As we progress into the year 2008, you will begin hearing more about real estate license renewal. This is an appropriate time to begin thinking about the 15 hours of continuing education required for renewal of an active license. Everyone needs to take three hours in Risk Management and another 12 hours in approved elective courses. A quick word of encouragement: do not wait until September to take your CE! Take it now and put it behind you so you will not have to worry about it later.

Some licensees do not limit themselves to CE courses offered in the state of Alabama. They may cross state lines into Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, or Mississippi and take CE in one of those states. Other licensees may travel a farther distance to other states to attend seminars or conferences where CE is offered. If you are a licensee who has completed CE in another state, you may receive credit for that CE in Alabama. All you have to do is submit the following to the Education division of the Alabama Real Estate Commission: 1. Verification that the course taken is approved by any real estate commission 2. Verification of the number of hours for which the course was approved 3. Verification that you attended 100 percent of the course

This can easily be done by acquiring this documentation from the provider of the course and submitting it to the Commission. If you have taken courses in other states, and have not already done so, submit the proper documentation as soon as possible so we can enter the credit into your record. If you plan to take any out-of-state courses prior to October 1, 2008, make sure you submit the proper documentation as soon as the course is completed so your record can be updated. If you have any questions regarding CE taken out of state, please call the Education division. xxxxxxxxx

Again, it should be noted that the information presented in the preceding article relates ONLY to people buying & selling houses in the state of ALABAMA and their agents.