Essential Real Estate Training in 2010

Location, location, location. Those are the three most important words in real estate right? Maybe. That certainly defines the value of a piece of real estate, but what about the real estate professional? What defines the value of a real estate professional? How does a client know the value of their real estate professional?

Training, training and training.

I recently heard a statistic that every one in fifty people in California has their real estate license. That's a pretty daunting statistic until you realize that not anywhere near one in fifty people with a real estate license is a practitioner of real estate. Beyond that, not every practitioner of real estate is anywhere near successful. Why? Lack of training. Lack of desire to learn. Being set in their ways.

The housing bubble has obviously burst and making deals happen in this market requires that real estate practitioners dust off their professionalism and ramp it up for the distressed marketplace. With tough times and limited resources, where is one to focus their time and energy to make sure they're providing the best value for their clients?

Certified Distressed Property Expert

Becoming a Certified Distressed Property Expert or CDPE® is the fastest way to gain access to the knowledge you need to thrive in this market. And when your business thrives, your clients are better served. Are you still submitting every accepted offer to the bank on a short sale? Would you do that in a normal real estate market? Why are you doing it now? CDPE training will give you the answers and the mode of thinking to really combat a lot of the misunderstandings surrounding distressed property, hardships and government programs designed to stem the foreclosure crisis. At $600 for a comprehensive 2 day program, you can really begin to understand the basics of your distressed market.

E-Pro

The vast majority of consumers, especially in a distressed market place, begin their search for their property online. A long time ago the internet became synonymous with finding deals. I think it may have been eBay that made that happen, but regardless, the internet is where clients search for real estate. The internet is also where you should be building a good portion of your leads. The e-pro training is what you need to fully integrate your business into the world of online commerce. Don't think that just because a client has found their house on zillow.com that they don't need you. Just like every other market, this one is rife with tools that, in the hands of an unskilled user, can be down right dangerous. Do yourself a favor and look into your local association's e-pro training.

NAR's Short Sale and Foreclosure Certification

A lot like the CDPE training mentioned above, the National Association of Realtors has also developed a program for training agents on the intricacies, practices and pitfalls associated with foreclosures and short sales. Remember, real estate practitioners had a great deal to do with the insanity that recently took place in the nation's real estate market and real estate professionals ought to be on the forefront of solving the foreclosure crisis. Check out the training at www.realtorsfr.org. A lot of your clients are going to be asking if you have this certification and answering Yes is going to go a long way towards calming their fears.

CCIM Training

CCIM is hands down the designation to have for the commercial real estate market. Even beginning your training with CCIM is going to give you a wealth of information on what's going on in the commercial market and how to help commercial property owners with the upcoming disaster that is about to hit. Commercial real estate is not fundamentally different than residential real estate, but it is certainly less fungible and works with higher stakes. Being conversant in commercial real estate will be a key factor in setting your business apart in 2010 and will be absolutely vital in 2011 - 2013.

Conclusion

By investing a little bit in your business in the form of training, you can really set yourself apart and let your professionalism shine through. Don't let the media tell you that the industry is dead and your career along with it. Every deal has it's day and every market has it's training requirements to make sure that the practitioners dealing in that market every day have the skill set required to help their clients weather the storm.