08/19

Buying or selling a home generally means needing help at some point in your journey. But who does what?

Sometimes, consumers use job titles like real estate agent and real estate broker interchangeably. However, there are important differences between the two.

Here’s a quick rundown of real estate job titles:

Real Estate Agent vs. REALTOR®

A real estate agent has a professional license to help people buy, sell, or rent housing in the real estate market.

To become an agent, states require pre-licensing training and training hours that vary from state to state. Once the training is complete, aspiring agents will need to take the written licensing exam.

A REALTOR® is a license agent who is a member of the National Association of Realtors®. As a member, agents subscribe to the standards of the association and its code of ethics and have access to real estate market data and transaction management services, among other benefits.

Real Estate Broker

A real estate broker is a real estate agent who has gone further in education as required by state laws and passed a broker’s license exam.

Brokers continue their education on ethics, contracts, taxes, insurance, legal issues, how the law applies to operating a brokerage, real estate investments, construction, and property management. Usually, to obtain a broker’s license, they must have three years as a licensed real estate agent needs to occur prior.

There are three types of real estate brokers:

• Principal Broker: also called a designated broker – each real estate office will have someone with this title. This person oversees all real estate agents in the firm to ensure agents are operating in compliance with state and national real estate law.
• Managing Broker: This person works within the day-to-day mechanics of the office and usually hires and trains new agents, as well as manages administrative staff.
• Associate Broker: Sometimes called a broker associate, broker-salesperson, or affiliate broker, works under a managing broker.

The titles of brokers vary from state to state and how they are accomplished. Brokers, essentially, are not looked at as novices in the industry, but as having a little more knowledge and experience than an agent.

If you’re looking for more information on who is best to serve you through the journey of buying or selling your home, check out Alliance’s Buyer-Seller Guide for more information.

And as always, Alliance’s Blog will further provide you with current events and happenings in all things real estate.