SHOULD YOU GET A REAL ESTATE LICENSE?

Great advice you have. How long have you had your license? I see you are doing something right. = ) Jeremy

I don't have a license....it is actually a positive and a negative to have one.......yes...MLS access....NO....limited and forced to do FULL DISCLOSURE no matter what. Sometimes you may find that something doesn't matter to you as to a buyer, but as a realtor you MUST disclose the issue and that May or May not ruin the sale....overall...it is not necessary to have the license.

Thank Sam, I will look into it. It seems like pros and cons even out. MLS is a great tool, but I don't like the other part having to disclose. Either way, I know I'll make it. Thanks for all the great advice you have been posting, I am getting motivated more and more everyday, and I hope things work out and I can close on a house I am looking at within the next 2 weeks or so.

Whether you are an agent or not, you still must disclose any pertinent information, regarding the property, if you are involved in the transaction.

Different though.....let's say you see a small amount of dry rot on some paneling outside the house.....An Agent is REQUIRED to point out the flaws that he knows about...even Minor ones. On the other hand an investor who knows about a MINOR flaw is NOT required to point out these kind of "deal breakers" as the Buyer has the option to Inspect the property and evaluate it on his OWN. Moreover he is EXPECTED to do this kind of inspection. I am just pointing out the fact that the Agents are "suppposed" to point out every flaw that they know about. I will not be showing a buyer the pimples on my house. Major structural is another story. The bottom line is that disclosure is based on Knowledge of the problem. Even as the seller if you do NOT know about something you are not responsible for that disclosure....it's the buyers' responsiblity to crawl under the house or his inspector. It's not about being dishonest in anyway.....it's about letting the buyer look at the property without being soured by some minor flaws. I don't need to tell them that I think it needs paint. They may think it's fine. I don't need to tell them that they need to replace a small piece of siding.....they should notice that on their own..... I think I've made my stance clear....just an opinion..

Sam, I agree with what you are saying as a seller. The agent is in the same position. Agents are not home inspectors, and are not expected to investigate flaws in the property. That is why a buyer hires an inspector. There is even a section in the purchase contract that points this out. if as an agent, I see something wrong with a property, I would point it out to the buyer, but the details are left up to him to discover. Actually there is more responsibility (liability) on the seller, if they try to hide a known defect. It is not the agents job to find those defects.

Thanks for your input Al.....and yes...."lets find a deal" NOW!

I am not sure that access to MLS is worth the liabilities of being a Realtor

I think it depends on your situation but Realtors have many advantages. I really bennifited from the educational aspect of it. DG's stuff is a great start but more education could keep you from making some very costly mistakes. The things that really appealed to me were first that since sellers pay comissions you can either get that off the price or my favorite paid at closing. In a down market where I am doing almost exclusivly buying this is great. This really helps with cash flow for investment properties. Also, being a realtor helps you develop a network of investors for financial backing and ideas. Of course to each his own...I enjoy representing investors so its really better for me if none of them get their licenses, but if youare new and you have the time I would reccomend it.