SPONSORED FEATURE
Buyers and sellers of homes in Fayette County can be sure they are in well-prepared hands when represented by members of the Fayette County Board of REALTORS®. These professionals keep up with trends and changes in the real estate industry through many educational opportunities offered by the Fayette County Board of REALTORS®.
The Board’s Real Estate School is a hallmark of the organization, which is celebrating its’ 50th anniversary this year. Long before online learning became ubiquitous, the Board led the way in educational innovations, offering the area’s first online programs in 1994.
Today, the Board offers a full curriculum of continuing education and professional designation programs. Members receive discounted pricing on the cost of courses that feature a diverse offering of classes and instructors throughout the year.
“New REALTORS® always ask, ‘How can I stand out,’” Heather Jenkins, 2019 Chair of the Board’s Education Committee, says. “My response is always ‘Take classes. Educate yourself.’”
REALTORS® are required to complete 36 CE hours every four years. In addition to the licensing and certification programs, numerous opportunities are available monthly for agents to meet these requirements.
The two most popular classes, in terms of enrollment, are the Georgia MLS class and the annual contract class.
New agents especially benefit from the MLS class, which provides an overview of how to search and send listings from the all-important database of homes for sale.
“The contract class is important too,” Heather says. “Even though there may not be a lot of changes, they affect buyers and sellers.”
Designation and Certification programs generate those mysterious but meaningful letters you often see on a real estate agent’s business card or website. These credential programs are also popular with the more than 1,000 members of the Board of REALTORS®.
The Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR), Seller Representative Specialists (SRS) classes are always full. Agents earn 12 CE hours over the two-day course and the corresponding credentials upon successful completion of the application process.
The Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) class is also an important course offered by the Board. The designation requires many continuing education hours to retain and REALTORS® have to sell many homes to get this, according to Kavita (Kay) McInroe, 2019 President of the Board of REALTORS®. It takes most REALTORS® a few years to earn this credential, Kay says.
Fifty-seven percent of members of the organization hold important credentials earned through courses offered by the Fayette County Board of REALTORS®.
The Board offers a Graduate REALTOR® Institute (GRI) class every year. Best practices, ethics, legalities, forms, marketing, branding, and more are covered in this valuable course.
Many of the Board of REALTORS® partners and affiliates offer classes on mortgages, inspections, and appraisals so that members can better prepare to guide their clients through the home buying and selling process.
Beyond the “required” classes, the Education Committee offers many unique opportunities tailored to the needs of the membership. The Board hosts many classes in the training room at its headquarters, but the committee plans and coordinates offsite programming as well.
The Education Committee partnered with the Fayette County Board of Education for a “Ticket to Ride” program, which takes its title from the 1965 Beatles hit song. Dozens of real estate agents visited local schools on one or more of the five tours, which ran from October 2018 through February of this year. The purpose of the program was to give REALTORS® first-hand information with which to answer homebuyers many questions about the county’s highly-respected school system.
The Board received a grant from the National Association of REALTORS® for a program on urbanism. A year in the planning, the workshop focused on Pinewood Forest, a unique example right here in Fayette County.
The Fayette County Board of REALTORS® Leadership Development Program trains up-and-coming leaders today to guide the association tomorrow.
The goal of the education committee is to provide ongoing, quality education programs for members. Classes are open to all members, REALTORS® and affiliates as well as REALTORS® everywhere. For one Designation program, a REALTOR® from the Bahamas attended!
“The job of the education committee, the tasks we have each year, is to provide valuable and unique experiences,” Heather explains. “ We focus on what our members are looking for.”
ABOUT THE FAYETTE COUNTY BOARD OF REALTORS
The Fayette County Board of REALTORS® (FCBR) is proud to celebrate 50 years serving the local community. The organization was founded in 1969 by nine charter member brokers, all legends in local real estate history: Peggy Seay, Ed Mckown, Miriam Fulton, Reba Thompson, Buddy Trammell, Huie Bray, Cliff Bullard, Roland Brown, and Irene Mitchell. The FCBR is under the umbrella of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), founded in 1908, and the Georgia Association of REALTORS® (GAR), founded in 1921.
The Fayette County Board of REALTORS® serves more than 1,000 members and affiliates that serve the municipalities of Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Brooks, Tyrone, and Woolsey in the real estate industry. The FCBR team is experienced, motivated, and ready to connect you with the services and tools to enhance your business or homeownership needs.
