Posted by HR on June 16, 2000 at 07:18:45:
Ron,
You work your biz almost exactly like I’m workin’ mine, and I agree completely with you and Vic regarding the license. Also, if you want to avoid the liability issue, have your partner (spouse, biz partner, etc) get it. That’s what my wife and I did, and it’s worked out great.
I can’t imagine not being able to access the mls from my computer at home. Why be dependant upon somebody else? It’s a no brainer.
HR
Would a Real Estate Course be a Good Idea - Posted by brenda k
Posted by brenda k on June 14, 2000 at 19:06:34:
I have an opportunity to go back to school for basically free. I am thinking of taking a course to become a realtor. I would never take the final exam so would not actually become liscened. I am wondering if this would be something that would benefit me in Real Estate investing–(I am very very new to this and thought it may help) I have already purchased carleton sheets and am just beginning to go through this. Do you think an agency course would help me or just be a waste of time?? What schooling (if any) would you recommend??
Another consideration - Posted by Bert G ND
Posted by Bert G ND on June 15, 2000 at 14:38:17:
Something I’ve been wondering about. I too have been thinking of taking the course but not the exam (already have the books).
A Realtor I spoke to said that once you have a licence, you need to find a broker to work for, pay a desk fee, NAR dues, etc. Would this still be true if my only intent was to buy & sell for my own account and not for anyone else? Would a broker let me hang my licence knowing I had no intention of bringing him any business?
BG
GET YOUR LICENSE - Posted by Soraya(SanDiego)
Posted by Soraya(SanDiego) on June 15, 2000 at 14:01:30:
Get your license.
I would not give my license up for anything.
ALSO take as many creative real estate courses as you can afford.
The MLS is an investors gold mine. AND believe it or not most Realtors do not realize that.
By taking creative real estate courses you will make a fortune having access to the MLS and being able to use your license to save 1.5% to 3% on every deal you make.
Soraya
It seems that the only people who would tell you not to are… - Posted by Vic
Posted by Vic on June 15, 2000 at 13:07:27:
…are the ones who are too lazy to do it themselves.
I’ve been licensed for 6 yrs. & wouldn’t give it up for anything. All the hype about disclosure, etc. is way overblown. It comes mostly from those who aren’t licensed & are looking for the easy way to do things.
If you were to conduct a survey of those who have their lic. vs. those who believe all this other BS, you’d see that most of those who have their lic. would not give it up. That should tell you something. These people have been there & done what others tell you not to, namely get a lic. The fact that most lic. people aren’t willing to give up their lic. should tell you something.
I would highly reccommend that you not only take the test, but that you also get your lic. as well.
Just ask yourself one question, who is the first person you’re likely gonna call when you need to find out what a property is worth? In all likeliehood it’ll be a Realtor. Guess who will reccommend that you call a Realtor for the comps? That’s right, it’ll be all the same people that tell you not to get your lic. Doesn’t make sense does it? At best, it’s a contradiction & at worse hypocrisy.
To me the decision is a simple one, but as long as they’re are negative minded people out there, I guess there will continue to be less competition for me.
Good Luck!
Vic
Get all the education you can! - Posted by SusanL.–FL
Posted by SusanL.–FL on June 15, 2000 at 08:16:42:
Hi Brenda,
Actually, I think it is a VERY smart move! Like John B. said, you will learn the rules and regs. (state laws etc.) Skip the exam, because in time, it could become a ‘hindrance’ to you in the investment world. (conflict of interest, etc.)
I took the realtor’s exam in Philadelphia (in 1976 or thereabouts) and got my licence; HOWEVER! I let it lapse.
The information was invaluable! As a matter of fact, I would LOVE to get my hands on one of those books for Florida (WITHOUT having to take the course).
A lot of the ‘stuff’ in the exam book is pretty r.e. ‘general’. Several weeks ago I was able to pass along some information that was in my Pa. exam book to my ‘backyard’ neighbor, who is STILL feuding (with another) over an access road to their respective properties.
Something that stuck in my mind from that class–after all these years…
The fellow who was teaching the course thought that he was a ‘hot shot’ realtor. Here is a ‘tip’ that he passed along to the class that I never forgot. 
(The ‘mentality’ of it STILL makes me smile–and shake my head…)
He said that if you go to a customer’s house in the hopes of having them sign contracts (to buy or sell their home), they will probably offer you a drink while you are there. TAKE IT and be sure to SIP it SLOWLY…
He said if they DON’T want to sign the papers, they WON’T offer you a refill but if your glass is STILL half full, they CAN’T ask you to leave. (Wanna bet? That SURE wouldn’t work in MY house. I wear lead boots!)
He thought it was a pretty good ‘stalling’ technique so that he could continue to ‘work’ on them and wear them down.
I’m shaking my head again…
Absolutely - Posted by John Behle
Posted by John Behle on June 15, 2000 at 24:05:48:
It will help you understand state laws, procedures and the mind of real estate agents that you work with. The focus is heavy on state laws and should be a must for any serious real estate investor.
You don’t have to sit for the license exam. That is a different subject and decision, but the education is very worth while.
Re: Would a Real Estate Course be a Good Idea - Posted by Craig
Posted by Craig on June 14, 2000 at 23:26:16:
Well let’s look at the big picture here. The course will give you some insight into some of the finer details of the real estate business. If you take the test, get licensed, and find a broker that you can work with. You can join the Realtor Association and have access to courses that will give you an even greater education. Such as the CCIM course. Those type courses aren’t offered to the public at large. So if you’re looking for education it might be a good idea to get the license, get the education, and get out.
