Oklahoma Real Estate Continuing Education Courses

About

The 101s of Processing Short Sales
That Every Real Estate Professional Should Know

There is no doubt that short sales are an integral part of the real estate marketplace, or that there will be short sales in the future. The basic tenets of the process have been around for a while, but with the rash of foreclosures and the ever-increasing desire (not to mention political pressure) for lenders to allow modifications or short sales, it is more important than ever that the real estate professional be equipped with the knowledge necessary to assist their clients and customers through the short sale process.

Topics Covered

This course focuses on the following topics:

Lesson 01: What Is a Short Sale?
Lesson 02: Hardship
Lesson 03: Questions
Lesson 04: Putting it Together
Lesson 05: Qualifying the Buyer
Lesson 06: Title & Follow Up
Lesson 07: Closing
Lesson 08: Short Sale Reality
Lesson 09: Stepping into a Short Sale Process
Lesson 10: Government Help
Lesson 11: Stepping into a Lender’s World
Lesson 12: Legal Face of a Short Sale

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Qualify the seller to see if the seller is a candidate for doing a short sale, and knowing the right questions to ask, going in.
• Collect the appropriate documents from the seller.
• Qualify the buyer.
• Determine how the Settlement Statement should look, and how you can help a title company understand what you need.
• Follow up with the lender through the process and asking the right questions.
• Understand closing.
• Learn what it means to be a “distressed” homeowner and what a “distressed” home means.
• Understand the difference between foreclosure and a Short Sale.
• Define the most misunderstood concepts like “the parties to a Short Sale Purchase Contract” and the parties to a “Short Sale transaction”.
• Summarize the pros, the cons, and Short Sales challenges to help you handle the Short Sale transaction properly.
• Understand the real estate agent’s fiduciary duties.
• Understand the proper ways to handle the latter and discover the invaluable tips to help you work with your Short Sale buyers and sellers.
• Introduction to the lending terminology and the role of the US government in pre-foreclosure and foreclosure situations.
• Learn about the US government reaction to the Short Sale/Foreclosure disasters.
• Discover the best ways to handle multiple lien holders through understanding the Short Sale process and lender’s requirements.
• Learn about the legal and ethical aspect of a Short Sale transaction.
• Understand Predatory Short Sale fraud.

About

There is so much we as listing agents can do to serve our sellers, regardless of the state of the local real estate market and the economy. We aren't helpless. We aren’t powerless when it comes to selling houses. Even in a difficult market, we have far more power and control over whether our listings sell than we give ourselves credit for.

This course is about how to sell those listings you work so hard to get, so that you actually see a paycheck for your efforts and, of course, get yourself a delighted seller who will be happy to refer business to you for years to come. Because it doesn’t matter if you’re the best FSBO converter on the planet—or have an expired campaign to die for—if you can’t sell those listings you’re so good at getting, then what’s the point?

Topics Covered

Lesson 01:Preparation and Pricing 1-10
Lesson 02: Pricing, Condition and Accessibility 11-22
Lesson 03:Challenges, Checklists and Marketing 23-45
Lesson 04:Advertising, Inspection & Appraisal 46-64
Lesson 05:Evaluating Your Listings 65-74

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of the course, you will be able to:

• Understand why the first 30 days are critical in any listing
• Explain what motivates us during the initial listing period
• Understand what information we should be gathering during this time
• Explain what happens after the first 30 days - i.e. What is at risk
• Relate the value of accessibility
• Recognize the impact of price reductions and underpricing
• Describe the importance of property condition
• Explain how to reduce the potential for hurt feelings during a transaction
• Recognize the importance for real estate professionals to do only what they are hired to do. Do not exceed your responsibilities during a transaction (i.e. acting like a home inspector)
• Discuss the need for good correspondence. Anything observed or overheard which may be of importance should be recorded.
• Identify the need to stage properties.
• Recognize the need for having the appropriate checklists to help identify areas of concern.
• Define the need for the real estate professional to ask questions about any "red flags" that they may find, see, or smell
• Define advertising, offers, inspection, appraisal and elaborate on how to handle each
  Take simple steps you can take that will ease the transaction for the most important people - your clients and customers.

