to be doing this and I had a friend of a friend message me, telling me that she just passed her exams and signed with a broker, and found it it's about 2k to get started working for them... I knew there were memberships and this and that, that you have to sign up for when you become an agent, but she went on to tell me that is basically a yearly cost to maintain the necessary things to continue working as an agent. But she didnt break down what that 2k pays for. All of this is in addition to your pre-license courses, gov fees, and exam fees, ex... My question is, does this sound about right to other investor/agents here in Texas? Does this cost vary by brokerage? Can someone break down the cost and what memberships, ex you have to maintain yearly as an agent? Im still def going to go forward with doing this, but I would like to try to get a better understanding of what to expect throughout this process, starting with right after passing your state exam to being employed with a broker, how that works, and the costs I need to expect to pay to get started. Also, if you work as independent, do you hire a CPA or something for taxes? Im sure taxes get complicated? I've set a goal to try to have my courses completed and take my exams by Feb 12th... So not a ton of time to figure things out and get financially prepared for start up costs... 

Also, my husband can travel for work, so it may be a possibility to pick a city to move to, to start our RE business. Any suggestions on cities in Texas with demand for RE agents?  Thanks!

I think it will be good to have. Not only to save money on my own deals, but to make money with other sales in between my own work. Networking just by being an REI should be a plus as well and Im sure additional knowledge I'll learn just by getting licenses, because Im new at this and have so much to learn...

I dont think creative financing will be an issue for me. I feel pretty confident about dealing with numbers and looking for a solution from all angles.

JJ - I just got done looking into the site you recommended. I looked up the pass rate and its one of the highest by far, as well as very affordable for me. I think this will be he site I go through. Thanks again!

Thank you very much JJ for the recommendation and helpful info!

Thank you James. It does seem to have any positives. I just want to make sure I get my education from the right place because of the failure rates I see in Texas. 

My husband and I are just getting into REI and thinking we are going to have to start working with mostly 100k houses and below. Because of the smaller profit margins and the higher lenders fees we will have to pay starting out, it seems every bit counts. So I've been thinking of getting my RE license to help cut costs. I see the test failure rate here in Texas is surprisingly high. Im not too worried about passing myself, but I am curious about where it's best to get my education from? So Im looking for suggestions about where to get my education for a Texas license? I've also heard some people get sponsored for some of their education costs. Where do I find out about that? Also, are there any limitations about being your own agent for your own REI homes here in Texas? I haven't gotten much info on it, but from what I have heard, I think you're allowed, as long as you disclose this to your buyers? Any info or suggestions about becoming an RE agent and REI pros and cons are very appreciated. Thanks!

thank you Greg for all the information 

Yeah, I feel pretty prepared for the surprises of real estate. In financies I always over estimate cost and under estimate profits so I know there is room for surprise expenses. However, I don't plan I rehabbing these properties myself. The goal is to wholesale HUD homes. I assumed with HUD a double close would have to be done, but we recently found another local investor interested in helping us. People have been surprisingly willing to help and teach us. This investor has said there is a way to wholesale HUD without a double close though. Something about adding a second buyer and dropping out but I'm not sure how that will work yet??? And I'm a by the book kind of person, so I have to make sure this is an acceptable way of doing this by law. Does anyone have a ball park amount of what title insurance and closing costs are from the Martin management HUD group?