Attend Real Estate School in Person to Pass Your Real Estate Exam
What is the best way to pass your real estate exam? I say, take the old school approach.
Many women ask me which is better…going to Real Estate School online or in person by going to class? Before I elaborate, I would like to acknowledge that there is not a right or wrong answer to this question. The choice sometimes boils down to preference, availability and comfort. However, I feel it is much more beneficial to go “in person” than to get your real estate education online. I will provide you with objective insight on both. Online learning is increasingly more popular today. You can go to colleges and universities online. You can learn all types of extra-curricular hobbies and develop new skills all online.
Learning online from the comfort of your home or office seems like the best option (you can do it while in your pajamas; that’s a cool benefit)! You can also add going at your own pace as another WIN for taking the online course to become a Real Estate Agent. The fee to take it online is not much more expensive than going in person. Everything seems to add up in favor of taking the real estate education course online doesn’t it…or, does it?
Let me take you a bit deeper…
I am totally a FAN of in person learning! I believe that individuals that attend Real Estate School in person have a greater chance of passing the real estate exam. Of course, it would be misleading to say that women who take online courses cannot pass the real estate exam; that is false. Women that choose online versus in class also pass their exams. There are times when going online is the ONLY option available. And, certainly that option will get the job done. However, if you have the opportunity and availability to attend in person; you owe it to yourself to be taught by an actual licensed Instructor. If you have not yet gone to Real Estate School, here is something you should know…real estate is like a “foreign language.” No one goes around speaking in real estate terms each day.
The material that you learn in real estate school is challenging. And, some of it is SUPER boring! Many of the concepts and principles are hard to comprehend, because you’ve never been around those scenarios or heard the terms and definitions. Also, there are math problems on the real estate exam that are more complex than adding and subtract with formulas that must be used to arrive at the correct answer.
More importantly, when you attend in person you have the opportunity to be learn with other women and men. It’s surprising how much more of the information you will absorb and soak up just by being “in the room” with other people. You’ll learn and gain better understanding of the real estate principles when your peers ask questions. You have the opportunity to ask your Instructor questions as well. Being able to ask questions in “real time” is INVALUABLE. When you take the course online…there is not an Instructor. There aren’t others you can ask for further information and clarity. It is you and your computer screen trying to best understand what the HECK you just read! Mostly, all of the material will be new to you; this is why I stated it feels like a “foreign language.”
Even those that took their education online and passed their exam will candidly admit…it would have been easier with an Instructor.
Another benefit to going in person versus online is that you go ahead and COMPLETE the course. Most Real Estate Schools offer flexible options to complete the education. You can usually find a school that offers: 2 consecutive weeks of in class instruction for 8 hours per day; there are weekend options that run for 3 consecutive weekends and evening classes for up to 8 weeks. You have the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve completed your real estate education once your class has ended. I’ve known plenty of women and men that signed up for the online course, but never completed it.
Going at your own pace can be a double edge sword. You have to be sincerely motivated to complete the online course in the same length of time as an in class course. Otherwise, you may drag out the process of completing your education, thus prolonging the time of taking your real estate exam. I have friends that chose the online option that have never taken the real estate exam and probably now have no intentions of coming back to this career field.
When you’re able to immerse yourself with others in your class; you give yourself more accountability to finish the course; and to take your real estate exam!
Study Like Old School to Pass Your Real Estate Exam
I won’t lie to you, girlfriend..the real estate exam is INTENSE! There is a TON of information that you must learn and/or memorize to pass your real estate exam. While the passing score seems low at 70% in most states; that means you need to know at least 70% of the information that you learned in less than 1 to 2 months! In Arkansas, there are 200 questions on our exam. I suspect that would be close to accurate for most states.
The best way that I found to study for my real estate exam was to take it back OLD SCHOOL. Yep, I broke out the ALMIGHTY index cards!
