Illinois Broker Exam Preparation

At examsmart.com the following message is now posted: "NEW AMP BROKER SIMULATION QUESTIONS NOW AVAILABLE! Unlimited review of 20 full simulations! FREE RENEWALS UNTIL YOU PASS!" As you know from past posts, we think you'll need some sort of practice before taking the broker test. I believe Bill O'Donnell, one of our broker license instructors, has a copy of the examsmart review and I'll see if we can get him to post his evaluation of it.

Technophobic?

How much tech knowledge do you need to succeed in real estate sales? We'll soon post a complete guide on prudentcareers.com, but the basic list would include enough computer familiarity to be able to access and explore your local Multiple Listing Service. Some of the features available through the better MLS web sites are prospecting, property searches, tax records, and more. Also important is the ability to utilize email to exchange information between yourself and clients, as well as your office and other agents. (The value of a personal web site will be covered in more detail in future posts.) Software programs you will probably need include word processing, spreadsheets, desktop publishing, and contact management. None of those are impossible to master, so don't worry too much, you can learn to use them. Here at Prudential Starck Realtors we offer training in the use of these tools.

Your House Real Estate Academy - CE Classes

In my last post, I short changed the Academy. CE 12-hour home study courses are offered through a cooperating agreement between Your House Academy and The Illinois Academy of Real Estate. The Illinois Real Estate License Act requires 12-hours of professional Continuing Education for all licensees who are not exempt. 6-hours must be in the mandatory core categories (A & B) and 6-hours may be elective courses.

Students receive textbooks and workbooks for the course or courses ordered. The books contain reading assignments and self testing. When prepared, the student calls and sets an appointment for testing. The exams are proctored exams and administered at our corporate offices or at the site of an approved proctor. The student has a minimum of two weeks and up to six months to complete the program. Tuition is $25.00 per 3-hour course or $75.00 for all 12-hours
Contact Vince DePaul at (630) 307-3493 or (800) 375-7032 or by email for more information.

License Renewals

April 30 deadline looms for salesperson license renewals in Illinois. If you still need to complete continuing education, see IAR’s home study, online and classroom options.

License Law Rewrite and Broker Exam

I am happy to see the state passed the rewrite, it's something we have needed for a long time. In the short term, it will certainly cause some confusion, but over the long haul I believe it will pay dividends for the industry. As for the exam, the pass rate for the first 45 days or so has been around 39%, rather abysmal to say the least. The biggest problem has been the lack of study material available to date. I spoke to the folks at ExamSmart and they tell me the new simulator should be up and running next week. I also have it on good authority that AMP is doing some "Tweeking" to the state exam based on feedback from several sources. All of these things together should begin to show better results in the near future. For those who will be transitioning to Broker or Broker Manager status, will be able to take a proficiency exam, if passed they will not have to take the regular exam. I do not believe the proficiency exam has been created yet, so I don't know at this point what that will entail. As soon as it becomes available, I will try to get a copy. Stay tuned

Illinois Senate Votes to Pass License Law Rewrite

On April 2nd the Senate UNANIMOUSLY approved Senate Bill 1894, the IAR initiative to rewrite the Real Estate License Act. The House Bill was referred to the Rules Committee. It appears that we should have a new license law soon. The proposed changes, which we've discussed earlier, are supported by the Illinois Association of Realtors®, so, as a lemming in training, I must also support. The big problem as I see it is the new format for the broker exam and a bunch of agents, under the prosposed changes, will have to take that exam. We need to do some additional research on that exam and find out more. I'll see if I can get Bill O'Donnell to share some information.

Illinois Prelicense Tutored Homestudy

We have had tremendous success doing prelicense instruction using a homestudy format with one-on-one tutoring. We're going to offer this option again at the Palatine office starting Saturday, April 25th. We begin at 8:30 are are usually out by 11:30 or so and can cover the material in approximately seven Saturdays. During that period one-on-one tutoring sessions can be arranged and a great deal of time is spent covering State exam questions. Our pass rate at the State level is excellent. For more information you can call Vince at yourhouseacademy at
800-375-7032 . We have several other courses scheduled and the complete schedule can be seen by clicking on schedule.

Following Up on the Simulation Test Questions

I have asked several brokers I know to try the sample simulations on the Illinois Real Estate Broker section at goamp.com. As of this post NONE have been able to pass the tests: repeat, NONE. If these are accurate examples of the types of questions now being asked, someone had better review situation.