Real Estate Broker
Definition of "Real estate broker"
One of the most recurring real estate doubts is regarding what is a broker in comparison to what is a real estate agent.
Well, it depends from state to state to tell exactly what a Broker can and cannot do, but it’s safe to say that, in every state, a Real Estate Broker is someone with more real estate education and experience than a real estate agent. To become one, you have to attend a certain number of Real Estate classes and pass the state exam. The duration of those classes is longer than the ones an agent goes through and the exam they take is more difficult to pass too. Summing up: although all Brokers can act also as Agents, not every Agent can act as a Broker.
In general, you could say that a Broker is the person with the certification necessary to list the property and sign the papers and overview the transaction between the home seller and the home buyer. But there is a large variety of other services he/she provides for home sellers and home buyers, like Comparative Market Analysis (CMA), preparing contracts and acting as the guardian of the escrow. Sometimes, the home seller or buyer doesn’t even meet the Broker, but a real estate agent that works under him/her.
The Broker is the one who collects the commission once the sale is made and he/she divides the value to all participating parts like the buyer’s agent and the seller’s agent – most of the times an employee of his, but, depending on the type of listing agreement (like an Open Listing) it can be someone independent from him/her.
Popular Real Estate Terms
Agreement between a lending institution and borrower where the borrower agrees to extend or spread the collateral of a loan to additional properties beyond the original mortgaged property. ...
Latin term meaning legal capacity to act on behalf of oneself. ...
The net leasable area is all the leasable area of a given building exclusive of non-leasable space such as hallways, building foyers, rooms devoted to heating, air conditioning, elevators, ...
Same as term right of first refusal: Right of an individual to be offered something before it is offered to others. For example, a tenant whose apartment is going to be converted to a ...
The most common definition of economies of scale refers to the decrease in production costs of a single item due to a business enterprise’s expansion. In short, mass production can ...
An interior wall dividing an area into two or more rooms or separate areas. The division of real estate between owners giving each an undivided interest. ...
Precalculated tables providing the present values of $1 or an annuity of $1 for different time periods and at different discount rates. ...
Personal income minus personal income tax payments and other government deductions. It is the personal income available for people to spend or save; also called take-home pay. It may be a ...
Cash outlays required to maintain an investment position. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.