To be honest, there are a lot of reasons to hire a licensed Realtor. But if you ask me, one of the top reasons is because we’re required to complete continuing education.
By taking ongoing courses on real estate topics, licensed Realtors are able to stay at the forefront of our field. Not only that, but continuing education courses allow us to further develop our knowledge and skills so that we can better serve our clients.
I’m in Jackson Hole this week taking part in continuing education courses. I took a couple of minutes to explain why these classes are so important:
As I noted in the video, continuing education courses for Realtors fall into two categories – mandatory and elective.
Mandatory courses are required for all licensed Realtors and focus on the critical topics that we deal with on a day-to-day basis. In Wyoming, those courses include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Title Insurance, Escrow, and Closing
- Real Estate Law
- Fair Housing and Anti-Trust
- Management and Legal Compliance
- Marketing, Advertising, and Social Media Compliance
- Communication, Negotiation, and Conflict Management
We also get to choose what elective courses we take for our continuing education credits. Typically, elective courses are chosen based upon the type of work you do. So, for example, since Brooke McWilliams is our farm and ranch specialist, she’d be more likely to take an elective course on soil ratings than say Larry Prince, who as our property manager would need to stay on top of the latest landlord and tenant laws.
I wanted to share this information with you because whether you’re buying or selling real estate, you want to work with an agent that is informed and up to speed on the latest trends in the field. Not only that, but you also want to work with a Realtor that understands the complicated legalities of real estate, knows how to practice ethically, and has the knowledge and skills to lead you through the process of buying or selling your home.
If you want to know more about continuing education requirements for Realtors, you can visit the Wyoming Real Estate Commission website, or just swing by our office at 309 N Broadway in Riverton, and we’d be happy to answer your questions!