Unfortunately I don’t know of any good realtors in SFV. Just as a point of trivia I grew up in Porter Ranch…
Anyways I heartily agree that it is hard to find a trustworthy realtor. That doesn’t change my view that representation is not important for resale or for new homes. My advice is talk to friends who have bought/sold and were happy. Find out who they used.. Also never be afraid to ask the realtor for contact info from their most recent clients and then follow them up. Yeah I won’t be buying from the developers but only because I want a larger lot, and choke on MR fees. RE is tough because the literacy rate, and professionalism of the majority of the sales agents is sorry at best. So the majority of people out there deal with these idiots and abhor agents, and rightfully so.
I could not encourage you more to get the license on your own. If you never use it, it still is a good experience to go through. If you do use it, if only on a part time basis, then good for you. I am not to thrilled with the Redfin model. I have had a two people who complained to me that they got no support from the buyers agent but maybe that was due to the local office down here. Another alternative is to simply use a real estate attorney. That could save you some bucks as well.
Seriously though, take the class and become a licensee just to learn a little more about stuff. At the very least if you do use an agent you can keep him/her honest.
