How to Become a Real Estate Agent in Iowa

Planning to start a career as a real estate agent? To get your real estate license, you will need to take classes at a real estate school, and satisfy all the requirements set forth by the Iowa Real Estate Commission.

Here's what you need to know to become a real estate agent in Iowa:

1) Licensing Requirements

2) Duties of a Real Estate Agent

3) What is a REALTOR®?

4) Income Potential

5) Real Estate Schools

How to Become a Real Estate Agent in Iowa

1) Real Estate Agent Licensing Requirements

In Iowa, real estate agents MUST be licensed by the Iowa Real Estate Commission . To obtain your real estate license, you must:

Satisfy the minimum requirements to apply for the real estate exam:

Age: Must be at least 18 yrs of age.
Residency: No citizenship or residency requirement.
Character: Must be of good moral character.
Experience: None.
Education: 60 hours approved pre-licensing course.

Apply to take the State exam.
Pass the exam.
Pay the appropriate fees.
Apply for Real Estate License.
Get Errors and Omissions Insurance.

Newly licensed agents must work under the supervision of an employing real estate broker. Most new agents start out by working for one of the large brokerages like Coldwell-Banker, Century-21, Remax, etc. If you would like to have your own business and work for yourself, you must upgrade to a broker's license.

2) Duties of Real Estate Agents

A real estate agent's main job is to assist their clients in the process of buying and selling real estate.

Their list of duties include:

Submit buyers' offer to purchase to seller for consideration
Work with escrow officers, lenders, home inspectors, and pest control operators to ensure that terms and conditions of purchase agreements are met before closing dates.
Interview potential buyers to determine what kinds of properties they are seeking.
Prepare documents such as listing agreements, purchase agreements, etc.
Coordinate property closings, overseeing signing of documents and disbursement of funds.
Act as an intermediary in negotiations between buyers and sellers, generally representing one or the other.
Determine a property's competitive market price by comparing the property with similar properties that have recently sold.
Schedule appointments to show homes to potential buyers.
Generate lists of properties that are compatible with buyers' needs and financial resources.

3) What is a REALTOR®?

A real estate agent becomes a REALTOR® when he or she pays an annual fee to be a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its Code of Ethics.

The agent generally joins through the local board or association.

For example, in Des Moines, once you have obtained your real estate license, you may pay a fee to join the Des Moines Area Association of REALTORS®.

This also makes you a member of the Iowa Association of REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS®.

All REALTORS® are real estate agents but not all real estate agents are REALTORS®.

4) Income Potential

Real estate agents are generally paid based on a percentage of the sales price.

The seller will generally pay 4-6% of the sales price as the fee and that will be split 50/50 between the seller and buyer's broker.

For example, if the fee for a $100,000 house is 6%, the buyer's broker will be paid 3% or $3000 and the seller's broker will be paid 3% or $3000 as well.

The agent is paid by his or her broker, according to their previously agreed-upon commission split.

This is often 50/50 for beginning agents, so in that case the agent in our example would receive $1500.

According to the National Association of REALTORS®, the Median Sales price for an existing single-family home in the Des Moines area was $140,800 for the fourth quarter of 2004.

5) Real Estate Schools

Here are some approved real estate schools in Iowa offering the pre-licensing courses for the state of Iowa:

NORTH IOWA AREA COMM COLLEGE
500 COLLEGE DRIVE
MASON CITY, IA 504010000
BILL BURDICK 641-422-4183

IOWA LAKES COMMUNITY COLLEGE
620 1ST AVENUE SOUTH
ESTHERVILLE, IA 513340000
JAN BAHR 712/362-7231

IOWA CENTRAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE
900 CENTRAL
FORT DODGE, IA 505010000
SANDERS, DOUG 515/576-7201

DES MOINES AREA COMM COLLEGE
2006 S ANKENY BLVD
ANKENY, IA 500210000
JOYCE SMITH 515/964-6214

IOWA WESTERN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
2700 COLLEGE ROAD BOX 4C
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA 515020000
PELLETT, ANNE 712/325-3457

SOUTHWESTERN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
501 WEST TOWNLINE
CRESTON, IA 50801
515/782-1441

INDIAN HILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE
525 GRANDVIEW
OTTUMWA, IA 525010000
ALLISON, STEVE 515/683-5187

IOWA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS
1370 NW 114TH ST.
CLIVE, IA 50325
NICOLE WENNING 515/453-1064, ext 338

GREATER SIOUX CITY BD OF REALTORS
1001 6TH STREET
SIOUX CITY, IA 511050000
BURGE, KELLY 712/255-8810

SKOGMAN REAL ESTATE SCHOOL
1201 EDGEWOOD ROAD SW
CEDAR RAPIDS, IA 52404
JUDITH STEVENS 319/297-7550

FIRST SCHOOL OF REAL ESTATE
8445 HICKMAN ROAD
URBANDALE, IA 503220000
SMITH, J. MICHAEL 5152521005

KEY REAL ESTATE SCHOOL
501 SOUTH MAIN STREET
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA 51503
KNOTT, JANICE 712/328-3133

MIDWEST EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE
1228 MIDDLE ROAD
DAVENPORT, IA 52722
HOLLE, DARCY 319/441-5102

QUAD CITIES SCHOOL OF REAL ESTATE
2500 41ST ST.
MOLINE, IL 61265
319/344-5963

COLDWELL BANKER MID-AMER GR OF R.E.
1401 50TH STREET; SUITE 105
WEST DES MOINES, IA 50266
LYNN STEELE 515/224-8848
FAX: 515-224-8803

UNI REAL ESTATE EDUCATION PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE
CEDAR FALLS, IA 506140124
DR ART COX 319/273-6986

REAL ESTATE SCHOOL OF SIOUXLAND
4220 SERGEANT ROAD
SIOUX CITY, IA 51106-1106
712-274-8877

THE REAL ESTATE ED CENTER
312 COURT STREET
SIOUX CITY, IA 51101
712-277-2002

Also check out information on how to become a real estate appraiser in Iowa