Bottom line: the effort to get the license is probably not worth it unless you want to become an agent professionally. Do as much leg work yourself as possible, and get an agent to rep you for 1% and have them rebate the other 2% (or whatever is left) back to you. (There are a couple agents on this site that you could ask if they’d do this, and I suspect one of them would, or you could go to a discount broker)
With just a sales license, you still have to pay a broker.
With no sales experience, the listing agent will see you as a liability and could discourage the buyer from accepting your offer.
It is a major purchase, and I whole heartedly encourage you to get informed, not only about the transaction process, but the market you are buying in, and all relevant details. I also encourage you to be very hands on in the negotiations, and don’t take anyone’s word for anything. But I also think that there’s enough that could come up that’s unique and problematic that you might want an experienced broker helping you.
