If you’re a real estate investor, you spend a great deal of your time dealing with real estate professionals. You also spend a great deal of your investment profits on real estate commissions paid to real estate agents. If you are able to devote the time and energy, you may want to think about getting your real estate license as a way to increase both your investments and your income. Although it may mean additional work to do, including real estate licensing education, the benefits of having a real estate license as a real estate investor far outweigh the drawbacks for most people.

Having your real estate license allows you to remain in control of your own transactions. You are able to list and market your own properties. You will no longer have to worry that your agent is not doing enough to promote your homes for sale; no one will work harder to sell your property than you will. Having first hand contact with the other people working on the deal is also helpful. With your real estate license you are free to negotiate with other agents, as well as deal directly with appraisers and attorneys as well as mortgage brokers to stay updated on the progress of the deals in your pipeline.

Having access to MLS listings is another huge benefit to being an investor with a real estate license. All of the latest information on homes that are available on the market will be right at your fingertips. No longer will you have to rely on a real estate agent to bring the great deals to you; as a licensed real estate agent you can find them for yourself. Having a real estate license is a tremendous advantage when it comes to seeking out those unbelievable investment deals. You will never miss another fantastic opportunity because you missed a call from your real estate agent.

The most obvious advantage to having your real estate license as an investor is the remarkable potential to increase your total income. First of all you will be paying out significantly decreased fees by not having to pay a commission to an outside real estate agent to market and list your home for sale, therefore keeping more of the sales profits in your pocket. Then there is the additional increase in income that you will generate in commissions from listing and selling your own properties. The potential increase in commissions from sales could be quite significant to your overall income at the end of the year.

There are a few things that you should consider about getting your real estate license. It will require completing all of the requisite real estate licensing education as required by your state and of course you can do that through our online real estate school here at Real Estate Express.  When business is good, there will be a significant amount of added paperwork and marketing involved in selling your own properties. What is certain is that the added work can pay off in a big way for real estate investors that hold a real estate license.

Low interest rates are providing those with their real estate license an amazing opportunity to prosper as the real estate market continues to stabilize and begins to rebound. There are more ways that the nation’s low interest rates can help the business of a licensed real estate professional than you might think. It is important to your success as a real estate agent to know and understand the differing ways that you can use low interest rates to increase your business. One thing that is clear is that the low interest rates are bringing in huge numbers of buyers.

The obvious way the rates affect your business is with those clients that just cannot turn down the current interest rates as low as they are. Those people with good credit and high credit scores can be inspired to purchase by the amazingly low rates that they are being offered to them right now. If you paired the current interest rates with the low home prices for your undecided clients, you can present them with an irresistible opportunity.

Then there are those clients that may have been unable to qualify for the home that they wanted. Lower interest rates make it much easier to qualify by lowering the overall monthly payment of the proposed mortgage that your clients want to get approved for. Those clients that were unable to get into their homes because the debt to income was a little out of their reach can now be re-qualified at lower rates. The lower interest rate brings down the payment making it easier to qualify. For those clients who have been waiting until they could afford their dream home, that time may have come.

Low interest rates often translate to increased commissions. Lower interest rates mean that your clients will qualify for a home of an increased value. When you recalculate what your clients can afford at the interest rates currently available, you may find that they qualify for a more expensive home. As you are perfectly aware, the more the purchase price of the home the higher your percentage of commission will be. As you can see there are a number of ways in which low interest rates will increase your client base and your prospective commissions.

All of the focus on generating movement in the housing market is promising tremendous prosperity for those with an active real estate license. The lowest interest rates in decades can be a huge asset to your potential sales offering still one more way for the home buyer to make the most of their money. With federal tax incentives, the lowest home prices in years and some of the best interest rates ever offered for home loans the timing has never been better for people to dive into real estate. A real estate license is your ticket to cash in.

Understanding all ways that low interest rates can increase the commissions you can earn with your real estate license is essential in maximizing your business potential.  If you are not currently licensed but would like to be, please check out our online real estate school here at RealEstateExpress.com.

Increasing your customer base is crucial to being a successful real estate agent. Many times real estate agents work in areas bordering other states that offer additional opportunities for growth. The bad news is, if you do not have a real estate license in that state then you cannot work there. The good news is if that state allows real estate license reciprocity, you could become licensed in that state as well and take your career to the next level.

Real estate license reciprocity is an agreement between states that allows you to get a license in another state; in most cases simply by taking the reciprocal state’s exam. As long as you hold a valid real estate license in your current state, you are a few questions away from a second real estate license that could enlarge the real estate market that you work in and increasing commissions beyond anything you could imagine.

