I’ll choose in-person, live learning all-day-any-day over online learning, but sometimes the latter is just so convenient. That is the case with my newest endeavor, obtaining the ‘Military Relocation Specialist’ from the National Association of Realtors.
I began the 1st step tonight after my regular work day, which involved teaching the last day of ‘Office Management’ to our most recent Broker’s Candidates. After coming home, taking care of my doggies Billy (who is re-cooperating from his recent emergency surgery), Mercedes and Kappy, it was time for me to put on my “student hat” and log on to start the 6-hr class on best practices when representing Military Buyers & Sellers.
I have wanted to take this class for several years in order to better serve our beloved Veterans…..the timing was just never quite right for me. I’m hoping to learn a LOT so I can be an even better resource to the close to 3,000 Military, both active & retired, in Salem County. Working with Veterans is one of my absolute favorite parts of my job, so I have decided to jump in with both feet to become more aware of their very special housing needs.
After the first 2 hours of class, I can tell you that there are many, many acronyms that I will need to commit to memory, such as ‘BAH’ which simply means ‘Basic Allowance Housing’ – the housing allowance that is awarded for both the rental and/or purchasing of apartments/houses. It varies depending upon the soldiers rank and where they are presently serving. For example, the grade of EO4 – (with dependents) would receive a monthly allowance of $1,812 in the Fort Dix, NJ area.
I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s session. One of the subjects is what is most important to the Military buyer. The following categories are possibilities:
1) Length of Tour
2) Quality of Schools
3) Safety, security of neighborhood
4) Affordability and building equity
5) Time to commute
6) Housing choice availability
7) Quality of residence
8) In or away from military community
Something tells me it will be ‘family-first’……in all categories! I’ll keep you posted.
