A Message From Commissioner Judy Lowe

Commissioner Judy Lowe

Arizona Department of Real Estate

When visiting your physician’s office, do you read the credentials hanging on the wall, and comment, “Wow, this M.D. has incredible education and experience, I’m glad I chose him/her?” As a real estate professional, our real estate credentials and experience carry the same impact with the public we serve. Especially here in Arizona, where the bar is set high and licensees are highly respected. Consumers pursuing homeownership, commercial interests, property management and land are relying on you, the licensee and real estate professional, every day in their transactions.

Here are a few tips for sharing the importance of your real estate credentials:

Arizona Real Estate License How many members of the public, or even your clients, have asked you, “Do you have an Arizona Real Estate License?” If not, why not emphasize the fact that you DO have an Arizona Real Estate License and elaborate on what it takes to obtain and maintain it.

Continuing Education Educational courses are required every two years to maintain the Arizona real estate license. When choosing continuing education courses for renewal, carefully choose those courses that will bring you the most needed knowledge, as well as those that will look great on your resume. Publish the list of courses you take to renew your license and all the additional education you take featuring the titles and the subject matter. Encourage the public or your clients to use the ADRE website, www.azre.gov, to view educational courses that you have taken. Note that the ADRE improved its website (azre.gov) recently so now approved real estate continuing and pre-licensing education courses can be searched by keyword.

Designations Even though specific designations are not part of the real estate licensing requirements in Arizona, the mention of designations in marketing yourself indicates the specialization you have acquired. Instead of using just the letters (e.g., CRS) spell out the entire designation (Certified Residential Specialist) for the benefit of the client.

With your help the Arizona Department of Real Estate has been focused on “raising the bar” in Arizona real estate education. We are proud that Arizona licensees are seeking to obtain knowledge and professional standards to serve our growing economy.

We are excited that the Arizona constituents involved in our state’s real estate transactions are realizing the benefits of a more knowledgeable, licensed real estate professional representing them. Thanks for all you do.