When the real estate market suddenly gets busy - and sooner or later it always does - real estate professionals will need trained assistants. And usually they're hard to find, not just because everyone is hiring, but because, until now, training programs haven't existed.
I found this out the hard way and it really hit home a few years ago when my real estate broker suddenly needed help. I offered my personal assistant, Jesseca for a few days. Soon my broker had "borrowed" her full time. Who wouldn't? Jesseca is an expert in customer service, knows forms inside and out and understands rules and regulations. In a flash she’d organized the office and every licensee knew she was pure gold. I had to promise her a raise and increased benefits to get her back.
Jesseca came to work for me fresh from high school. I wanted to send her to a training program, but we couldn’t find one. Luckily she was a go-getter, arriving early, staying late, taking work home and reading. In just a few months she was up to speed and I learned how a skilled assistant could help me increase my productivity and success.
Six years later, with colleagues still trying to entice Jesseca to come work with them, we decided to develop our own training program for professional real estate assistants.
PRA™ (Professional Real Estate Assistant) is set to run for the first time in September 2009. It’s ready and it’s been reviewed, scrutinized and praised by real estate industry professionals and university instructors.
Whether a PRA™ is new to the profession or they’ve been working for years, PRA Training will help add skills right away. In our six-day program, we offer training on systems, forms and files, real estate marketing, the listing process; working with buyers; the completion and possession procedure and legislation and regulation. We also offer networking opportunities and the ability for employers to post positions.
We’ll show PRA grads how to start their own PRA services business and become entrepreneurs. They'll learn the benefits of being self-employed - working as much as they like part-time or by the project with one, two, four or more real estate professional - including appraisers, developers and REALTORS®, as clients.
The benefits to employers include flexibility and lower costs. You can hire a PRA™ by the project, by the hour, part or full-time. Everyone benefits. After 16 years as a REALTOR® I know the value of having an assistant there when you need one.
I’m interested in hearing what you think. Would you enrol in this program? If you’re a real estate professional, would you enrol your assistant?
I would love to hear from you! I’d appreciate if you’d send me your comments, ideas and wish list for course content. Contact me at Nina@PRAtraining.com
Nina Campbell
www.PRAtraining.com