About

In this course, you will be exposed to a history of these changes in order to create a foundation for the explanation of the new law. The changes in 2013 will then be exposed and you will have an opportunity to both review and reflect upon these updates.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Moving Forward

Lesson 2: Other Issues

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, the learner will be able to:

• Define terms associated with the Oklahoma Brokerage Relationships Act
• Review historical perspective of the practice under the Act
• Explain the practice when one firm represents both parties to a transaction
• Identify what is confidential information
• Recite the rules relating to the law

About

Welcome!

Riding the Green Wave: The High Performance Home

This course is not about cutting-edge, experimental green; the high-performance home is an energy-efficient, cost-effective, well-built home that provides a healthy indoor environment and helps to save our global environment. Isn’t this the home that many of your clients want to buy? We’ll learn its six elements and testing procedures for new and existing homes.

Sales increase when buyers understand and develop trust in their real estate agent, their builder and the product. Your understanding of what makes the high-performance home today’s smart choice is an essential part of your future success in selling this “green” product to every new home buyer and also to many resale buyers.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Tight Thermal Envelope

Lesson 2: Solar Smart Design

Lesson 3: Heating and Cooling Issues

Lesson 4: Air, Moisture, and Combustion

Lesson 5: Water Management

Lesson 6: Lighting, Energy, and Green Products

Lesson 7: Diagnostic Testing

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify elements of the high performance home
• List in-demand benefits of the high performance home
• Compare features of each element
• Outline the advantages to buyers for each feature

About

With increasing concern about global warming, interest is growing among consumers about what “going green” means to them. Builders want to know technical details of what it means to “build green,” how many of these details have already been incorporated in their building practices, and what it will cost to add or change materials or practices. Due to the economic law of supply and demand, equally important in the advancement of green building and selling is how to create awareness and resulting demand for these better-designed, better-built homes. In this course, we will identify practical benefits that the “high performance home” provides and features that deliver these benefits. The biggest challenge in the green marketplace is how to communicate this value to consumers effectively enough to change buying preferences. Attracting busy consumers’ attention long enough to educate them about how to buy a home is no small task and demands the right media and message.

We’ll explore the most effective ways to utilize photographs, charts, certified green labeling, press exposure, Internet and print mailings.

When the connection is made between the value of today’s mainstream green “high performance home” and today’s energy-conscious, environmentally concerned consumers, sales of new and existing green homes will assume the commanding position in the marketplace that they deserve.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: HPH Benefits and Features

Lesson 2: Your Market Niche

Lesson 3: Market Your Expertise

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• We’ll begin with an overview of green terminology and of what is included in various shades of green
• We’ll then review the features of the high-performance home. This was covered in detail in the online course Green Building: Benefits and Features of the High-Performance Home.
• We’ll then identify the benefits that mainstream buyers will pay for.
• We will explore tools and strategies with which to market to new homebuyers and establish relationships with area builders.
• We’ll also look at the enormous potential market for “greening” existing homes.

Finally, we examine most effective ways to market your business through press, the internet, and print.

About

This course will cover the process of the filing of a complaint and the investigative and hearing process.

The Commission opens a formal complaint against a real estate licensee when a notarized complaint is received from a consumer or when the Commission, on its own motion, determines there is sufficient evidence to warrant an investigation. The majority of the rules we will cover in this course can be found in 605: 10-17-2 and 605:10-17-3.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Filing

Lesson 2: Cases

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, you will be able to:

• Timely respond to a formal complaint
• Respond to a complaint with an adequate response
• Be aware of the process of a formal complaint
• Appeal a disciplinary action

About

In conjunction with local and state REALTOR® boards and associations, we are proud to present this Ethics for REALTORS® course online. This course meets the NAR Ethics renewal requirements and may be reported by students to the local and/or state association upon completion.

For more information on Fair Housing, you can view articles in HUD's library by clicking here. You may also want to watch the video on this page.

Fair housing is a right—not a privilege. Fair housing is the law—not just an idea. Each of us is a member of several protected classes. Fair housing laws apply to and protect all of us!

