Ronel Bornman, Seeff’s manager for human resources development, says in terms of regulations, the three phases in the career of a real estate agent now comprise:
1 Intern agent:
On entering the profession you have to complete the Further Education and Training Certificate in Real Estate NQF4 plus a 12-month internship programme which can run concurrently.
An intern agent will work with a full-status agent to perform various tasks in real estate and work towards the completion of a log book which is submitted to the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) and a portfolio of evidence facilitated through a Services Seta accredited training provider.
2 Full-status agent:
Once the EAAB is satisfied the intern agent has satisfied the requirements, the agent will be permitted to write the Professional Designate Exam. Upon qualification, the agent then becomes a full-status agent and can operate on their own, but cannot yet run their own agency. Every full-status agent must have a valid Fidelity Fund Certificate which is issued by the EAAB and must be renewed annually for it to be valid.
3 Principal agent:
To set up your own agency you need to qualify as a real estate principal and complete a full year as a full-status agent. After this you will need to complete the National Certificate NQF level 5 training through a Services Seta-accredited training provider and write the relevant Professional Designate Exam level 5 exam.
◆ In 2013 Seeff introduced its Seeff Smart Academy which is a Seta-accredited in-house training academy that assists agents from internship all the way through. Since 2013 the academy has trained 973 students.