Who's to blame?

The Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) has denied accusations from the Institute of Estate Agents of South Africa that the board is incompetent. The issue is that estate agents are operating without certificates and they reckon that the board has failed to issue them.

It is law that agents must have a fidelity fund certificate to be able to practice legally. CEO of the EAAB, Nomonde Mapetla, said (according to an article on the SABC website) that the fault lies squarely at the door of the estate agents. “It is their duty in terms of the law to ensure that they get these certificates...that they make the necessary submissions even at the end of their financial year to ensure that they don't get blocked...those that are blocked have not submitted their audited trust accounts. Last year we did inspections for the first time in 30 years and were able to discover this and therefore started blocking people...”

The SABC site also mentions that the President of the Institute of Estate Agents of South Africa, Willie Marais, said the board was inefficient.

My focus is on the new Qualification requirements - Let us all work in a way that will ensure that we do not have a similar crisis when the deadline arrives!

Take action now and avoid the inevitable crunch that I predict will happen - thousands of agents not having the fidelity certificates because of ... Who will be to blame?!

To the point - what a fantastic response!

I received the following letter from an agency after receiving the "to the point" checklist.

"Thanks Charl - quite an interesting checklist - my agents have a weekly
training session.. on top of that they do a one month intensive course that
I have designed when they join my company (even if they are experienced).

We are currently very small, however my goal is to produce high income
earning agents - not one great performer and nine below average sales
people. They receive weekly goals and a daily allocation sheet of tasks
that need to be done. Already from this framework I have spotted a few
points that I have failed to address in my current program and training eg.
Money laundering - not much focus on this.

I will print it off and run through the checklist with each individual agent
and provide more feedback then.

Thanks again"
(reprinted with permission)

...and this is the whole purpose - to develop a living and practical tool, that will lead to agents easily being able to collect the evidence necessary to meet the requirements of the Further Education and Training Certificate: Real Estate. This together with the "paint by numbers" toolkit will save you time, money and agony. Talk to me - order your free "to the point" instrument and invest in the "paint by numbers" file; also ask about the free "palette" resource guide and "the outside of the box" all tools to make it easy to attain Recognition of Prior Learning and get your FETC: Real Estate (SAQA ID 59097) to be able to keep on selling property after December 2011!

Here is the "Outside of the Box"

This weekend (15-16 March 2008) I photographed the entire Portfolio of Evidence that one of my learners handed in to be RPLed on the Further Education and Training Certificate: Real Estate (SAQA ID 59097). I have not yet assessed it and the process has not been moderated but I thought it would be useful as is to my other learners that wish to see an example of a possible end product(and to you!).

I have blackened out some portions - a) to protect identities b) to protect some copyright material and c) to limit plagiarism (the copying of answers without wrapping your own mind round the subject matter). Still I think it will be a useful model to anybody wishing to compile his her own portfolio of evidence (POE) for RPL purposes of the FETC: Real Estate and to a person learning the job of an estate agent as a candidate.

If you wish to have a copy of this 180 image file - I will be selling it as soon as I have sorted out some issues (most probably around R 300 plus VAT).

8. Managing Agents are not excluded.

In terms of the act a person who collects rent or receives levies must also register as an Estate Agent with the EAAB (Estate Agency Affairs Board) and have a valid Fidelity Fund Certificate. This means, according to my interpretation, that they too have to meet the requirement of having completed the Further Education and Training Certificate: Real Estate by December 2011. Though the qualification is largely aimed at residential Real Estate practitioners, the evidence that manging agents need to produce to demonstrate their competency can be slanted towards the work that they perform.

Another interesting point must be noted when a member of the public wants to claim from the fideliy fund:
A. [i] A person must suffer pecuniary loss (loss of money)
[ii] The loss must be as a result of theft.
[iii] The monies stolen must be trust monies.
[iv] The theft must be committed by an estate agent.

Now here is the interesting point - the EAAB website says: "It does not matter whether or not the agent was registered with the Board or had been issued with a fidelity fund certificate. All that is required is that the claimant prove that the person he dealt with acted as an estate agent. [The definition of an estate agent is contained in the Act]."