Reintroduce yourself to the little white card with lines…allow yourself to fall in love with the simple, but effective way of learning and memorizing information like you once did as a little girl. HONEY…these index cards saved my life!!! Here is the key – take a week or two to go through your ENTIRE real estate book (chapter by chapter). Write down all the terms and definitions. On one side, write the term. On the back, write the definition along with an example that you may have learned in class. Write down all the math formulas with the answers and examples on the back.
Once you’ve done this for each chapter; then, you’re ready to study! These index cards are easy to access. You can study on the toilet (lol) instead of being on Facebook or Instagram. Take your cards to study while in the waiting room at your doctor’s office, getting your oil changed,waiting to be seated at the restaurant. Your index cards are JEWELS that you can take with you everywhere you go! Girl, just WHIP them out whenever you see a few moments of free time! You will be AMAZED at how much more quickly you will retain the information.
Once you write all of this down; that also helps you to memorize it. Re-writing it is just like rehearsing it. You can read them before going to bed; especially if you have a hard time falling asleep…TRUST ME…these boring cards will help with that!
Today, most schools will offer practice exams online. These also help you to better prepare for your real estate exam. I didn’t have the luxury of online practice exams in 2007. Therefore, i took it back to elementary school and got busy! If you choose to take my advice with the index cards, please email me and let me know how it helped you with PASSING your real estate exam!
My personal email address is: hello@tranettbrooks.com. I am confident that going OLD SCHOOL is better than the new school – LOL!
Crush Your Real Estate Exam Within 30 Days
I promise, the old saying, “If you don’t use it, you lose it” is solid truth. You cannot wait a long, extended period of time after completing Real Estate School to take your real estate exam. WHY? You will forget over half of what you know! I have to keep reiterating that what we learn in real estate school is like a foreign language. And, it is a lot of foreign language to retain. Therefore, the sooner you can empty your brain by taking your real estate exam, the better.
I advise you to give yourself up to 30 days after you complete real estate school (whether you did it online or went in person). You will need up to 30 days to catch your breath, regroup and to study. I think if you give yourself more than 30 days to take your real estate exam, distractions can start to creep in on you. Plus, we all know that “life happens.” If you don’t intentionally set a date for when you will take your real estate exam; studying will not feel TANGIBLE to you.
I encourage you to register a date with your testing center to take your real estate exam one week after completing Real Estate School. It usually takes a couple of weeks or so to get you set up with your testing center and everything done with your city/state – i.e. background check, fingerprinting, etc. While you are waiting on clearance and eligibility to take your real estate exam; you can be studying.
If you put your real estate exam off to “someday” in the future…someday may not come! You probably know someone that has gone to Real Estate School and have yet to take their real estate exam, because they are waiting on SOMEDAY.
You want to CRUSH your real estate exam while you are still excited about becoming a Real Estate Agent. Trust me, if too much time passes by it will become HARDER to pick back up where you left off. You will not be motivated to pick up your book, or index cards or even jump online to take practice exams. You will be singing the blues, “The Thrill is GONE, the thrill is gone AWAY!” I have a neighbor that went to Real Estate School years ago. She never took the exam. Decided years later that she wanted to pursue the career again; went back to Real Estate School last year in 2018. Today, April 29, 2019…she still has not taken her real estate exam…”Life Happens.”
In Conclusion…
I want you to be BOLD, CONFIDENT and COURAGEOUS with your decision to become the next BEST Real Estate Agent in your city! You can do this with the right amount of realism, preparation and dedication to becoming a Real Estate Agent. Will your real estate exam challenge you and push you to new limits – absolutely! But, it will be all worth it once you become a licensed professional!
However, I cannot leave this out…you can take your education in person while sitting in a classroom, study extremely hard and take your real estate exam within 30 days…and, still not pass on the first try, or second, or even third. I have a dear friend that took his real estate exam 7 times! No joke! But, he is one of the BEST Real Estate Agents in the state of Arkansas! He even went on to become our Little Rock Board of Realtors PRESIDENT!!
Do your very BEST. And, don’t dare think about quitting or putting off tomorrow for what you can accomplish on today! – I learned this quote in the 5th grade (Old School principles still WORK!)
Be encouraged my sister-friend (smile)!