Becoming a Certified Property Manager

Who is a property manager? A property manager or managers are a firm, group or individual entrusted with the role of operating a piece of real estate in the absence of the property owner at a specified price range. The property manager is charged with the role of overall management of the whole estate and its tenants. Issues with the tenants are brought up to the property manager who then proceeds with sorting them out. He/she additionally collects debts, rents and fees on behalf of the owner in his/her absence.
Property managers come in all manners of creation, each with a different specialized skill set tailored towards management of estates. But words alone are never enough to prove how effective they are as management. There has to be a set of standards that legally provide an assessment to prove they are credible enough to take up the role. This assessment helps to preserve professionalism in property management. These is where CPM (certified property management) certification comes into play.

Certification

What is CPM and why is it important for property management? CPM is a legally recognized certification issued by IREM (Institute of Real Estate Management) For any property manager, who holds the certificate, there is the prove of evidence that he or she has gone through training, passed the examination as well as has been accredited to have the necessary skills in the real estate field. However, the certification must abide by law therefore being legal. CPM shows that the contender is equipped with the skills necessary in the management of property on a standardized expert level.

How do you achieve certification and learn about property management?

IREM (Institute of real estate management) is an institution sanctioned to provide CPM certification. IREM offers a platform for hopefuls to learn property management. Application to the course is easy and can be done online through the IREM web site at an affordable annual fee that is quite affordable considering the advantages of what you’re getting. The course provides a customized program specifically targeted at learning property management. This course will be essential in one’s endeavors as an asset manager. It gives a rough estimate of what to expect from the field and how to handle different given situations.

IREM provides ten extensive training courses aimed at honing candidates skills in property management that entail human resource, marketing, ethics and an absolute management plan. Candidates are at first required to complete an ethics course that covers ethical conflicts experienced by real-life property managers. These equips them with the skills necessary in handling businesses with the utmost standards of professionalism.

After the ethics course, candidates are required to accomplish either one of four provided alternatives:

• Coursework: IREM provides a set of seven courses required to be completed within the provided time frame
• Designations: Candidates should provide CCIM, PCAM, RPA or CSM designations along with the approval fee
• Real estate degree: Candidates for this category should put together a graduate or undergraduate degree with a dignified portion of real estate concentration plus the approval fee.
• Professional experience: Under this category candidates qualify with a minimum of 20 years professional work experience along with the specified approval fee.

At the end of the course, to be eligible for certification, candidates must complete a set of exams. The exams to be performed compromise of a CPM certification exam, ethics pledges, and course exam, and a management plan on property physically or a skill test. All of which should be passed for the candidates to be declared to have completed.
The course is also very convenient for the applicant is can be imparted in a classroom environment or at the comfort of the candidate online to provide more flexibility. The candidates work experience is examined, and they are required to provide a minimum list of three professionals that can be referenced
This whole process expands the candidate’s knowledge base and gives them a far better advantage over others as it shows they have learned how to become a certified property manager.