Not everyone really understands the duplex market in Dallas or the condo market in Houston, but all agents would love to have the commission check on either of those. :)@Shital Thakkar also mentioned that they should have active listings. 

Me I went with IB due to commissions mostly. 

Also, consider that even if your properties take little damage in a direct hit area the city will basically be out of commission for 12-24 months.

Do some searching on this board to figure out if it's legal in your area, how to split/charge commission, how to protect yourself with a contract, etc.

They usually will hire technicians who work on commission so already you will have someone who is motivated to charge you the very most he can get away with.

They say that once they pay commissions and closing costs, they don't want to accept a price in which they'll "lose" (chuckles slightly).

Let's assuming that after backing out commissions from a sale at $520k, I use that since price since that would make it a 6.4% cap, then I net a gain of $155k, then I'd need to target a cash on cash return of 6.1% or higher (my current return on equity). 

IF YOU ARE GOING TO PRACTICE REAL ESTATE, CONTACT  THAT STATE'S REAL ESTATE COMMISSION & SIMPLY ASK THEM WHAT YOU CAN & CAN'T DO****Thanks @Jay Hinrichs  I almost wet myself reading your SNAP flip comment. 

Best alternative to the traditional sale side of waiting on commission.

You just need to run this through a filter and see if it makes sense to control an asset with zero bank involvement up front...and assess what structure of the deal takes on.I just offered on a 6-unit last night...and usually keep consistent opening terms for debt-free properties: 10% down, pay sellers closing costs and all document prep fees, pay realtor commissions, at or near list price (if it makes sense), 4-5 yr balloon, 30-yr amortization, 6-7% interest.