There are a number of states that have real estate markets that cross over each into other.  New York and Pennsylvania have reciprocal agreements with each other as well as with Connecticut. With New York and Pennsylvania sharing 300 miles of bordering land, real estate agents can be licensed in both states creating a whole new market for you to take advantage of.

Florida is another one of the states that offers reciprocity to nine states, including the three states that border it; Mississippi, Georgia and Alabama. Florida is one of the states that do not require you to take the entire state exam; just a 40 question test regarding Florida real estate law. Upon passing the test, you can earn your Florida real estate license and expand your territory throughout the Gulf States.

Connecticut is also one of the nine states that have reciprocity agreements with Florida. Given the market of people living in Connecticut that will sell their home in order to purchase a home in Florida to retire in the income potential is tremendous. There is no reason to forfeit the commission on the Florida home your clients purchase. Just by taking the short exam on Florida real estate law will open you up to work both homes with your clients and double your commission.

If you are a broker there is opportunity as well. The Florida State broker’s license courses can be found online, and as long as you have held a license in any state at all for a minimum of two years, you can become a Florida real estate broker.

Today’s technology allows real estate agents to promote themselves and their properties worldwide. It stands to reason that you would use that technology to expand your career. Real estate reciprocity can offer a way to grow your career to new heights by opening the door to a real estate career in another state, without having to repeat the complete real estate license coursework. Simply pass the test offered on that state’s real estate laws and start closing deals.  And if you’re looking for a real estate school where you can train to begin a real estate career, you’ve found the right place!  Real Estate Express is “America’s Favorite Real Estate School“!

You obtained your Virginia real estate license and you’ve invested quite an  effort into growing your career.  As busy as you are it might be easy for the renewal year to pass before you know it, especially in that first year. The good news is that there are online Virginia real estate continuing education courses available to complete your requirements from anyplace with an internet connection, and whenever it is convenient to your schedule.

In the State of Virginia, the required continuing education for the first year after getting your Virginia real estate license is 30 hours of post licensing classes to maintain the active status of your license. You will need to choose between a residential or commercial track of coursework to know which courses are approved for the track you choose. Half of the necessary hours must be in required classes and the other half of the hours can be in elective courses. If you should change your mind about what track you would like to pursue within your first year, you may request this change in writing prior to the course completion.

After the renewal in the first year, there are 16 hours of requisite continuing education that will need to be taken each year thereafter. Half of the necessary hours can be in any real estate related courses, but the other eight hours are broken down into a few specific topics. Within these eight hours there will be two hours required on Fair Housing practices and three hours on the topics of Standards of Conduct and Ethics. The final three hours will be one hour on each of the topics of Real Estate Contract and Real Estate Agency, as well as an hour on Emerging Trends and Legal Updates.

There are a couple of ways that your license can become inactive in Virginia. The first being voluntary surrender if you choose not to work for a period of time. Your license will also be inactive should you not meet your continuing education requirements on time. If your Virginia real estate license expires without the appropriate continuing education and renewal requirements being met, you will not be able to practice real estate until the license in made valid once again. If your license becomes inactive for any reason, the annual continuing education classes required for license renewal are also the classes that will be needed in order to reactivate an inactive license.

The ability to complete these mandatory educational requirements in an online classroom setting has made keeping on top of the hours needed before your license expires more convenient than ever before. The approved courses that you need can be completed from anyplace with an internet connection 24-hours a day.

As hard as you worked to get your Virginia real estate license, you do not want anything like running out of time to complete the coursework you need to renew it to make your hard earned license inactive. Take your continuing education courses online at “America’s Favorite Real Estate School” and be ready for your renewal date.

Missouri has long been a fantastic state for buying and selling real estate.  Did you know that Missouri offers more assistance programs for potential home owners than many other states in the country?  And that was even before the recently passed economic development initiative adding an additional 35 million dollars in various assistance programs for people looking to purchase a home in Missouri. This is terrific news for real estate agents in Missouri as the traffic generated by the state and federal incentives for home buyers creates the potential for earning greater commissions.  It is also excellent news if you are a real estate broker.  Not only will the renewed interest in home ownership create opportunities for agents to earn commissions, brokers will be earning commissions on their own deals, as well as the deals of every salesperson they broker.

Qualifying to obtain a Missouri real estate brokers license is quite simple. Generally you need to be at least 18 years old and have been a licensed real estate agent for at least 24 out of the last 30 months. If you meet these requirements, all you have to do is complete the 48 hour pre-licensing broker course and pass both the state and national broker exams. That means in a matter of weeks, you could increase your income significantly.

