Examination Preparation (Part 2)

By now I hope you have started to pray, study, join a study group, and sleep early.  Here are some more suggestions on how to prepare for the Real Estate Broker’s Exams.  Did you miss my previous entry?  Click here

Exercise.  A healthy mind starts with a healthy body.  Agree?  Well, you should.  You don’t want to have all those aching pains distracting you during your exams now, do you?  So, you better keep yourself fit.  Try yoga, meditation and deep breathing exercises.  Even a simple 30 minute brisk walk per day can do wonders. 

Eat Veggies.  If you want to be like the Prophet Daniel, who is ten times wiser than anyone during his time, you’ll have to watch what you eat.  Don’t over eat as well.  Please find time to read Daniel 1.  Oily foods will just make you sleepy and sluggish.  Have faith and take Daniel’s 10 day diet test.

Drink Water.  This is in line with my previous suggestion.  For 10 days drink water only.  You want your brain well hydrated when you take the exam.  Choose alkaline water and it will help bring your body into its natural alkaline state.  To read more about the health benefits of alkaline water, please click here.

To all the people who asked me for this one, here it is…  I hope all these will help you just like it helped me.  If you follow all these I can guarantee that you will be in a better disposition than most examinees.  And on the day of the exams, remember: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

Filed under: PRC, Metro manila, PRC, Real Estate, Real Estate Broker, Realty Lesson

Examination Preparation (Part 1)

You don’t believe in luck, do you?  Here’s a list of what you can do to prepare for the Real Estate Broker’s exam.

Pray.  Never underestimate the power of prayer.  You need to pray more especially when you are having trouble finding time to study or having difficulty retaining what you learned.  Be humble and share your hardships with God. (1 Peter 5:6-7)  In addition, if you are starting to worry and negative thoughts are starting to enter your mind.  Pray. (Philippians 4:6-9) 

Study.  You really can’t pass this exam without studying.  Why not devote your first waking hours to study?  Try waking up before 5 a.m. and study without disruption.  Also, this is to train you to wake up early for the exams.  Remember your exams will be in the morning and you want to be there early.

Join a Study Group.  You want to check and discuss if what you know is correct.  An ideal study group is a small one, about 5 members.  I believe studying with peers is better than coffee.  For me, studying alone is boring.  When you’re with a group, you can at least chit chat during breaks and rest from the monotony of reading.

Sleep and never stay up late.  All the studying in the world can’t help you if your brain is tired.  The Taoist believes that the each hour you sleep before 12 midnight counts as two hours.  They also suggest that you sleep before 10 p.m.  So, even if you wake up at 4 a.m. you still have a complete 8 hour rest.

To be continued…

Please click here for part two

Filed under: PRC, PRC, Real Estate, Real Estate Broker, Real Estate Broker's Exam, Real Estate Service Act of the Philippines, Realty, Realty Lesson

I Passed the Realty Exams out of Luck

Lately, people are asking me for tips on how to pass the Real Estate Broker’s exam.  Because of the opportunities PMRB (Pasay-Makati Realtor’s Board) gave me, people come to me as if I am an expert.  Honestly, I am no expert and I was never the sharpest among my peers.  I am not even among the top 20% who passed the exams during my time.  But, I did pass, some will say…  I say: “All the glory is His for I was just lucky.”

I was lucky because He freed up my schedule.  This gave me more time to study.  So, PRAY.  Ask God to give you enough time to study.  Personally, I needed a lot of time to study.  Why?  Because this is my first dip in to the realty profession.  You may need a lesser time because you may have been in the profession for years.  But, you really can’t expect to pass without studying.

I was lucky because He led me to great people.  I took my review with PMRB and most of my lectures came from the best speaker in the industry, Atty. Ariel Martinez.  He made all those seminar hours very entertaining.  In addition, I was fortunate to be with like minded people to study with.  Maia Castaneda was the leader of this study group.  She made mock exams challenging and learning fun.  I also have to include my ex-girlfriend (she’s my wife now) and family to this list for they understood my absence and gave their love and support.

Lastly, I was lucky because our exams were easy.  Realtor / Appraiser and Mentor Edwin Lisondra once said: “Your exam was the easiest!”  I believe him because there were only two math problems to solve and we were given four hours to answer all 100 multiple choice questions.  You probably have seen the last exam.  Do you think it’s difficult?  If you answered yes to this question, then you need to find more time to study.

Now, do you believe my passing was just luck?

