If you are interested in taking property management courses, evaluate schools and programs that offer these courses and ask your employer, if you have one, for approval before enrolling in a course. If you are taking a property management course because you want to obtain a professional license or certification, it is your responsibility to make sure that the course you choose will actually qualify you for the issuance or renewal of your license or certification. Finally, if you already hold a license in real estate but want to move into property management, look into continuing education courses that may cost less than standard property management courses but will still prepare you to do the work of a property manager.
Many people take property management courses for professional purposes, either because they must be licensed to work as property managers in the area where they live or because they are interested in working as property managers and either they or their employer feel that taking property management courses or even earning property management certification is a good and appropriate career move. In either case, the course or courses you take will have to meet the criteria set by a third party. Ask your employer, licensing agency, or certification board for information on approved courses and programs and don't take any property management courses until you are sure they are approved for your employment, certification, or licensing needs.
Property management courses may be available through vocational schools, proprietary real estate schools, as well as real estate professional associations. Some courses are available as online, distance learning classes, while others take place in classrooms or as workshops during professional conferences. If you have several course delivery options to choose from, take the time to consider your own work schedule. You may find that a weekend workshop or online course is far more convenient than a traditional classroom course.
In many places, real estate brokers and salespeople have to complete continuing education courses on a regular basis as a condition of license renewal. If you do hold a license in real estate, you may be able to save time and money by taking property management courses for all or part of your required continuing education hours. As noted above, it is very important that you make sure that any courses that you take are approved for continuing education by the commission or agency that issued your real estate license, so be sure to verify the course's approval status before beginning your studies.
