Real Estate Salesperson Exam Questions
May 1, 2005 10:48 PM Subscribe
I'm 20 year old and I am going to take the Minnesota Real Estate Salesperson exam.
I am planning to attend Prosource and get licesned. Now here's where my questions come:
1. I'm currently doing my generals, about halfway done and planning to travel to a university to get a degree in commercial real estate. Should I wait until I have my degree?
2.If I do pass the test, do I have to keep retaking the test if I do not use it, like if I don't join a real estate brokerage.
Thanks, any web site help would be great too.
I am planning to attend Prosource and get licesned. Now here's where my questions come:
1. I'm currently doing my generals, about halfway done and planning to travel to a university to get a degree in commercial real estate. Should I wait until I have my degree?
2.If I do pass the test, do I have to keep retaking the test if I do not use it, like if I don't join a real estate brokerage.
Thanks, any web site help would be great too.
From the Prosource website:
An applicant for a Minnesota real estate salesperson's license must:
1. Be at least 18 years old
2. Complete three 30-hour courses (Course I, Course II, and Course III)
3. Pass the salesperson's examination.
4. Within one year after passing the exam, submit a salesperson's license application on a form provided by the Department of Commerce and signed by the employing broker and pay the license fee.
So, you have to become employed and submit your license application within a year of passing the exam, otherwise you will have to retake the exam. It doesn't really say anything about whether you will have to retake the courses as well. As they did not mention any time limit with regard to taking the exam within a certain period of taking the courses I would assume that you would merely need to retake the exam and not the courses.
Why do you want to take it now if you are going to school, unless of course you plan to sell real estate part time while in school? It may be difficult to find a broker willing to hire a twenty year old as a part time real estate agent. As for a career in real estate your age works against you a little bit. People are not always comfortable entrusting a multiple hundred thousand dollar purchase to someone so young. You certainly can overcome this natural bias by projecting a knowledgeable, professional and serious attitude and being scrupulously honest. If you know your stuff regarding the market, neighborhoods etc. and you seem mature, people will look past your youth. If you are willing to work hard for them then your youth may well become an asset. In any event, good luck.
posted by caddis at 6:53 AM on May 2, 2005
An applicant for a Minnesota real estate salesperson's license must:
1. Be at least 18 years old
2. Complete three 30-hour courses (Course I, Course II, and Course III)
3. Pass the salesperson's examination.
4. Within one year after passing the exam, submit a salesperson's license application on a form provided by the Department of Commerce and signed by the employing broker and pay the license fee.
So, you have to become employed and submit your license application within a year of passing the exam, otherwise you will have to retake the exam. It doesn't really say anything about whether you will have to retake the courses as well. As they did not mention any time limit with regard to taking the exam within a certain period of taking the courses I would assume that you would merely need to retake the exam and not the courses.
Why do you want to take it now if you are going to school, unless of course you plan to sell real estate part time while in school? It may be difficult to find a broker willing to hire a twenty year old as a part time real estate agent. As for a career in real estate your age works against you a little bit. People are not always comfortable entrusting a multiple hundred thousand dollar purchase to someone so young. You certainly can overcome this natural bias by projecting a knowledgeable, professional and serious attitude and being scrupulously honest. If you know your stuff regarding the market, neighborhoods etc. and you seem mature, people will look past your youth. If you are willing to work hard for them then your youth may well become an asset. In any event, good luck.
posted by caddis at 6:53 AM on May 2, 2005
Residential agent > Rental house owner > Commercial agent > Commercial property owner/semi-retired. All in the Twin Cities.
If you don't mind my asking, peewee, how long did it take for this process and is it any way typical? I'm investigating real estate as an end towards your progression more or less. One fear factor is that I live in a current "bubble" market, so I don't see lots of positive growth left and the whole world has already thrown their hats into the same ring...
posted by RikiTikiTavi at 8:24 AM on May 2, 2005
If you don't mind my asking, peewee, how long did it take for this process and is it any way typical? I'm investigating real estate as an end towards your progression more or less. One fear factor is that I live in a current "bubble" market, so I don't see lots of positive growth left and the whole world has already thrown their hats into the same ring...
posted by RikiTikiTavi at 8:24 AM on May 2, 2005
Riki,
It took just over 10 years for me, and one (big) factor that was in my favor was the breathtaking appreciation in property values here in my local market. I got in right when things started ramping up. This wasn't anything that I planned for, rather dumb luck.
Is this typical? I have a small handful of friends (former competitors) who are in similar positions now. It was a crushing amount of near-constant work to make it all happen, though. Every single day, often all day long for months at a time. That said, I think it'd be quite a bit harder today if one was to start from scratch. All the hype has made it fashionable and there's just too darn much competition from beginners who are all-too willing to overpay for deals just so they can "be in the game." Confusing to me.
I tend to agree with you on your growth prediction, although my own market is really the only one I pay detailed attention to. I envision the market flattening out for awhile, rather than falling apart, but that's just me.
I play around with stock option trades in my free time and wish I'd started earlier. The returns can make RE look like child's play. Give it a look if you're ok with calculated risk and have a few bucks to toss around.
posted by peewee at 3:09 PM on May 2, 2005
It took just over 10 years for me, and one (big) factor that was in my favor was the breathtaking appreciation in property values here in my local market. I got in right when things started ramping up. This wasn't anything that I planned for, rather dumb luck.
Is this typical? I have a small handful of friends (former competitors) who are in similar positions now. It was a crushing amount of near-constant work to make it all happen, though. Every single day, often all day long for months at a time. That said, I think it'd be quite a bit harder today if one was to start from scratch. All the hype has made it fashionable and there's just too darn much competition from beginners who are all-too willing to overpay for deals just so they can "be in the game." Confusing to me.
I tend to agree with you on your growth prediction, although my own market is really the only one I pay detailed attention to. I envision the market flattening out for awhile, rather than falling apart, but that's just me.
I play around with stock option trades in my free time and wish I'd started earlier. The returns can make RE look like child's play. Give it a look if you're ok with calculated risk and have a few bucks to toss around.
posted by peewee at 3:09 PM on May 2, 2005
This thread is closed to new comments.
#2. Once you pass, you'll need to get hooked up with a broker who'll "hold" your license. Otherwise it'll be basically ineffective, as you won't be able to get on MLS, represent/facilitate deals for anyone, get paid, etc...
If you leave a brokerage at some point, your license also goes "bunk" (unless you go straight to another brokerage). Then you'll eventually have to take courses and pass exams again.
#1. Are you planning to become a commercial agent/broker, or do you have other intentions for the RE knowledge you plan to get? I ask because from the standpoint of doing deals, the degree is quite possibly a large and unnecessary expenditure of money and time. Commercial property owners, for the most part, couldn't care less about a degree when deciding whether or not to work with you. The successful pros get business by word-of-mouth by having a reputation of getting deals done quickly and creatively. These skills are all learned through actual experiences, and are impossible to glean from a classroom setting. There are lots of agents out there who are floundering, simply because they don't or can't understand what's fundamentally important to getting deals and making money in the business. Quite sad, really.
Peewee's experience: Residential agent > Rental house owner > Commercial agent > Commercial property owner/semi-retired. All in the Twin Cities.
posted by peewee at 6:53 AM on May 2, 2005