Missouri offers a few additional ways for people to qualify to take the brokers exam. For example, a licensed attorney with a real estate license does not need to complete the pre-licensing education. They need only pass both portions of the exam to become a licensed real estate broker. A licensed attorney without a real estate license will need to take the real estate salesperson exam and then take the broker exams. If only one of the exams is passed, they will get six months to successfully complete all exams. Certification of passed exams and a copy of the bar card will need to be submitted with the application for the broker license in order to have the educational and experience requirements waived.

If the potential examinee is a licensed real estate agent in another state, as long as they have been licensed for 24 out of 30 months, a complete license history certification may be used to qualify to take the broker exam. A copy of license will not be accepted. The required courses will need to be completed and a passing grade on both exams to apply for a broker license.

A broker that has been licensed in another state for at least 24 of the last 30 months will still have to complete the required coursework, however with a certified complete license history they will only need to take the state exam in order to apply for a Missouri broker license.

Whichever way the requirements are met, the application to become a licensed Missouri real estate broker must be submitted within six months of passing the broker exam or the pre-licensing requirements will need to me met once again.

Instead of earning commissions on just your own deals closing, you can drastically boost your income by getting your Missouri real estate broker license. With a minimal amount of time you can increase your commissions without increasing your own workload. Becoming a licensed broker in Missouri is the most logical career move for a successful real estate agent.

RealEstateExpress.com offers complete Missouri Real Estate Broker License Packages through our 100% online real estate school.  If you’re already licensed as a Missouri real estate agent, check out our Broker packages!

In order to become a licensed real estate agent in the State of Georgia you will have to meet the requirements put forth by the Georgia Real Estate Commission. There are surprisingly few qualifications you will need to meet in order to obtain your Georgia real estate license. In fact, in about a month you could be poised and ready on the threshold of a new and lucrative career path.

The Georgia real estate market is primed and ready for take-off. Tax breaks and a buyers’ market have created a renewed need for licensed real estate professionals to perform these transactions. With a minimal investment of time and money you can be ready to take on a new and promising career.

The basic pre-requisites are that you have a high school diploma. If you did not receive a diploma, you will need a passing score on the high school equivalency exam. Examinees must be at least 18 years of age to take the Georgia real estate license exam.

Georgia requires that potential examinees attend 75 hours of pre-licensing courses to take the real estate salesperson examination. In lieu of real estate courses from a Georgia Real Estate Commission approved online real estate school, Georgia will allow you to take your choice of 10 quarter hours or 6 semester hours at an accredited university offering courses in real estate. At the end of your course work the state of Georgia requires that you receive at least a 75% on the pre-licensing course final in order to be eligible to take the test. Once the educational process is successfully completed you can move on toward the licensing examination.

You will be asked to provide a criminal background check that is no more than 60 days old to the AMP testing site in order to be permitted to take your real estate license exam. Without the criminal history report there is no test allowed under any circumstances.  Having minor infractions on the report are not necessarily grounds for disqualification unless it is uncovered after an attempt to conceal it.

The fee to take the exam is $91.00. There is also a small  fee for the issuance of the original license. Once these fees are paid there are no additional licensing fees for the renewal period of four years.  If after one year the licensing fee has not been paid, the exam will need to be retaken.

Testing is done at professional testing sites located around the state of Georgia.  Once you have passed your real estate exam you will be able to print your Georgia real estate license online. Once you have a copy of your license you will be permitted to work in the Georgia housing market.

Having passed your exam and received your real estate license, there is post-licensing education that is required to keep your license active. A 25 hour salesperson post-licensing course approved by the Georgia Real Estate Commission must be completed within first year of the issuance of your real estate license.  If you do not complete the required post-licensing classes your license will become invalid. When you’re ready to complete your Georgia real estate continuing education requirements, you can do that online here at “America’s Favorite Real Estate School“.

The Georgia real estate market is primed and ready for take-off. Tax breaks and a buyers’ market have created a renewed need for licensed real estate professionals to perform these transactions. With a minimal investment of time and money you can be ready to take on a new and promising career.

As a licensed real estate agent or broker, you are aware of the need for continuing education to keep your license active. You are also aware that the schedule of a successful real estate agent can be crowded and difficult to manage. Especially in today’s market, a successful real estate agent has to be available for their clients whenever it is necessary. Timing is everything in a successful real estate deal, so scheduling the number of hours needed to maintain your real estate continuing education requirements in a classroom setting can be almost impossible.

