Why Real Estate Investors Should Have a Real Estate License
If you’re a real estate investor, you spend a great deal of your time dealing with real estate professionals. You also spend a great deal of your investment profits on real estate commissions paid to real estate agents. If you are able to devote the time and energy, you may want to think about getting your real estate license as a way to increase both your investments and your income. Although it may mean additional work to do, including real estate licensing education, the benefits of having a real estate license as a real estate investor far outweigh the drawbacks for most people.
Having your real estate license allows you to remain in control of your own transactions. You are able to list and market your own properties. You will no longer have to worry that your agent is not doing enough to promote your homes for sale; no one will work harder to sell your property than you will. Having first hand contact with the other people working on the deal is also helpful. With your real estate license you are free to negotiate with other agents, as well as deal directly with appraisers and attorneys as well as mortgage brokers to stay updated on the progress of the deals in your pipeline.
Having access to MLS listings is another huge benefit to being an investor with a real estate license. All of the latest information on homes that are available on the market will be right at your fingertips. No longer will you have to rely on a real estate agent to bring the great deals to you; as a licensed real estate agent you can find them for yourself. Having a real estate license is a tremendous advantage when it comes to seeking out those unbelievable investment deals. You will never miss another fantastic opportunity because you missed a call from your real estate agent.
The most obvious advantage to having your real estate license as an investor is the remarkable potential to increase your total income. First of all you will be paying out significantly decreased fees by not having to pay a commission to an outside real estate agent to market and list your home for sale, therefore keeping more of the sales profits in your pocket. Then there is the additional increase in income that you will generate in commissions from listing and selling your own properties. The potential increase in commissions from sales could be quite significant to your overall income at the end of the year.
There are a few things that you should consider about getting your real estate license. It will require completing all of the requisite real estate licensing education as required by your state and of course you can do that through our online real estate school here at Real Estate Express. When business is good, there will be a significant amount of added paperwork and marketing involved in selling your own properties. What is certain is that the added work can pay off in a big way for real estate investors that hold a real estate license.
Want to find out if you have what it takes to be a Real Estate Agent or Broker?
About David Goldstein — David Goldstein is an Owner and Founding Partner of Express Schools, LLC. which operates online education providers Real Estate Express, Insurance License Express and License Tutor. Follow him on Twitter.
Tags: commissions, real estate investment, real estate investors, real estate license
February 3rd, 2010 at 12:42 am
Being a real estate investor and being a professional real estate salesperson are mutually exclusive. Real estate investors should not run out to get a license just to save X % on commissions for each purchase or sale.
More times than not, an experienced Realtor can save an investor time, money, and heartache that far-exceeds the dollar amount of commissions.
Real estate investors should surround themselves with a team of professionals that they trust, and they should create financial forecasts that weigh in ALL costs associated with an investment.
February 3rd, 2010 at 7:44 am
In case you decide to pursue a career in real estate or you are a big time investor (if you’re not, real estate business is probably not one of your main interests and you should leave it to professionals), I would definitely recommend getting a license, and it’s not that hard nowadays, when you’re really determined and willing to dedicate your efforts to it.
And to become a realtor it’s not a bad idea either, the situation on the market is very good these days, yesterday I saw an article about real estate market being one of the hottest areas in the job market. There will always plenty of opportunities – and it’s a great job – the best job in the world, to me.