All Forum Posts by: Rebecca Salazar

@Rebecca Salazar

I’ve had my license for 22 years and have been out on my own for 18 but the lessons I learned in those first four years helped build a solid foundation for my investment business. I would recommend that you start with a brokerage that will teach you something. Find out who the most successful realtors are in your area and try to join their team. The lessons you’ll learn about contracts, procedures, negotiations, etc. will be invaluable to you in the future.

 Keller Williams is #1 biggest in US, and I believe hold that title for International as well now. And #1 for education, and by what I have seen since COVID started #1 choice of independents changing things up that need the help to survive and thrive. 

When I started out I was told just pick a place because it won't matter, anywhere I go I will be let down, lol. I am thankful to be where I am at, KW is a good fit for a lot of people, rather versatile but having so much it can be overwhelming for people. 

Are you in an expensive Maryland market or out in the boonies

@Rebecca Salazar many investors would probably be better served by becoming a licensed plumber to aid in their investments, than a licensed salesperson. Pay close attention to all the pre-licensing education and how you plan to apply it, before proceeding with your license. You will learn zero about buying or selling homes through those courses. Yet, once you're licensed you expose yourself to a whole world of liability, that increases exponentially when representing one's self. Review Agency, review the Code of Ethics, look at your local and state regulations; then also tally the total expenses to carry a license... If you don't want to be a real estate agent, is it really worth it all? You can invest and buy/sell/rent without a license, and can compensate a great Agent for faaar less than your going to "save" in fees.

@Rebecca Salazar. Great job on licensing. I was going to but didn’t. You can save commissions on personal purchasing plus check out Tax Strategies for Savvy Real Estate Investing. There are pluses for having your license as an investor. I have the audio but you can get book.

Nothing like having a plan that you’re passionate about. Trump always talks about loving what you do relative to your success. Sounds like you. 😄

@Rebecca Salazar the thing that people miss is that the class to get your RE license is way more beneficial to investors than agents. Most agents just go into residential sales and when they do that, the homeowner completes a lot of the back-end things like permits, CO, easement checks and title does their part on a sale. An agent forgets everything from the class because most of it never comes up in standard residential transactions. But as an investor you are often stuck with limited inspections and need to be very clear on things like easements, wells vs. septic, flood zones, etc. to protect your investment. It will be worth it whether you use your license or not.

I got my license specifically for MLS access. If you are looking to buy in a year from now, you can do a lot between now and then to generate cash. Wholesaling and being an agent are two ways.

@Rebecca Salazar I started on the same path you are mainly because I wanted to be more educated when buying. One thing I didn’t know and just stumbled upon are that some brokerages will let you do personal deals where you are able to use 100% of your commission towards the purchase of a property. For me I try to buy with as little out of pocket as possible so that’s important to me when shopping a brokerage. I know EXP and KW both do but not sure of any other and they both have the best commission splits. KW will let you do one a year and pay a 6% royalty (of the commission) and I believe EXP is 3 deals a year with some minimal brokerage fees. Hope this helps and good luck!

@Rebecca SalazarIm I have an identical timeline/ strategy! Thanks for asking, I’m curious at the types of responses!