Online real estate continuing education courses are the ideal solution for a busy real estate agent or broker that cannot find the time to schedule the required real estate continuing education classes. Online courses are available on a variety of topics that not only meet the state requirements for continuing education to maintain a real estate license, but can be taken at any time of the day or night that you can find the time to take them. There are no worries of scheduling conflicts or calls from clients that may interfere with a course you have signed up for because all of the online coursework can be done at your leisure.

Every state has their own continuing education requirements for real estate licensees. For example, Florida real estate CE and Missouri real estate CE requirements must be met this year.  No matter what the individual state requirements are, if you do not meet them your license will be considered inactive, so it is imperative that you are aware of the continuing education requirements for your state and ensure that you meet the requirements prior to the deadline. Scheduling your real estate continuing education at an approved online institution will ensure that you can complete the necessary course work and keep your license active.

Online continuing education courses are typically more cost effective than alternative real estate continuing education sources. Seminars and classes can be quite expensive, especially if they require travel to other areas of the country or overnight stays. These costs are compounded by the potential business lost while you are away at the conference or class or by the cost of the cancellation fee if your schedule ends up interfering with the course you have signed up for.  Alternatively, you can choose the courses that interest you online and will be free to take them when your schedule allows.

Do not let the deadline for your real estate continuing education requirements sneak up on you leaving you stuck with courses that are solely meant to meet requirements and offer you nothing more. Continuing education is an opportunity to improve your real estate knowledge, and every successful real estate agent understands that the more you know, the more you can earn in real estate. Signing up for online real estate continuing education can not only make it the most convenient way for you to meet the requirements of your state, but it can offer you the greatest selection of interesting courses that can help to further your real estate career at whatever time works within your schedule.

Without an active license you have no career, so meeting the real estate continuing education requirements is important. Online continuing education makes it easy to keep your license up to date.

RealEstateExpress.com offers online continuing education in many states.  Check our menu for more information!

Geoff Thompson

With all the great real estate news happening in California right now, there is even more on the horizon for those in the prestigious Orange County real estate market. The tax incentives for buyers have been extended while home prices and interest rates are at all time lows. The climate is right for people to make the move into home ownership and the latest figures are evidence that they are taking advantage of it. Home sales in the some areas of the county are up more than 40% and that is amazing news for home owners, and even better news for those people with their California real estate license.

The South Coast of Orange County, California is an exclusive beach front area that consists of the cities of Dana Point, Laguna Beach and San Clemente. This part of the county had a total of 161 home sales for the time period beginning on November 4, 2009 and ending on December 4 2009. This 22 business day interval represents a sales increase of 44% from this same time period last year. This is convincing proof that the prominent South Coast real estate market has begun to make its long awaited turnaround.

Getting your California real estate license is about to become easier than ever before. The state has begun to roll out an electronic testing system that will allow those people wishing to get a real estate license to take their licensing exam via computer. The results will be available immediately upon completion of the test and if a passing score is received, an interim license can be printed on the spot.  And of course all of the state-approved online California real estate license courses you’ll need are available here at RealEstateExpress!

Of the five zip codes that make up the South Coast region, the average home price is around $720,000.00. Consider that the average commission on a sale when you have a real estate license is conservatively 2%. That brings the sales commission for the average home in the South Coast area to over $14,000.00 per home. With 161 sales in 22 business days, the income potential is beyond anything that you could possibly imagine.

California State offers some of the best programs for first time home buyers in the country. The federal tax incentives that brought about the wave of first time home buyers fueling the real estate market turnaround have now not only been extended through the first quarter of 2010, but expanded to include a credit for existing home owners who want to change their primary residence. The continued incentives promise to maintain the rate of buyers flooding the market, making it a fantastic time to have a California real estate license. As any successful real estate agent can tell you, more buyers in the market creates greater opportunity for income potential.

The increasing number of home sales is translating into price stabilization in the housing market. Now that the home prices have begun to stabilize, their value will once again begin to increase supporting higher sales prices. Higher home prices equal larger commissions for those with a valid California real estate license. More customers and higher commission mean that at a time where many people are struggling to make ends meet with a job, if you have a California real estate license you are poised to make a great deal of money in the coming year.

It is that time of year again. The New Year has arrived with all of its promise to wash away the stress of the past year and replace it with a shiny new slate of hope. This year in particular is offering a great deal of promise. On the heels of the housing and economic crises reaching their peak in 2009, the New Year is offering all of the prosperity that an economic recovery implies.

