However, my colleague Tina Sandoval and I attended a TN Real Estate Commission training class a couple of months ago and TREC said that they were going to start recommending that all companies that own real estate and manage their own properties register as a real estate company (implying that the employees of the company who do activities that typically require a license should obtain a license).  

The short answer is yes, if (and a big if) the seller agrees to all the sudden pay the realtor commission despite going FSBO, or the buyer agrees to pay the realtor.  

You may not always need the services of a real estate agent and may be able to save the commission.

I had a walkthrough of the property once before and once after it was on the market through my realtor friend.I'd like to make them a cash offer off the market so they can save some money on commission fees and inherently giving me a better price on the property. 

:A: sign an exclusivity deal with a real estate agent and have them hustle for the commission B: Do your own looking (MLS, networking, driving for dollars, etc) and either approach private FSBO sellers and/or listing agents who know they'll get double commission if they work with you as an unrepresented buyer?

Commercial commissions can be hefty.

They are an educational program for people interested in becoming a real estate investor while marketing the education to others and earning 50% of commission on the students you sign up. 

Its all mind games and numbers but from experience the break even point was 4-6 homes before the real savings on commission fees were apparent. 

Investing became an actual possibility by saving money from my real estate commissions and borrowing $100,000 from my grandfather.

I'm currently in the process of changing jobs to a commission based job (hence why I can't obtain conventional financing).