Verify MLS rules in your area to determine what requirements may exist regarding input of listings. Fines may be imposed on those who fail to input a listing in a timely fashion.

A careful and detailed explanation of the terms of the contract which refer to the duties and obligations of the licensee is the basic risk reduction procedure. Asking for acknowledgement that the buyer or seller understands the contract language and answering all questions posed is good insurance against this type of charge.

Obviously, all licensees should advise the buyer or seller to consult an attorney before signing any real estate form, or do they?

This list of words may be incomplete. Fair Housing Laws were created to level the playing field and to punish those who have been found to discriminate.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: The Code

Lesson 2: Scenarios

Lesson 3: Enforcement

Lesson 4: Additional Issues

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Learn the code of ethics along with the preamble.
• Go through the core basic duties to the clients & customers, duties to the public and duties to REALTORS®. with respective articles.
• Discuss various scenarios, case studies and examples in order to master the Ethics for REALTORS®.
• Learn various enforcements and obligations predefined to be followed along with additional issues and pathways to professionalism.

About

This fair housing course focuses on discrimination in the new millennium. Topics include a review of discriminatory trends, federal and state fair housing laws, mortgage lending, diversity, testing and working with public attitudes.

"If we are going to grow, we have to learn how to be comfortable with being uncomfortable."

-- Zeke Morris, Chair, National Association of REALTORS® Fair Housing Act Anniversary Working Group

This course will take you on a journey to help understand the foundation of fair housing laws and to provide information to help avoid violation of the laws by reviewing questions and concerns licensees and their customers might have.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Fair Housing History

Lesson 2: Current Fair Housing

Lesson 3: Cases & Supplemental Material

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Discuss Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VIII of the 1968 Act, and Fair Housing Amendments
• Define the protection that these acts give and to whom
• List the exemptions to the Civil Rights Act of 1968
• Discuss the differences between state and federal law with regard to Fair Housing
• Recognize the terms that may, in the context of an advertisement, be considered in violation of federal, state, or local laws
• Discuss the positive and negative aspects of sub-prime lending
• Recognize the signs of predatory lending
• Identify discriminatory acts
• Summarize how to avoid acting in a discriminating manner.

About

Welcome!

Learning how to take a proactive role in preventing fair housing violations will reduce a real estate licensee’s exposure to liability. The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents, or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and disability.

A real estate licensee’s awareness of federal fair housing laws and sensitivity to consumer diversity is vital to business success, reputation, and growth. Licensees will learn why it is necessary to understand fair housing laws and the impact that both fair housing and diversity have on their business.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Introduction to Fair Housing

Lesson 2: Requirements & Penalties

Lesson 3: Liability & Obligations

Lesson 4: Diversity

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Apply definitions of the seven protected classes and their exemptions to daily business encounters.
• Identify the criminal history-based housing policies and practices.
• Explain HUD's protection of Non-English Speakers.
• Demonstrate behavior compliant with federal fair housing and related laws (including ADA).
• Compare obligations of the REALTOR® Code of Ethics and REALTOR® Fair Housing Declaration to the requirements of the Fair Housing Act.
• Apply an understanding of HUD’s complaint and penalty process regarding fair housing violations.
• Demonstrate person first behavior in the context of diversity.
• Construct a niche marketing plan that reflects an awareness of and sensitivity to diversity

About

Reducing fair housing liability risk begins with understanding and awareness. It involves a commitment to uphold the fair housing laws and end discrimination.

According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), almost 40 years after passage of the landmark Federal Fair Housing Act, one in five African Americans and one in three individuals with disabilities still face housing discrimination in the United States.

Click to watch a video of former president, Lyndon B. Johnson, signing the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Training

Lesson 2: Obligations

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Summarize the importance of consistency when dealing with new prospects
• Identify why licensees should discuss fair housing with new sellers
• Explain how the ADA affects all real estate licensees
• Identify a REALTORS® obligations from the Code of Ethics regarding fair housing

About

Welcome to an Introduction to Commercial Property!

