A New, In-Demand Real Estate Career Option

Friday, November 20th, 2009

With full-time jobs continuing to shrink and multiple diplomas and degrees no longer opening doors, Lower Mainland job seekers are rethinking their careers.
 
A growing career choice for a new workforce of entrepreneurs is that of Professional Real Estate Assistant or PRA™
 
"PRAs work for residential and commercial REALTORS®, real estate brokerages (companies) large and small, and strata property managers," says REALTOR® Nina Campbell, the Founder and Instructor of this new two-weekend (six-day) PRA certificate program held at Simon Fraser University downtown campus.
 
The work PRAs do is varied and includes managing the day-to-day operations of the office, composing marketing copy, building and maintaining networking sites, creating and organizing filing systems (record management) and even pounding in open house signs, says Campbell,
 
"And right now, there are far fewer trained assistants than there are jobs."
 
This is because the real estate market is once again rebounding. In October home sales were the highest in six years surging 31% in Greater Vancouver and 13% in the Fraser Valley.
 
REALTORS®, Appraisers, and property managers are busy and there are plenty of opportunities for trained assistants who can hit the ground running.
 
Those choosing to enter the PRA™ profession come from a range of educational backgrounds and ages.
 
About half that enter, are either right out of high school or one or two-year college programs. The other half are career changers, looking for a niche with growth potential or the opportunity to be their own boss. Some have strong technical skills, while others are good at writing marketing materials or managing a busy office.
 
"What they have in common is an entrepreneurial spirit and a desire to work in an in-demand industry," says Campbell.
 
Some PRAs choose to work full-time for one firm. Others are self-employed contractors with a number of REALTORS® as clients, as virtual assistants.
 
One thing is certain. Real estate continues to be a key local employer, and there are more than 9,000 licensed REALTORS® in Metro Vancouver and 3,000 in the Fraser Valley. The prospects are good that many are looking for a trained assistant.

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Alternative Education Enrollment Rises as
Economy Continues to Falter

Monday, September 28th, 2009

Vancouver, B.C. - Across North America, post-secondary institutions continue to see an increase of adult-student enrollment as more and more workers are laid off as a result of economic challenges.

Over the past year, according to the Globe and Mail, over 485,000 jobs across the country have been eliminated. Some have returned, but at a lower pay or part time. This has resulted in a need and rising demand for specialized training and trades, and new education facilities are rising to meet the needs and deal with the load. Returning students trend towards education which requires less investment in time and money. They need little downtime in order to re-enter the workforce quickly. And with the banks tightening their purse strings, students are looking turning to community and technical colleges as they are an affordable alternative.