People that resolved to become homeowners in the New Year but have been afraid due to the housing crisis have more opportunities than ever before to get the assistance they need to become first time home owners. Extensions of tax incentive programs for home buyers and some of the best interest rates ever offered are making it possible for more people than ever before to realize the dream of becoming home owners in 2010. The extension of the tax incentive also included the addition of a tax credit for existing home owners to purchase a new primary residence. Relocating or downsizing in 2010 is going to be easier in light of the expanded tax incentives.

Getting out of debt is something that is on the top of many resolution lists every New Year’s Eve, probably more so in light of the current economic situation. Those people that have been hard hit by recent economic issues have no doubt resolved to find a career that will help to achieve this goal, without requiring that they work several jobs or so many hours that they cannot achieve another popular New Year’s resolution; the resolution to spend more quality time with our family and friends.

Unemployment has plagued more Americans than in decades, and the New Year promises to offer some solutions to the problem. The turnaround in the housing market is offering nationwide opportunities for employment in the real estate industry. For those that found themselves out of work in 2009, in less than a couple of months, in whatever state you live in, you could get your real estate license and be starting a lucrative new career in the New Year. Even those with a real estate license can be weeks away from a real estate broker’s license. If a new career is your New Year’s resolution then the housing market turnaround offers amazing prospects.

As each New Year begins it is tradition to take stock of our lives and plan for the coming year and what goals we hope to accomplish. The economic crisis of the last couple of years has shifted gears for many people from simply losing 15 pounds to making real changes toward securing your financial future.

If your resolution is realizing the American dream of becoming a home owner, then the extension and expansion of tax incentives into 2010 has amazing opportunities for the average American to become a first time home buyer.

If your resolution is to find a new career, you could be earning commissions with your real estate license before you have finished paying off your Christmas bills. If you wish to further an already successful career, you could increase your income by brokering others that wish to enjoy a prosperous real estate career.

The beginning of the economic recovery has amazing prospects going into the New Year.

Happy New Year from all of us at RealEstateExpress.com!

David Goldstein

Once again there is good news in the real estate market and another reason to consider entering the field by getting your real estate license. There is further evidence of the housing market turnaround as October marks fifth month in increases of home prices in 20 United States cities. Although the year over year median home prices from October of 2008 are down 7.3%, it is the smallest decrease in prices since October 2007, just .1 % higher than the decrease that was anticipated by market economists.

The decision of the Obama Administration to extend the tax incentive program for first time homebuyers as well as including an additional incentive for existing home owners has been effective in protecting against further weakening of the market. These tax incentives and some of the lowest interest rates ever offered have helped to regain over a quarter of the value lost due to the housing crisis over the previous two quarters alone. When you consider that the loss topped out at an unheard of 17.5 trillion dollars in value lost since the middle of 2007, 28% is a tremendous turnaround in six months.

June 2009 marked first months increase since June 2006. Seasonally adjusted median prices for the U.S. cities have been rising steadily each month since June 2009. Eleven out of the 20 cities had increases from the prior month at seasonally adjusted basis with San Francisco having the highest increase from September 2009 to October 2009 with prices rising 1.7%.

Those people who have their real estate license know, commissions have been at an all time low given the dramatic drops in housing prices began in 2007. If you have your real estate license you understand that the commissions you earn are tied to directly to the housing prices, so it has been harder than ever to make the levels of commissions that were so easily attained prior to the housing crisis. The stabilization of the real estate market and slow but steady increases of the housing prices will begin to bring about the return to the potential earning capabilities that real estate licensed professionals were used to seeing.

Much of this turnaround is due to the first time home buyer incentive offered by the Obama Administration. According to Lawrence Yun, chief advisor for the National Association of Realtors, there have been two million people so far that have taken advantage of the tax incentives offered by the current administration, and that estimation came prior to the extension of the program through April 2010. It is anticipated that the draw of the expanded tax incentives along with the still low prices available to buyers will attract millions more potential home buyers and further stabilize the nation’s real estate market.

Foreclosure rates continue to be a concern as high unemployment rates are still a potential obstacle in the housing turnaround. With the record number of foreclosures possibly growing as unemployment tops 10% in the country and pending adjustable interest rate mortgages are ready to reset. As the Administration continues to implement its economic recovery package and the job market also begins to stabilize, the foreclosure rates should begin to slow as well as the final pieces to the economic recovery puzzle are put into place.

Five consecutive months of increased home prices is a great sign of the stabilization in the housing market on the horizon.

David Goldstein