The Commercial Real Estate Industry touches virtually every aspect of business in the United States and most of the free world. Very few companies can grow without acquiring more land or additional office space, patients can’t use the services of a hospital unless it’s constructed and consumers can’t shop at a Wal-Mart without the development of Real Property.

Commercial Real Estate encompasses all aspects of sales, leasing, management, investment in or improvement of retail property, investment property, farmland, businesses, industries, medical facilities and dozens of other types of property.

Our job in the industry is to assist in the lease, management or sales of property, and to advise our clients of their best courses of action when deciding how to invest in or improve real property or a commercial asset.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Introduction to Commercial Property

Lesson 2: Data Gathering & Property Analysis

Lesson 3: Investment Analysis

Lesson 4: Commercial Leases

Lesson 5: Introduction to Commercial Mortgages

Appendix A

Appendix B

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Examine the diverse forms that commercial property takes, and the important terms used by those in the field to explain and understand a type of property.
• Explore the different methods of determining value in the eyes of property users, investors, real estate professionals and appraisers.
• Consider how commercial real estate can be financed and how it may be leased.
• Examine the legal documents including listing contracts, sales agreements and lease contracts.

About

This course is intended to introduce or expand participants' awareness of the many factors that must be taken into consideration when serving the real estate needs of international homebuyers or investors in the United States.

This session covers the elements of a typical international transaction, as well as ensuring that the activities of the real estate practitioner and of the international citizen are in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. In addition, this course will review diversity trends in the United States population, examine the areas of fastest growth, and identify potentially sensitive subjects of communication.

Topics Covered

This course focuses on the following topics:

• Lesson 1: International Opportunity
• Lesson 2: The International Transaction
• Lesson 3: Foreign Laws and Government Regulations
• Lesson 4: Taxation

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Calculate the effect currency fluctuation has on a real estate transaction.
• Illustrate the essential elements of international transactions.
• Relate the expectations of international clients, including the importance of cultural sensitivity.
• Employ skills necessary to enhance effectiveness in building cross cultural relationships.
• Apply the regulations and taxes that must be adhered to by foreign parties participating in a real estate transaction.

About

This course will introduce how to find different sources of business to prospect, how to present yourself to those prospects and how to determine the value of the property.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: The Practice of Commercial Real Estate

Lesson 2: Prospecting

Lesson 3: The Listing Presentation

Lesson 4: Providing Marketing Services

Lesson 5: Working with Buyers

Lesson 6: The Sale

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Understand the process of listing and selling commercial real estate
• Understand procedures of marketing for real estate
• Understand correlation between buyers, investors and tenants

About

Advertising is used by individuals to either promote themselves and/or the services or products they provide to the consuming public. In marketing yourself you must comply with both state and federal advertising regulations in order to limit your liability.

Advertising has been defined by the Commission to mean “all forms of representation, promotion and solicitation disseminated in any manner and by any means of communication, to include social networking, to consumers for any purpose related to licensed real estate activity.” This would include, but is not limited to the following:

Business cards, newspapers, magazines, brochures, fliers, billboards, blogs, websites, social media discussions, emails, tweets, kiosks, trade-shows, radio, television, movies, etc.

In this course we will review the regulations on real estate advertising and the challenges faced by licensees. 

You will have the opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge through the successful completion of an exam at the end of this lesson. Before you begin the first lesson, you will also have to complete a pre-test quiz to determine your level of knowledge at this time.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Advertising

Lesson 2: Other Related Laws

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Be informed about franchise identification rules
• Be aware of rules relating to advertising and personal marketing
• Explore how to advertise in social media while remaining compliant

About

For property owners, sale of stigmatized property may become difficult, or result in loss of property value. Future owners can be adversely affected in a number of ways as well, from suffering physiological ill effects or having their personal belongings become contaminated, to facing foreclosure when forced by state regulations to comply with costly newly-imposed clean-up standards.

Citizens need to know not only about the physical effects of the drug, but the other drastically dire and distressing consequences to their communities and possibly their own personal safety, as well. It is of utmost importance for everyone to learn to recognize the signs of meth usage, the indicators of a meth lab or waste disposal site, and know what to do in the event they are encountered.

