A real estate broker is a step up the professional food chain. Brokers have additional training and education that have qualified them to pass a higher licensing exam; most states also require them to have a certain amount of recent experience as an active real estate agent. Brokers handle the technical aspects of the real estate transaction. A client signs a contract with a brokerage, not the individual agent. In many states brokers' additional certification authorizes them to handle other legal and financial aspects of a deal, such as handling the earnest money deposit and establishing the escrow account.
Pay for membership to the local multiple listing service. Membership in your local MLS is essential, since you must use the system to list properties, which are then dispersed to websites like realtor.com®. The service also enables you to easily pull a property's tax information, analyze market trends, and see listings before they go on the market. Costs vary greatly: Membership for Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC, agents to the Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, for example, costs $1,136 per year; while on the low end are areas like California's Southwest Riverside County, which charges MLS dues of $220 per year.
