Agent wants $1,500 up front, credited at closing. Normal ask for investor work?

A retainer in this context is money paid up front to the agent's brokerage for their time, separate from commission earned at a closing. Two things decide what it costs you: whether it's credited against the commission or charged on top of it, and whether it's refundable if you never buy. Your agreement should answer both in the same place. If it reads "non-refundable, credited toward compensation earned at closing," then $1,500 is your floor cost for the six months and nothing more if you close. If the agreement is silent on crediting, treat it as an extra $1,500.

Upfront fees are not banned as a category. In most states a licensee has to be compensated through their broker rather than personally, and some states regulate advance fees more tightly than others, so ask which entity the check is made out to and get that written in.

The settlement piece is narrower than either person told you. Sellers stopped advertising buyer-agent compensation through the MLS, so agents now have to state their fee to the buyer directly in a written agreement. That change is why retainers show up more often in investor work.

The part worth reading twice is the term. A six month exclusive usually carries a protection period, meaning if you close on a property the agent introduced you to inside some window after the agreement ends, the fee is still owed. Ask that introduced properties be listed in writing with addresses as they come up. That's the clause that catches investors who also run their own direct-to-seller mail.