The Meth Lab problem creates issues all around the country. As we begin to discuss this issue we can listen to one particular problem in Indiana that was presented on NPR.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Meth Overview

Lesson 2: Meth Abuse

Lesson 3: Meth & Real Estate

Lesson 4: Staying Safe

Lesson 5: What is Being Done

Lesson 6: Public Awareness

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify key indications of Meth and Meth production
• Realize the multitude of dangers posed by meth use and meth labs
• Empathize with the dismal effect meth abuse has on potentially everyone
• Recognize the signs and indicators in detecting meth usage and meth labs
• Gain awareness of the cleanup and disclosure responsibilities required of property owners
• Locate additional resources and information

About

Welcome to Mineral Rights!

Real property encompasses the land, including the surface of the earth and whatever is erected, growing upon, or affixed to it; the airspace above it; and that which is below it.

In the ownership of real property, most states recognize a distinction between the surface estate and the subsurface estate. The surface estate affords its owner legal rights to the surface of the land, while the subsurface estate represents an ownership of the minerals at or beneath the surface.

In situations referred to as 'severed estate' or 'split estate', it is not uncommon that these two estates are owned independently of one another.

As a general rule, it is the subsurface or mineral estate that dominates the surface estate.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Section 1

Lesson 2: Section 2

Lesson 3: Section 3

Lesson 4: Section 4

Learning Objectives

Upon the completion of the course, you will be able to:

• Define surface estate and mineral estate, minerals and oil and gas
• Explain mineral rights and some regulatory agencies
• Describe surface owner rights, and motivations of mineral rights buyers and sellers
• Explain severed/split estate - how and why the mineral estate got separated from the surface estate
• Define ownership interests
• Describe researching mineral ownership
• Define the Oil and Gas Lease
• Become acquainted with Mineral Rights and Title Insurance
• Become acquainted with Taxation

About

In 2000, Brokerage Relationships in Oklahoma were created to assist licensees with the problems related to dual agency. In the decade that followed both consumers and licensees were sometimes confused by the terminology used in the Act. Therefore, the law was rewritten with an effective date of November 1st, 2013.

In this course, learners will be exposed to a history of these changes in order to create a foundation for the explanation of the new law. The changes in 2013 will then be exposed and learners will have an opportunity to both review and reflect upon these updates.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: The History of the Act

Lesson 2: The Act

Lesson 3: In House Transactions

Lesson 4: Property Management

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Define terms associated with the Oklahoma Brokerage Relationships Act
• Review historical perspective of the practice under the Act
• Explain the practice when one firm represents both parties to a transaction
• Identify what is confidential information
• Recite the rules relating to the law

About

While State and Federal Law govern many of the facets of any given real estate transaction, it is the License Code and Rules that dictate the practice of real estate for all licensees in the state. In this course we will discuss and review critical issues for real estate professionals including the Broker Relationship Act and the proper handling of Trust Accounts as they relate to the Code and Rules set forth by the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Laws & Rules

Lesson 2: Property Management

Lesson 3: Disclosure/Disclaimer

Lesson 4: Trust Accounts

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Define the relationships available under the Code and Rules
• Identify key issues relating to property management
• Describe the duty to account for trust funds

About

The Oklahoma Real Estate Commission passed a law in order to create a Real Estate Contract Committee. This Committee is responsible for developing Oklahoma Real Estate Commission approved real estate contracts and related forms for use by real estate licensees. The Real Estate Commission has developed numerous contract forms and related addenda which include residential sales, vacant lot(s) and land, farm and ranch properties and commercial and residential lease(s). In addition, a contract Information Booklet has been prepared. This Booklet provides the parties to a Real Estate transaction with additional information about particular contract provisions. It should be noted, however, that the Booklet mostly follows the OREC residential sales contract form.

This course will expose the learner to a number of the more common OREC approved Real Estate forms as well as give the learner an introduction to their use and effect.

