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Page THE HALTON HELLS Saturday September 8 1090 Standards are high for prospective real estate agents Thb article it provided by local Realton and the Ontario Real Association for the benefit of consumers In the real estate market When you consider that a home is probably the single most important item most people are likely to pur chase in their lifetimes its not prising that real estate professionals must be highly trained and skilled individuals In fact Ontario real estate practi are among the most highly qualified In the world thanks to the higher educational standards recently established for newly registered salespeople and brokers But despite these new standards becoming a realtor has never been easy Real estate has always been a demanding profession requiring a commitment to work hard as well as flexibility and a good deal of self- confidence and self discipline Key ingredients of successful real estate salespeople include an extremely high level of self motivation and enthusiasm excellent people skills the ability to thrive on challenges and adapt to a hectic lifestyle and an ability to maintain a positive outlook A career in real estate also re quires a great deal of personal ad justment Selling homes is not a ninetofive job and hours can be lengthy and sporadic Often there is little time to call your own Getting into the real estate business also takes time it doesn t just happen overnight Prospective candidates must be willing to invest a good deal of time money and energy in obtaining the proper education and meeting all the necessary requirements EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS Prior to actually receiving a licence to become a real estate salesperson there are several courses which must be suc cessfully completed These courses are developed and administered by the Ontario Real Estate Association as the provincial govern ments nominee Interested can didates must first complete the Phase One correspondence course available directly from This phase gives a general overview of the real estate profession and acts as a careercounselling mechanism Phase One registrants receive a kit containing a videotape textbook and a package of five weekly assignments At the end of thi course they must write an which requires a passing grade of at least 75 per cent Phase Two and Three are classroom courses available through most community colleges Phase Two is comprised of classroom hours covering the technical aspects of real estate brokerage Upon successful completion of the second phase students begin Phase Three which consists of workshop hours covering the more practical HEART AND STROKE FOUNDATION Of ONTARIO IMPROVING YOUR ODDS AGAINST CANADAS KILLER New house heating system aspects of real estate brokerage like Phase One the second and third phase courses have completion exams and students are again re quired to obtain a passing grade of at least 75 per cent They are allow ed one rewrite per exam but if they fail to pass the rewrite they must repeat the entire phase Once the three phases have been successfully completed graduates can apply for their initial sales licence To obtain a licence they must show proof that they are employed by a registered real estate broker In fact the first two years of a real estate career are considered to be an initiation period during which new licensees are expected to article with a brokerage firm Brokers are expected to provide the necessary supervision and guidance During this period new salespeo ple are also required to complete three additional courses in order to have their sales licences renewed when they finish articling The courses are 40 hours each and cover the subjects of real property law principles of appraisal and prin ciples of mortgage financing These courses must be successfully com pleted with a minimum average of per cent They are offered through most of the province com munity colleges CONTINUING EDUCATION While ill the abovementioned courses are mandatory for people entering the real estate professiona OREA offers additional courses for those who may be interested in becoming office managers or brokers The 40hour Real Estate Office Management course offers a full roster of pertinent topics such as budgeting accounting systems legislation and quality control To qualify for this course applicants must have a minimum of two years experience as a licenced salesperson and must complete an additional elective course either Principles of Property Management Principles of Industrial Commercial and In vestment Real Estate or Rural Recreational and Agricultural Real Estate Once candidates have completed the office management course they may go on to take the Professional Real Estate Brokerage course This 40hour course is designed to train people who are interested in setting up their own brokerage operations Topic include financial records and administration taxation and payroll legal issues and budgeting to name a few This course has the same pass requirements as the others and after successfully pass course graduates have ths to register as brokers with the Ministry of Consumer and Relations For more information about becoming a real estate professional contact the Ontario Real Estate Association at or your local real estate board bock to trough hoi wfciMr of a cold cooing coiurrrrwO household mend frath from wad wot to drain Scute 2 hoot It pump rmi from c tank making coldar and to worn thd In the hot tor Schematic diagram of the workings of the Integrated Mechanical System which combines the heating and cooling functions usually performed by a furnace hot water heater air conditioning system etc The system achieves Its efficiency by recycling most of the beat usually lost from houses Pic courtesy of the Ontario Ministry of Energy Innovative new heating system makes use of heat loss By LORRAINE BROWN A Toronto company specializing in alternative energy systems has developed an innovative new heating system that makes use of the heat normally lost from buildings The integrated mechanical system or IMS does the work of the furnace hot water heater ventilation system and air conditioner with a single highly cient system The integrated mechanical system is on display at The Ad vanced House in Brampton On The house was a cooperative project sponsored by Ontario Hydro the Ontario Ministry of Energy Mines and Resources Canada Allen Associates who developed the new system and a number of private companies It opened to the public in March 1990 The heart of the integrated mechanical system is a heat pump it collects heat generated by various household activities and coming into the house from outside and stores it in a heat sink a 450litre cold water tank in the basement The heat sources include excess room heal heat extracted from warm air leaving the house via the ventilation system heat from the sun entering through windows or a and the heat in grey water e water from baths dishwasher etc The only source of direct heat in the system is a heating coil in the hot water tank that comes into action when the system is not recycling enough heat to keep the house and the hot water warm enough The idea of recovering waste heal in commercial or residential systems is not new said Robin Krause a partner in Allen Associates But this system is the first we know of that extracts waste heat out of the air stream and grey water and puts it into a thermal storage tank or heat sink Krause adds that the company is in the pro cess of patenting the system When heat is required in the Ad vanced House the heat pump takes heat out of the heat sink thus cooling it down The energy stored in the heat sink is free energy except for the cost of to operate the heat pump The integrated mechanical system uses less than half the amount of energy used by a conven system Thermal storage the heat pump and the recovery of waste heat allow for much greater because of the recycling and use of free heat Heat pumps have been around for years and are a very effi way of generating heat The heat pump the IMS is unique in that it is totally indoors unlike heat pumps that take warmth out of the ground or air outdoors The system itself costs slightly less than buying conventional systems to do the same work says But it enables savings on energy costs of 20 per cent or more a year he adds Ontario Hydro is monitoring the Advanced House to determine ex actly how much heat is saved by the new system 0FF Custom Mir and Pit Custom Mini Blinds Verticles and Pleated Shades HontetOouglas Celebrity Installed at NO EXTRA COST OSBORNE DECOR LTD STREET ONTARIO