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Changing From Sales Associate To Real Estate Professional
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ALISO VIEJO, CA., July 12, 2005 - Residential real estate brokerage is increasingly
changing from sales to a more consultative professional service. With the
surge towards integration and bundled services, national real estate firms
such as Coldwell Banker, Prudential and RE/MAX and large ancillary service
providers such as First America Title and Fidelity National Financial are
also constantly expanding and integrating their service offerings. This approach
is rippling through to where the rubber meets the road and sales associates
are also being required to expand and integrate their knowledge base of all
the services offered in a real estate transaction, including residential
real estate, appraisal, home inspection and mortgage lending. “This
must not be confused with the fact that agents are now suddenly becoming
appraisers or home inspectors,” said Era Swanepoel, Deputy Executive
Director of The Real Estate Professionals Society (REPS), “but in 2005
it has become necessary for agents to have a broader and more extensive understanding
of all key aspects of the real estate transaction. They don't need to become
licensed appraisers, loan officers or home inspectors, but they must improve
their overall knowledge about these services,” she said.
Inch by inch, anything is a cinch.
For every activity there is a step-by-step procedure and real estate is certainly
no exception. Leave out a step and you lessen the possibility of success and
increase the possibility of negative legal repercussions. This particularly true
for new agents and they especially need to seek out and attend specific real
estate courses and designations, with managing associations. "Therefore,
the Real Estate Professionals Society," says Ms. Swanepoel, "has endeavored
to make it easier for agents by working together with various course providers
and associations to have multiple courses approved for certification. In each
discipline there are different real estate designations available, each contingent
upon successful completion of the related real estate course.
For example, the AREP designation – Accredited Real Estate Professional
- requires an agent to gain the knowledge of prospecting, farming, marketing,
personal business and financial planning, understand the “do not call & do
not fax” regulations, etc. One of the best courses that meets these requirements
is the “30 days to Success” by offered by Champions School of Real
Estate, a RealtyU® Affiliate in Texas. The course is based on a book with
the same title by Rita Santamaria. The course also structures the agent with
daily reminders of what needs to be accomplished and a realistic plan of attack
for his/her real estate career.
Many of the real estate courses are offered by various RealtyU® real estate
schools across the country (search for a school near you by going to
http://www.realtyu.com/html/findschool.htm) or can be taken online at
http://www.realtyuonline.com/. Contrary to the industry norm, the annual cost
of REPS membership is the same, irrespective of how many real estate designations
a member has earned. |
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About The Real Estate Professional Society
The Real Estate Professionals Society (REPS) (www.realestateprofessionalssociety.com)
is a Society dedicated to increasing professionalism in the real estate
industry and recognizing the changing business expertise required of professionals.
This is done by awarding various and different real estate designations
representing multiple disciplines. Designations are awarded upon successful
completion of a diverse selection of real estate courses. One membership
allows all rights usually associated with multiple memberships. REPS, is
part of the RealtyU® Family (www.RealtyU.com) of career development
companies and services. |
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| Swanepoel Trends Newsletter |
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The real estate market has changed. Lenders have tightened their belts and now it’s much harder for people to get a loan to buy a home. Not to mention the fact that more and more people who bought in the last 5 years are now getting into financial hardship and need help. Are you empowered and knowledgeable about this large market and how to serve it?
Enroll now and start becoming a “Master Negotiator” in real estate.