I have to agree with aurellio - Posted by AJ
Posted by AJ on June 14, 2000 at 23:18:29:
Brenda.
I certainly agree with Mr Acosta. We have to many Realtors the way it is! Please do society a favor and drop out of that Realtor school today. We here, your family, friends, reletives, and neighbors will like you better.
AJ Scripkunas
O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-Oh Nooooooooooooooooo! - Posted by aurellio acosta
Posted by aurellio acosta on June 14, 2000 at 22:38:41:
NO!!!
Please, not another REALTOR®
Re: Another consideration - Posted by Soraya(SanDiego)
Posted by Soraya(SanDiego) on June 15, 2000 at 21:14:32:
You do not have to become a Realtor to belong to the San Diego MLS. (therefore no SDAR or NAR fees only MLS fees)
You can find brokers that will let you hang your license with them for a minimal fee.
Soraya
Re: GET YOUR LICENSE - Posted by dewCO
Posted by dewCO on June 16, 2000 at 12:53:54:
Wondering if you’d share how the MLS is a “gold mine”. I’m in a hot market and can’t even find any expired listings. I’d love to hear your experienced perspective.
And so if you are licensed, do you disclose that in every one of your CREI deals? And, it’s been OK, nothing has come back to haunt you? I’d feel like I’d be putting my license “at risk” some how with some bozo who got all the disclosures and still claimed I beat them out of something or some how wasn’t “fair” with them, especially when it comes to getting the deed.
Thanks in advance for your input. dewCO
I agree 100% - Posted by Ron (MD)
Posted by Ron (MD) on June 15, 2000 at 14:36:25:
I got my license 1 1/2 years ago solely to get access to the MLS system and simplify viewing properties. I never act as a realtor for others (except occaisionally as a favor to an investor friend who wants me to put in an offer for him on something he has already been in).
When I sell properities, I usually do them FSBO – to avoid the commission to my broker or the selling agent. When I buy properties, about 1/2 the time I let the listing agent keep both sides of the commission. (I do this with the agents with high volume REO business so that they work on my behalf. I can see in the MLS history that these agents sell a large percentage of their own listings. Also, when I see a property that has sold substantially below list price, the listing agent is often the selling agent – their clients get the best deals.) By the way, my split of the commission I’m giving away on these fixers usually ranges in the $200-$500 range. When I first got my license, I considered this a minor benefit that paid for the on-going fees related to my license. I’ve since decided I was “stepping over quarters to pick up pennies”.
Another benefit is that I use my broker’s office (or, more likely, one of the branch offices) to meet buyers and sellers to write up contracts – even though I am usually doing FSBO’s. (Don’t mention this to my manager, please.) I prefer this to writing up a contract at McDonalds and then running to Kinkos to make copies.
Finally, disclosing that I am an agent has never been a problem. Investors generally have little respect for agents and don’t want to be tagged with that label, partially because they don’t want their buyers or sellers to think they have superior knowledge and are more likely to take advantage of them. I personally believe that buyers/sellers are at least as suspicious of investors – who have superior knowledge and are on the other end of the zero sum deal.
By the way, my licensing course was 60 class hours plus outside preparation, travel and study time, exam hassle, etc. Most of the material we learned was academic, rather than practical. It’s a nice, structured way to learn something about real estate, but I would not recommend it just for the practical learning.
Ron Guy
Re: I’ve got a better one… - Posted by eric-fl
Posted by eric-fl on June 16, 2000 at 15:13:49:
I’ve never done this (I swear), but here goes…
Wear hemmed pants with a cuff. Put catnip in the cuffs. Then, if they have a cat, it will go nuts rubbing against your leg. If they are cat people, the reasoning goes, and if the cat likes you that much, then they will figure the cat senses good stuff about you and so they will be more receptive to your pitch.
Re: Get all the education you can! - Posted by Rob FL
Posted by Rob FL on June 15, 2000 at 10:05:28:
The licensing book is easy to get. I bought it for my job last week. We got it at the local community college bookstore.
One note: I love it when people say not to get a license because of disclosure issues, conflicts of interest, etc. While the non-REALTORS run from all those “supposed” issues, people like me get first dibs on all the good deals the instant they hit the market. I admit, I do work with a few select investors that I pass the info along to right away, but the other 90% of the wannabes get to pick over the leftovers from REALTOR.com.
One more point that Rob (FL) reminded me of - Posted by Ron (MD)
Posted by Ron (MD) on June 15, 2000 at 14:47:59:
I used to be at the mercy of realtors willing to work for those small commissions I mentioned above. They are not likely to be as motivated as I am.
I check the MLS every single day. When a strong candidate surfaces, I go look at it and make an offer within 24 hours. I am always surprised the sellers (usually lenders with REOs) are willing to cut their price by 10-20% within a day or two of the listing – but that is usually how I buy my properties.
You often hear that investors have to make ten offers to get 1 or 2 accepted. My experience is much better than that. For example, I have bought three houses in the last four weeks – each from a different seller. These were the only houses I made offers on (3 for 3!) and in each case I bought at about 15% below list price on deals that I will net a minimum of 25% of the resale price.
While I’m making these quick hits on properties brand new on the market, other investors are slugging it out with unrealistic, inflexible sellers.
Ron (again)
You’ve got a point … re: the ‘supposed’ issues… - Posted by SusanL.–FL
Posted by SusanL.–FL on June 15, 2000 at 13:25:00:
Hey and THANX for the tip (on the book)!