Topics Covered

This course focuses on the following topics:

• Introduction to Understanding Real Estate Contract Law
• The Oklahoma Real Estate Commission Real Estate Contract - Residential Sale
• OREC Uniform Contract of Sale of Real Estate Residential Sale

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Understand the Oklahoma Broker Relationship Act in terms of client representation and how the Act differs from Agency.
• Identify key contracts and forms used in Oklahoma.
• Locate the appropriate contracts and explain which forms should be utilized.
• Recite where the forms and contracts can be located online.
• Understand the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission Residential Sales Contract and be able to explain it to customers and clients

About

In the course of duty, real estate professionals must be knowledgeable about short sales and have the ability to counsel clients effectively in coordination with appropriate tax and legal experts.

Real estate salespeople may encounter such a scenario during a listing discussion when it becomes obvious that the optimal selling price for the property is less than what is owed on the mortgage. Or it may be a condition of sale when engaged in the representation of a buyer interested in purchasing such a property.

Individual circumstances make each short pay transaction different, but pre-foreclosure home sales can be expected to be a challenge requiring knowledge, negotiating skill and patience. For the uninformed entering into a short sale transaction without a comprehensive understanding of the process, it can be a frustrating undertaking with potential for severe financial repercussions for the client. 

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: What is a Short Sale

Lesson 2: Seller Representation

Lesson 3: Buyer Representatioin

Lesson 4: Help for Homeowners

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Learn what a real estate short sale is
• Understand why and when a short sale may occur
• Tips for representing a seller and a buyer
• Know where to get more information

About

This course will focus on the latest technology tips and tools available to REALTORS®. Topics covered will include contact management systems, mobile technology, Web-based business tools, social networking sites, transaction management and business systems technology. This course will not simply describe these tools but instead will address how to use them. Because it's easy to get lost in all the different technology tools available, this course presents these tools from the perspective of their function and utility in business - what problems do REALTORS® commonly face in maintaining efficient business systems and how can a better functional knowledge of technology help you to better manage your time, tasks and energy? This course attempts to answer those questions.

During this course, learners will engage with various forms of technology used in real estate. At the conclusion of the course, the certificate of completion will be immediately available online within your student account.

This may make you money or save you time.

By spending too much time here you may be costing yourself money!

Look at ways technology may be able to help you with this.

By taking a little extra time to build a better system you may find that you save a lot of time over the long term.

Social Networking? eMail? Chatting by the water cooler... these will all cost you time that could be spent reaching your goals unless they are properly monitored.

Basic Filing, copying and day today paperwork or follow up are all activities that top producers delegate to someone else.

Topics Covered

This course focuses on the following topics:

• Lesson 1: Managing Technology
• Lesson 2: Managing Communications
• Lesson 3: Managing Transactions
• Lesson 4: Managing Networks
• Lesson 5: Managing Time, Tasks and Energy

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Use search engines to efficiently access information about their local markets. " List at least three ways you can achieve more of your goals in less time. 
• List ways to more effectively manage email and Web-based communication. " Identify ways to use mobile communication to save time. 
• Explain how to transfer data between mobile devices. 
• Explain how to sync mobile devices with home and office workstations to ensure access to files and information. 
• Describe how online transaction management systems can be used to manage timelines and deadlines. 
• Describe how to use their systems to maintain effective documentation and adhere to timelines and deadlines. 
• Identify at least three efficient uses of social networking sites and other Web 2.0 tools. " Build and maintain a social network profile. 
• Describe how specific technology tools can be used to improve the overall efficiency of business systems. 
• Create a realistic plan to better systematize your business, including concrete ideas to implement in the next 30 days. 

About

The purpose of this class is to alert brokers to those situations that may cost them large amounts of money, or their license, or both. The course will help protect the public by educating brokers to recognize bad business practices. To be successful in the real estate business world, risks are taken daily. Sales people tend to be risk takers by nature. Our industry has evolved from a "buyer beware" philosophy to "broker beware." Courts are upholding decisions that assign more and more liability to the broker for the problems buyers and sellers experience in their real estate transaction. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that brokers employ all their skills, care, and diligence in the conducting of their business. Brokers should understand that no course substitutes for attorney advice. Each legal situation is different, and the advice of an attorney will guide the broker through the maze of small, but important legal considerations.

