You may not be aware of it, but many professional licenses in Pennsylvania are renewed every few years – and most have a built-in requirement for “continuing education” in order to accept the renewal. For real estate licensees of all sorts, it’s every two years, and this year it is in May, actually.
So, this is the time of year all of us in the profession start going back over our records for the last two years to see if we’ve amassed enough credits to go forward with the renewal. At the moment, the magic number is 14 (there’s been some rumbling about upping that number, but nothing yet). Various organizations around the midstate put on an increased number of classes right now that meet the specific criteria set out by the PA Real Estate Commission – 3.5 or 7 credit hours are awarded.
Agents and brokers come out of the woodwork to chalk up the credits they need. I recently had the pleasure of presenting the marketing portion of a class on building real estate teams, in fact, over in New Cumberland at the Clarion Hotel. (Thanks to their great staff – the lunch was particularly good.)
As real estate pros, we sometimes grumble at the whole process, but personally I always find something new in the continuing ed coursework, something that helps keep me fresh and on point. And I’m sure, in the end, our customers appreciate the process too. Two more years!
