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| Should You Become a Realtor? |
Copyright 2006 Ron LeBlanc
Have you asked yourself that question lately? I did and I
decided the answer was yes. Let me tell you what led up to it.
I have been using realtors to purchase some of my investment
properties. The Multiple Listing Services can be a great place
to find properties, and one has to be a licensed realtor in the
US to access them. I'm not sure what the laws are in other
countries, so this discussion will be of only the US.
Each time I buy a property, the realtor collects almost 3% at
the closing, and in order to sell properties quickly, I also
list with a realtor and pay almost 6%. I always assumed it was a
real pain to go through the process to become a realtor, and
besides, I am a real estate investor - why would I |
want to be a
realtor?
A realtor that I used where I live in Boulder told me I should
get my license just to invest in real estate. He explained that
in Colorado I could do an online course for as little as $795
and take the exam then host with Keller-Williams for way under
$100 per month. I never realized it would be that inexpensive.
When he also explained that after my first few deals that there
was NO SPLIT on personal deals - I was sold!
One of the things we investors like to do is get cash at
closing. I have my strategy to do just that now! I have a
financer who does 100% investor financing and now I can collect
the buyers agent commission at closing! Cha-ching!
Selling my properties is easy because I can do my own listing |
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on
the MLS and not pay a listing agent fee.
I would say an equally compelling reason I chose to become a
realtor is for the access to the MLS. You might say that is not
important, but even when you are buying a "for sale by owner" or
FSBO, you must have a good idea what it is worth. No one can
know all possible neighborhoods, so if you want to do a lot of
shopping, you have to run a lot of comparables.
Some realtors may run several for you - some may run quite a
few, but I like the idea of sitting down myself and doing my own
market analysis. Yes, I know there are other ways of getting
data, but nothing beats the MLS for convenience. I trust my own
analysis over anyone else's, so the access to data means a lot
to me.
That is why I made |
the decision to get my license. I get more
information and control and the cost is recovered in just one
personal deal. Yes, there is a time commitment to a company, but
it will not deter you from your investing activity.
If you disagree with me and want to use a realtor, then if you
are anywhere near Boulder...by all means call me :)
About the author:
Ron LeBlanc is a real estate investor who is a licensed realtor
in Colorado. He gets a huge charge out of helping people through
the fear and hurdles of attaining financial independence. He
lives with his wife and 2 boys in Boulder, Colorado - the best
place on Earth to live. Visit him at
http://www.boulder-realestate-investors.com
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