This course is intended to make you think and understand the various complex issues in today's real estate business. Many brokers think their errors and omissions insurance will cover them if a legal problem arises. Not so, fraud is usually not covered, and usually the plaintiffs will allege that that is where the broker began to be a problem. A mistake here will be paid from the broker's wallet. Take unauthorized practice of law seriously. Never use "standard clauses" without consultation with at least your broker and/or your attorney. Work hard at understanding the ramifications of the things you write, say, do, or elect not to do. Think before you act!

 WeChat has a translation tool for your conversations.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Fraud

Lesson 2: Misrepresentation

Lesson 3: Disclosures

Lesson 4: Contract Risks

Lesson 5: Broker Liability

Lesson 6: Office Policy

Learning Objectives

At the end of this course, you will be able to

• Discuss the meaning of fraud and the actions or inactions that constitute fraud in a real estate transaction
• Recognize that negligent misrepresentation is asserting a fact that is not true without exercising a degree of care that is required by the circumstances.
• Understand and explain the disclosures
• Explain the kinds of risks that listing brokers have and how that risk is reduced by careful explanation of the duties and obligations of both parties, and any contract terms.
• Define and explain the broker’s responsibility
• Recognize the need for all brokerages to have an office policy.

About

Welcome to Safety First!

As real estate professionals, personal safety is something we need to keep in mind in everything we do. It's essential to be conscious of safety concerns that are unique to the real estate profession. As licensees, we are also responsible for the potential risks we introduce to our clients—from the office to an Open House.

While real estate safety courses have often been the focus of REALTOR®-specific training resources, all licensees and their clients benefit from the preparation and it's imperative to simply take the time to learn about the risks.

We will cover three main topics with regard to licensees and their clients & customers:

1. Safety at Work
2. Safety in Public
3. Safety Online & at Home
   
   

There are plenty of pro-active steps one can take to help protect oneself, one's clients, property, and private information alike. Safety should "be on the front burner" in all things. So, let's get started!

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Safety at Work

Lesson 2: Safety in Public

Lesson 3: Safety Online & At Home

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify strategies to ensure the well-being of you and your clients at the office
• Recognize legal risks for real estate licensees (and their effect on customers and clients)
• Outline strategies to ensure everyone's safety when showing properties and hosting Open Houses
• Identify potential dangers online and via social media and teach your clients how to stay safe on the internet

About

As a professional real estate agent, one of the most important duties of your job is to properly price your listings for market. Getting listings is one thing, selling them is another. Sure, it’s fun to see your name on a sign in a yard, but yard signs don’t pay the bills. There is a right way to price a home, which involves a thorough review of the market - the active competition, the recent sales and the expired listings. The wrong way is to allow your seller to dictate the price. While you do want and need seller input, you need to know in your heart what the right price range is and be able to defend it.

As a licensed professional real estate agent, it is your duty to be honest and straightforward with the sellers about market value. Our job as real estate agents is not to make friends because we are the highest bidder. Sellers are depending on us and our recommendations in order to make important decisions. This course will help you learn and understand the nuances of this specific market.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: Basic Pricing Strategies

Lesson 2: Creative Pricing Strategies

Lesson 3: Pricing for Flaws

Lesson 4: Solve the Problem

Lesson 5: Effectively Communicating with the Seller

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Discuss basic pricing strategies
• Explain creative pricing strategies
• Identify pricing for flaws
• Understand solve the problem, don’t reduce the price
• Demonstrate effectively communicating with the seller

About

Welcome to Ethics & Professional Practice!

A new member who has completed the New Member Code of Ethics Orientation shall not be required to complete additional ethics training until the next three-year cycle.

• Click to view the NAR COVID-19 Resources.