Talk to me if you wish to obtain the qualification - there are many routes to get there. Add a cellphone number to the cellphone directory here.
Click here if you wish to be listed in our directories.

7. Not hot off the press, but news nonetheless!

This is copied from an email received from IEASA (Central) - end Feb 08.

"In a move calculated to help unify the estate agency industry, the National Association of Real Estate Agencies (NAREA) and the Institute of Estate Agents of South Africa (IEASA) have announced that they have joined forces.
To this end, NAREA will cease to operate and five members of the current NAREA board will be absorbed on to IEASAs board of directors.

NAREA chairman Eskel Jawitz said this week his organisation wanted to create unity in the real estate industry, which was facing significant challenges and needed to present a united front in order to be able to influence its own destiny. The NAREA board had consequently resolved to join forces with the 70-year-old IEASA. This move would also further the BEE interests of the industry.

Dr Willie Marais, national president of IEASA, said the IEASA board was pleased at the efforts made by the industry leaders represented in NAREA to enable and promote unity and make it easier for industry players to operate.

The IEASA board had previously said it was willing to accommodate all leading industry players, so it could operate from a position of strength in both national and international arenas.

Now NAREAs decision to join forces with IEASA will create a stronger lobby to deal with government on issues important to estate agents, and an organization more representative of the whole SA industry in international forums.

NAREA representatives will get rights to sit on the IEASA Past Presidents Advisory Council, as well as on the IEASA Corporate Groups Advisory Council, from where they may be appointed to the IEASA national board of directors.

Meanwhile, the IEASA board has resolved that two more vice-president positions will be created, bringing the total to three vice-presidents to assist with the workload of IEASA management on national and international level. One will take responsibility for regional matters, another for international matters, and the third for statutory matters." Add a cellphone number to the cellphone directory here.
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6. A fantastic new resource guide for the FETC: Real Estate

I have just completed a first draft of a very exciting document that is part of the "Paint by Numbers" suite of programmes that are designed to help Estate Agents acquire their Further Education and Training Certificate: Real Estate (SAQA ID 59097) in the quickest and most cost effective way possible.

It lists for each of the following core unit standards in the Real Estate Qualification the websites where the concepts are discussed:

A 246734 Advise role players on Real Estate financing options
B 246738 Apply business principles to the Real Estate function
C 246735 Demonstrate an understanding of the Real Estate environment Core
D 242584 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 2002 (FAIS) (Act 37 of 2002) as it impacts on a specific financial services sub-sector
E 246733 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the legislation applicable to real estate practice
F 242593 Explain South African money laundering legislation and the implications for accountable institutions in transacting with clients Core
G 246739 Manage self-development in a Real Estate environment
H 246736 Market, sell and lease property
I 246737 Demonstrate knowledge of and apply the Real Estate Code of Conduct and ethics

This "palette" of resource material is still work in progress and will be updated as new resources are dicovered and developed. Let me know if you have anything exciting that can be shared with learners wising to attain their Real Estate Qualification. I would like to put the links in.

Drop an email to proplib@tiscali.co.za with the words "resource palette" in the subject line and this fanatstic resource guide is yours - ABSOLUTELY FREE! Add a cellphone number to the cellphone directory here.
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5. Marietta van Rooyen - article on evidence guides for Real Estate Agents.

This is a well written article by Marietta van Rooyen that outlines some of the difficulties that learners and RPL candidates face when having to collect evidence to demonstrate their competency.

Check it out: www.skillsportal.co.za/skills_guide/assessment/647849.htm

4. Getting going on the New Real Estate qualification

A lot of Real Estate practitioners that I talk to really want to get stuck in and complete the new Further Education and Training Certificate: Real Estate (SAQA ID 59097), but are in a tizz of how exactly to go about doing this.

The answer is to take the direct route.

Firstly: Get hold of the qualification itself. Read it. My first post was a copy of the qualification and you can easily access from the SAQA website (SAQA.org.za)

Secondly: Set up a programme to work through each of the core unit standards over a period of time. Say, one unit standard a week. It then should take you 9 weeks to complete the programme. What do I mean by "complete the programme?" It means collecting sufficient valid evidence to show that you are competent and can demonstrate that you meet all the Assessment Criteria of all the core Unit Standards of the FETC: Real Estate.

