Representing yourself as an agent

[Tanner King]

Hello, can anyone who has represented themselves as an agent in a transaction give me insight or advice please?

I am looking to acquire my second house hack with in the next few months and am in the process of getting my license in order to represent myself in the transaction. I submitted my application a few weeks ago and am just waiting on approval and studying in the meantime, until I can take my exams and get fingerprints done. I will be using an FHA loan and am looking at 4plexes, I'm hoping to offset my down payment by representing myself in the transaction.

I plan on negotiating seller credits to help cover closing costs and buy down my rate if possible. 

Will seller credits affect the amount of commission I can walk away with?
What does this look like, does my brokerage cut me a check for the commission at or after closing?
Is it possible to apply my commission to the down payment before closing and bring less money upfront?

If anyone has experience with this and can answer these questions or provide any other insight or things I may be overlooking it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[Gabe Waldrep]

Hi Tanner,

I represented myself in my own purchase, but I was already an active agent. Most lenders will allow you to apply your commission to your down payment, but every lender is different. Be sure you talk to them first. Regarding your question about how your commission is paid after closing, it just depends on your brokerage. I've been with brokers who allow me to have my commission paid directly to me, while the brokerage portion was paid directly to them. But I've also had brokerages that required the full commission to be sent to the brokerage, and then they cut me a separate check for my portion. 

Typically you can use any negotiated seller credits towards a rate buy down, closings costs, or pre-paid costs. Again, always check with your lender.

As far as getting licensed just to represent yourself, it's probably not worth the expense to obtain and maintain unless you plan to do at least a few transactions annually to offset some of the costs and time.

Regardless, I wish you the best in your journey!