Topics Covered

Lesson 1: The Princess Story

Lesson 2: Definitions

Lesson 3: The Code of Ethics

Lesson 4: Antitrust

Lesson 5: Enforcement

Lesson 6: Case Studies

Lesson 7: Arbitration

Lesson 8: Scenario Exercises

Lesson 9: Pathways to Professionalism

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Discuss the ethical and moral obligations of acting as a real estate broker
• Explain the difference between the law and ethics
• Identify commonly used real estate terms
• Summarize the obligations that Articles 1- 17 of the Code of Ethics create
• Recognize the various state and federal acts that have been created to prohibit agreements among competitors to fix prices, rig bids, or to engage in any anti-competitive activities
• Recognize the responsibilities of both the Grievance Committee and Professional Standards Committee as part of the professional standards enforcement system
• Define the sanctions used for enforcing the Code of Ethics
• Discuss the outcome of the various scenarios provided in the course which illustrate possible ethics violations
• Explain the purpose of an arbitration hearing and the factors are taken into consideration by Arbitration Hearing Panels
• Summarize the meaning of procuring cause and it’s relevance in broker to broker disputes
• Identify correct answers to all case study exercises
• Recognize the duties and challenges imposed by The Code of Ethics and Pathways to Professionalism
  
   

About

Welcome!

This guide was created to help you SELL expired listings. Not GET expired listings (although it may help do that, too), but actually SELL them…

“You have no idea how thrilled I am that you are reading these words. I’m serious about that. The fact that you are taking time and energy away from your busy life to figure out how to SELL expired listings makes me smile.

Most real estate training products that focus on expired listings teach you how to GET those listings, as if all that seems to matter is putting a For Sale sign in another yard, with hardly any fanfare devoted to what happens next.”

-- Jennifer Hagedorn, Author/Instructor

...Well, except for asking for that price reduction six weeks later.

Topics Covered

This course focuses on the following topics:

• Introduction
• Phases of the Expired Listing Analysis Process
• Phase One – Uncover the Data
• Phase Two – Analyze the Data
• Interlude: Can You Sell This Listing?
• Phase Three – Recommend and Make Adjustments Based on Your Findings
• Conclusion

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify the phases of the expired listing analysis process
• Examine data and restate value concerns
• Analyze listing information and market analysis data
• Recommend and make adjustments to listing prices based on the evaluation process
  
   

About

Antitrust Law & Ethics in Real Estate explores how legal frameworks and ethical considerations intersect in housing, with immediate and long-range implications for consumers. Empowering real estate licensees to be informed consumers of legal casetext, this course focuses on present-day practices in pricing, commissions, competition, and beyond including in the use of technology such as algorithms that may produce outcomes on a licensee's behalf. Antitrust law impacts the real estate industry at all levels including individual practitioner, brokerage, property management and association.

Developing the skills to access and comprehend legal texts enables licensees to apply their knowledge effectively in real estate decision-making. By the end of this course, real estate licensees are expected to understand the key concepts in antitrust laws as well as their implications and best practices for compliance.

Antitrust laws regulate anticompetitive business practices and the enforcement mechanisms in place to maintain fair, competitive markets. This course explores the differences between law and ethics, real-world application scenarios, and the historical and economic foundations of antitrust legislation in the United States. These laws play crucial role in preserving market integrity and promoting healthy competition. Understanding how antitrust violations are regulated and prosecuted, including the distinctions between civil and criminal cases, help licensees effectively navigate legal boundaries and uphold the principles of fair competition in real estate.

Topics Covered

This lesson focuses on the following topics:

• Understanding the difference between law and ethics
• Antitrust laws and anti-competitive practices
• Antitrust enforcement
• Becoming educated consumers of legal information
• Legal battles over real estate commissions

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Understand the historical and economic basis of antitrust laws
• Identify the key pieces of legislation related to preserving fair competition and free, open markets in the United States
• Gain vocabulary and insights into the regulation and prosecution of antitrust violations including identifying the difference between civil and criminal cases and the plaintiff and defendants in these cases, as well as terms such as the yardstick method and challenged restraints which appear in antitrust cases in the real estate industry.
• Develop the requisite skills to access and comprehend the details of court cases affecting the real estate industry through primary sources rather than third-party sources with potential for bias
• Understand the legal frameworks that regulate competition in the real estate industry and best practices for legal compliance and maintaining industry integrity, ethics, and professionalism.
• Differentiate between behaviors and practices that are legal, ethical and compliant as well as those which are not.