Thidly: Link up with a coach or coaching programme that can help you to collect the necessary evidence. You are not trained to interpret Unit Standards. Documents like the "To the Point (Plus)" checklist will give you some guidance but it is not enough. You need additional exercises and tools to show that you undertand and can do what is expected. This can be provided by an experienced colleague that has attained the qualification (the FETC: Real Estate), an accredited assessor in this qulification (like myself), an Real Estate RPL or Training institution (I think they should be on the Services SETA website) or a programme such as the "Paint by Numbers" toolkit!

Then: Follow the guidelines and instructions while doing your job, selling property and making money. You do not have to spend valuable time and hard earned money to attend expensive trainig courses. These days with technology at your fingertips you can access most of the information through the internet. I am busy with a document I call "the palette" which is a resouce guide which lists ALL the possible available resouces on the internet and elsewhere in books and articles on ALL the unit standards in the qualification - Email me for the latest version: charlheydenrych@yahoo.com

The fifth step is to compile your Portfolio of Evidence (POE) and to get it assessed. Now, it would have been a good idea to link up with your assessor early on in the process to ensure that all the work done meets the quality control standards as set by the ETQA (Education and Traing Authority) - in this case the property chamber of the Services SETA together with their certification partner the EAAB (Estate Agents Affairs Board). You may be asked to fill a little gap here and there by providing additional evidence.

The last step is out of your hands - this is where you portfolio is moderated by an external moderator to ensure that your assessor did his/her job well in explaining the NQF, was fair in his/her assessments, collected sufficient and valid evidence and so on = and you being issued a certificate of competency that you meet the outcomes of the Unit Standards you applied for. You name is also entered onto a National Learner Record database to that effect.

Thats it - it is as easy and simple as that (if the authorities don't complexify it by adding too much red tape!)

3. Obtain your FETC:Real Estate!

Contact:
Charl Heydenrych
082 637 3710
011 672 9019
proplib@tiscali.co.za

Special Offer – Order
your "PAINT BY NUMBERS" kit this week
before Friday 11am, 7 March 2008 and it’s
yours at R 1000 plus VAT!

The background
According to the proposed regulations all agents must obtain the certificate in real estate by December 2012.

There will be two separate qualifications, one for principals and one for non-principals – this document is for non-principals. Existing agents can obtain the qualification through the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) process. New entrants must do so by means of a 12- month-long internship. The new proposal is that, after obtaining the relevant certificate, the agent will also have to pass a Professional Designation Examination set by the Estate Agency Affairs Board. There is, however, a clause which will exempt full-status agents, who get the qualification and have been registered as such for at least five years, from sitting for the examination
The draft regulations also provide for the EAAB to introduce a Continuing Professional Development programme, in which estate agents would have to meet specific requirements within a three-year rolling period in order to remain in the industry.
The draft regulations are available on the Estate Agency Affairs Board website:
www.eaab.org.za

This is what you get when purchasing the “paint by numbers” kit:
• This unique kit will enable you to attain the Qualification at your own pace with the least hassle.
• No boring training sessions. The kit contains a step-by-step set of guidelines that will assist you to collect the evidence and construct a Portfolio of Evidence (POE) to show that you are competent in all nine of the core unit standards of the qualification. Just follow the numbers and fill in the blanks.
• We are working on a “model portfolio” against which you will be able run your
Portfolio of Evidence and immediately see what you still need to do to meet
requirements. This will be available at a discount price to those who have invested in the “Paint by Numbers” kit.
• Help is just a phone call away. On-line assistance will be available to all who have purchased the kit.
• Special discounts for more than one participant from the same office!
• This offer excludes the assessment and moderation of your portfolio – again we will
be giving our earlier customers preferential treatment at competitive rates.
Contact me today:

Charl Heydenrych 082 637 3710 or 011 672 9019. proplib@tiscali.co.za
Educol Building
43 Goldman Street
Florida 1710

You can also talk to
me about claiming
back your skills
levies.

More Real Estate resources:
http://www.happenings.checkoutmypage.com/