Filed under: PRC, Philippines, planning, PRC, Real Estate, Real Estate Broker, Real Estate Service Act of the Philippines, Realty Lesson

Registering for PRC License Without Exams

You knew I took the road less traveled if you read my previous blog.  If not, it’s not the end of the world.  You can still read my previous blog entitled: “Out of PRC in 30 Minutes” by just clicking HERE.

Now this blog is about you beating my record of 30 minutes filing in the Professional Regulation Commission.  It is possible.  You see…  When I filed for PRC License without Exams, I encountered some stumbling blocks that caused delay.  It is my hope that you don’t go through those stumbling blocks.  May this help you and be your guide to a smooth and easy filing.

Before anything else, make sure that all documents you need to submit are in order.  These steps are useless when you don’t have the proper documents at hand.  Preparing before any battle is of utmost importance.  Click HERE to view the list of requirements.  Additional requirement… bring paste!  Or, you can be a freeloader and ask paste from the people who bought there.

So, are your requirements in order?  Did you make copies already?  When all of these are ready, you are now prepared to go to PRC.  First step I recommend is that, upon entering the government agency’s premises look for their customer service center.  PRC’s customer service can be found near the entrance, ground floor of course.  Who knows, maybe these steps are passé the time you read this.  I want you to be diligent and double check.  Be reminded, I am no expert and can only narrate what I’ve gone through.

Second step: go to 2^nd building, entrance is near the cashiers (windows 33-36).  Show and submit all your documents at the 3^rd floor of the said building, first window you see.  A young clerk will check all your requirements and staple them all together.  She’ll give you another small cardboard form to fill up.

Third step: go to the 2^nd floor of the same building and look for their legal department office where you will dish out 100 pesos for notarization.

Fourth step: go out of that building and proceed to ground floor, window H of the 1^st building near the entrance.  They will verify that you passed the exams.  At this point, I do hope you passed the exams!

Fifth step: Metered stamping, also near the entrance / ground floor.  You’ll be charged 21 pesos for this.

Sixth step: Cashier or Windows 33-36.  Window 36 are for the senior citizens and pregnant.  So, if you are young and male, you can only fall in line here when you have a bulging abdomen. Hehehe…  You’ll pay 900 pesos.  Up to this point you already spent 1,021.00 bucks.  And you are not yet sure if you’ll be issued a PRC License.

And lastly, go back to the first window on the 3^rd floor where you first showed everything.  They will collect all your documents and give you a claim stub.

I hope this helps…  By the way, on your way out, I recommend you get your Oath form at the customer service counter.  You’ll need this form the next time you visit PRC.

Filed under: PRC, Manila, Philippines, PRC, Real Estate, Real Estate Broker, Realty, Realty Lesson

Out of PRC in 30 Minutes

We all know filing anything in the Professional Regulation Commission can take a day.  You were probably one of those people who went there very early in the morning just to file something.  Hey, I can’t blame you… You just want it accomplished within the day.  You did this because you probably heard horrible stories about the long waiting lines at this particular government agency.  Even I caught one of those stories.  After hearing those stories, I began asking friends and colleagues: “When is the best time to go to PRC?”  The answers are pretty obvious, don’t you think?  Except one, all answered: “Go there very early and hope you’ll be first in line.  If not, set aside and devote an entire day just to accomplish your objective!”  Whoaa!  I said to myself… “Brokers can’t set aside that much time?”  However, to my surprise, one friend advised: “Be there around 3 p.m. no need to go with the majority.”

 At first I can’t believe what I heard because too many people suggested I go there as early as possible.  My natural tendency is to follow the advice of the majority.  However, I though long and hard.  Imagine… All my requirements for filing are ready since October 2010 and I just filed last March 9.  That’s really a long time of pondering, don’t you think?  Anyway, I decided to take the road less traveled and went there around 3 p.m.  My rationale was… This time, why not counter flow or go against the norm?  If you are coming from northern Metro Manila going to Makati, what’s the best time of day to go south?  The answer is: in the afternoon… Or, after the morning rush hour and when everyone is in their offices. 

 So, I arrived at PRC expecting the worst.  To my surprise the lines were short and transactions were quick.  I really don’t know if this is due to the counter flow theory, or I was simply lucky because that day was Ash Wednesday and everyone was busy getting their foreheads ashed in Quiapo.  Nevertheless, the fact still remains that I was done in 30 minutes.  Sometimes it’s just better to take the road less traveled. 

When was the last time you went against the norm?

Filed under: PRC, Filing, Philippines, PRC, Professional Regulation Commission, Real Estate, Real Estate Broker