Can anyone comment on if becoming an agent will help me in persuing real estate investing? (i.e. having direct contact with other agents & brokers, being able to make your own deals, finding out about available foreclosed properties quicker)

Being a licensed real estate agent can be of benefit to someone interested in real estate investments, HOWEVER it also brings many more constraints on what you can and can not do.

First, as an agent you are under the direct control of the brokerage you are associated with. You man only do task that are approved by that brokerage, and in the fashion in which they require you to perform those task... you don't necessarily "do deal on your own", any real estate activity is under the direct control and responsibility of the Broker and most will require you to pay a commission on investment related activities... after all the brokerage has the primary E&O responsibility for any law suites and claims your activity may generate and a brokerage is a much nicer looking target than an individual.

You may have the ability to have advanced knowledge of some distressed properties as an agent, but most of them are easily available to any investor with just a minimal amount of knowledge of the system in your specific state.

You may find a significant reluctance from a Broker to hire you, a new inexperienced agent doing a complex task like investments.. generally not recommended by his insurance companies.

As an agent you will also find certain creative real estate investment methods out of your reach or not allowed by your broker or frowned upon by your REALTORŪ association. You will also find some reluctance from some distressed owners to work with an agent, while some may prefer it. Same with real estate investors, many will not work with an agent because of the fixed fees while some will develop working relationships but these are normally with brokers not agents because the agent often does not have the authority to make these type agreements.

Like many things in life, being an Agent and Investor is a double edge sword.. it can benefit and hurt your efforts depending on specific circumstances.

First things first.. One of the best things you can do is complete the education that a Real Estate Professional completes... It is well worth the effort as an investor to go through the classes and complete them... Just like Reality Check had mentioned, there are alot of constraints to being a Real Estate Professional and Investor... And to properly make the decision to become fully licensed should only be done after careful thought and going through the Real Estate Education that is required.. As you go through you will find out the things that a LICENSED Real Estate Professional must do as an investor as you have to disclose those things and some things that an unlicensed investor does may or may not be illegal as an agent...

Now since I have stated the above.. Please as an investor in any stage of your investment career, you will find that the education that you go through by completing the necessary classes for a real estate license are well worth the little bit of time and money that you have to spend... I know alot of people who have just gone through the classes for the education as an investor... and they have found them invaluable.. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at anytime via email vmg_inc@bellsouth.net.

Good Luck and Good Investing..
Duane

The biggest downside here is that most of the REO companies will not pay a commission to you if you are a licensed agent, but they don't want to adjust the price accordingly.

Wes... two words...
Land Trusts

maybe i'm missing your point, but here they specify if you are licensed and will be buying the property or have any interest in a group/company/trust buying the property they do not have to pay a commission.

if the land trust has some type of work around, i'm all ears.

I have my real estate license and I am interested in getting into REO so that I can Invest in them. What is the advantage of land trusts.

bumping up, i would love to hear a little more about the land trusts

A Land Trust is a revocable, intervivos trust, created when real estate or personal property (cash) is conveyed to a trustee under an arrangement where the beneficiaries of the trust retain management, control and the right to receive profits from the property, and the right to buy and sale items like real estate.

A trustee is named and is required to only operate under the direct instructions of the settlor. The Trustee has legal and equitable title to properties in the trust, all of which are now considered to be a beneficiary's interest in personality, not realty.

Under a Land Trust agreement, the Trustee may not reveal the identity or ownership interest of beneficiaries.

This is a key method for Asset Protection when one owns multiple properties or companies... even when companies may be corporations.

Land Trust are cheap and easy to operate.

If interested... and if you own multi properties you should be... many courses are offered by people like Bronchick, Kennedy, and others. Best to read them prior to selecting an attorney... many attorneys are often not very aware of what they are. You don't need an attorney to set up a Land Trust but for the first one, I consider it a wise choice then just copy the process as you need them

very good info, so you set up your properties in a land trust and avoid them refusing to pay your commission, and set up asset protection at the same time, very slick.

Hey Reality.. Great Info... All the agents who read these forums would benefit from listening to some of the great opinions offered by other members here...

But please remember that you should check with your broker/attorney before completing any of these items as laws and regulations may vary from state to state and country to country..

Good Luck and Great Investing Everybody..

Duane