Simple question from an investing newbie
There are obvious legal issues when a real estate broker or licensed real estate sales person deal with individuals selling their property. It seems the most obvious that come to mind are disclosing that you are a broker or a salesperson, and adhering to all the legal duties (disclosure, etc) that come with that position. The question is, if a broker or sales person is involved in an investing partnership and is contacting potential sellers (for example pre-foreclosure), can he do so as just an investor, or must he then disclose he is a broker/salesperson. My gut reaction is that if the broker/salesperson is not soliciting business in that capacity then it would not need to be disclosed. It just seems that this may be a fine line to walk, and I bet someone on this site has come across this issue before. Thanks 
As a real estate agent/salesperson, anytime that you are involved with a real estate transaction, you have to disclose that you are an agent. Whether it is for personal use, (investing) business use, or your RE company's list, you have to disclose that you are an agent.
The reason is simple, really. As a licensed agent, you are considered a professional in the RE world. Whether you've had your license for a month or 20 years, you're considered a professional. You have "insider" information on housing and costs, and as such, can be held liable if a seller comes back and says that you didn't give them the best deal, and you didn't tell them you were an agent.
A RE agent works for the seller on any transaction that they are involved in unless they have a contract stating that they are a "buyer's agent." If so, that must be fully disclosed to the seller BEFORE start discussing price, condition, etc.
Roger
Thanks. A quick follow up... my partner is a licensed salesperson. Therefore, it sounds like he will need to tell people up front this info. But, he (the partnership) is also the buyer. Does he just need to say "I'm a licensed sales person, and also the buyer"? Also, when should the written disclosure be signed, only if some contract is actually entered into? Finally, since we are dealing with pre-foreclosure sellers at this time, there will be initial mailings we send out based on what we get from the public records. Will some type of disclosure need to be on those initial correspondence as well? Thanks for your help.
These questions really need to be asked to your partner's broker since they will also be held accountable for his actions, good or bad. The broker should be more knowledgeable on your state's laws concerning RE agents.
A safe course of action is simply that you do the meeting and negotiating with the sellers and your partner find the deals, supply the money and/or credit. When you're ready to resell, it's easier for an agent to sell his own property than it is for him to buy. Buyers think "reduced commission" if they buy directly from him.
Roger