Schools That Train Real Estate Agents Are Booming, Too (NYT)

The NY Times ^ | July 2, 2005 | LOUISE STORY

[summer]

Students at the Institute of Florida Real Estate Careers in Kissimmee,
Fla., spend 63 hours studying for a real estate license.

The Institute of Florida Real Estate Careers, based in Orlando, has 11 centers around the state but has still had to place students on its waiting list this year.

"The numbers are off the charts because of the really aggressive real estate market," the school's president, Richard Fryer, said....

State real estate commissions report that they have been seeing steadily increasing numbers of people taking the license exams....

"There's no indication that the trend's going to slow down," said Tom Pool, a spokesman for the California Department of Real Estate....

From May 2004 to this May, California data shows, the number of licensed agents climbed by 39,831. That is just over 3,300 a month.

...In New York State, there are currently about 80,000 active sales agents, up from about 57,000 in 2000, roughly a 42 percent increase, according to an annual survey by the licensing association.

Rural states are also seeing a steep rise in real estate licenses. From 2000 to 2004, the number of active licensed sales agents in Idaho climbed about 46 percent.

For schools that offer real estate classes, the upturn is good news. The sales agent courses at Mr. Fryer's schools in Florida cost $399, an amount typical for such classes. The course is 63 hours - the number of hours required by Florida - and covers basic real estate principles....

[summer]

They keep talking about a housing "bubble" or slow-down, but here in Florida there is just no sign at all there will ever be a "slow-down." Prices of property people bought just two or three years ago have already doubled or tripled in some cases.

And, being a real estate agent is hard work, as I know several people employed as brokers or agents; however, at least there's a chance to make some real money.

[MikefromOhio]

it has to slow down sometime....not to stop the optimism of right now, but you can't plan for it to NEVER slow down....

[summer]

I think Florida is a long way from any slow-down.

[since1868]

booked

[MikefromOhio]

places like Florida generally DON'T slow down.

but areas that are still seeing explosive growth, like in Pennsylvania or Ohio, will slow down eventually...

Where my parents live in Ohio hasn't slowed down one iota in nearly 9 years now. Neither has the entire city of Columbus for that matter.

[stopem]

We were going to buy in FL a few years ago, now I wish we had.
It's not as easy as people think to get a R.E.license, the competition is fierce, but I bet there will be so many homes flooding the market now in their quest to make a killing in this current RE BOOM that there will be plenty of homes for each RE agent.

R.E. agents will be flooding the market just the way the homes will be.

For you naysayers out there, there will eventually be the big slowdown coming to all the hot markets as they will price themselves right out of the market soon.

In the suburbs of Chicago for example, Naperville was once a thriving beautiful city, they began by selling homes for $350K and now they cant give away the homes at $250K
in Lyons, once a nice little community, people are still trying to get $350K for a bungalow and are finding there aren't takers as fast as they thought they would sell.

Florida is another story, there were affordable homes there about a year ago and of course they will try to sell their homes now for $350K and higher, it will take a few hurricanes before people will say I will not buy at any price. Thats what stopped us from buying a few years ago, HURRICANES folks!

[sharkhawk]

And you too can become rich by coming to my seminar on how to be a day trader!!!!!. Seriously, this is one of the signs that a bubble is in the offing. How many people can be trading properties before the market becomes saturated?

[Tijeras_Slim]

A sure sign that any investment or money making opportunity is doomed is that I've heard how great it is.

The real estate boom is officially doomed.

[sharkhawk]

In the suburbs of Chicago for example, Naperville was once a thriving beautiful city, they began by selling homes for $350K and now they cant give away the homes at $250K .

Although I agree that there will be a slowdown in real estate prices, where do you get your info about Naperville. As far as I can see, and I live in Aurora one suburb over, $250,000 in Naperville won't buy much.

[goldstategop]

It seems recession-proof. But if you do choose a real estate career, its a good idea to sock away the profits for a rainy day. Even if you think you'll never need to work in your life again, its still prudent to plan for catastrophic expenses, like loss of a home due to fire or unexpected medical costs. You never know. Still, work hard at it and the greatest pleasure to be had, apart from making money in real estate, is to help people move into their first home. Nothing on earth will ever replace the satisfaction of helping people and that counts for a lot more than all the money you'll ever make. It gets you wanting to get up every morning out to the office.

(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)

[MikefromOhio]

oh I would believe it...

It DOES look much safer than my choosen profession, which is IT :)

[summer]

St. John's County, FL 2 years ago. We have lived in it a year. I paid $274,000 for it. Take a guess what this sucker is worth now?

I will guess $550-600,000.

In my neighborhood here in FL it has taken my two neighbors less than 24 hours to sell at their asking price.

[stopem]

I get emails from a real estate agency in Naperville and surrounding areas. My Daughter and her husband may move there because of his business. The homes are huge and beautiful and the R.E. agent said there was a major slowdown and they will be able to pick up quite a nice home for $250K or less that they should make an offer and more than likely they will get it for less. MAJOR slowdown already in the burbs.

[stopem]

Than better sell fast if you can get a sucker to pay $500K or more because when the hurricanes hit it won't be worth much.

[summer]

There is also a real shift happening in population, in terms of people leaving the midwest and northeast and heaing south and west. For the first time in something like 50 years Detroit is no longer one of the ten or whatever most populous cities in this country; San Jose, CA has taken its place. And, NY is no longer the 3rd most populous state; FL has taken its place or soon will. So, the migration keeps happening to warmer weather and at least in FL, no state income tax. Also, FL has remained quite beautiful in many parts and it has a lot to offer people of all ages. It no longer the place you go to "die!" People come here to live. :)

[summer]

Nothing on earth will ever replace the satisfaction of helping people and that counts for a lot more than all the money you'll ever make. It gets you wanting to get up every morning out to the office

Good for you! I actually know some real estate people who are like that, too.

[stopem]

I agree that Florida is absolutely beautiful and a great place to live, lets hope it wont be overrun with libs.....;)

[summer]

when the hurricanes hit it won't be worth much.

I don't believe hurricanes have any lasting impact on housing prices here. I know someone who spent about $190,000 about to build a house, and back then, such an amount was considered a lot for a house. That house is now worth about $1.9 million in FL. I know another family who just sold their house, which once considered to be in a "rural" part of town, but the town has spread, and so they sold to a developer for something like $6.7 million. That's a pretty decent profit when you only spent about $50,000 for your rural home.

[summer]

The FL Dem Party is so lame down here. Also, people are wrong if they think Gov Bush has not remained a very popular governor -- he has continued to be quite popular. It would not surprise me if after he completes his 2nd term as governor, he goes back into real estate, makes a fortune, and then runs for president in 2012. The GOP should hope that happens, because if he runs, he wins 10% of the electoral votes by winning this state, and he is one Republican who actually can win this state (and no recounts necessary when he runs).