Real estate brokers see flurry of certification courses as market mature

NEW DELHI: In a bid to improve the level of professionalism in the Indian real estate market, industry bodies such as NAREDCO and REDCO Haryana have started offering short courses to train and certify real estate brokers.

While training and certification body REDCO Haryana along with peer-to-peer real estate network PropKaro has started a two-day certification course for 40 professional brokers starting February 9, 2016, in association with Association of Certified Realtors of India (ACRI), realtors body National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) has also started enrolment for its 40-hour training and certification course starting March 1, 2016, with 40 seats in the lot.

Haryana is the only state in India which grants licence to real estate brokers. "We will help these certified brokers get licence from the Haryana government," said Col Prithvi Nath, chairman, REDCO Haryana, adding, "Slowly all the developers would prefer to do business with government certified brokers."

PropKaro, the facilitation partner for the REDCO Haryana certification programme, has funded 20 brokers to take this course. "We aim to be a partner in the process of development of such trained and professional crop of brokers," said Aakash Anand, chief executive officer, PropKaro.com.

Realtors' body NAREDCO has joined hands with Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU) and Human Settlement Management Institute (HSMI) of Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for its certification course. The last date to enroll for his programme is February 25, 2016.

"The certificate will enhance one’s acceptability in the market which is dominated by fly-by-night operators and unscrupulous practitioners, operating in a climate of distrust," said Parveen Jain, President, Naredco. "This will ultimately lead to an improved climate for ethical dealings which will give a fillip to the real estate sector," he added.

NAREDCO has already conducted 36 such programmes in the past successfully and churned out 2000 trained professionals so far.

The brokerage market in India is estimated at around $4 billion (Rs 25,600 crore), comprising mainly small, unprofessional and localised firms in the business.

However, with rising instances of defaults and frauds by real estate brokers and real estate regulatory bill bringing brokers and agents under its purview, the scrutiny has increased in the market.

A lot of traning and development is happening across the industry at all levels. While realtors' body National Association of Realtors (NAR) India has already been conducting such courses in the market, builders body Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI) and Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), a global professional body for built environment, recently collaborated to develop joint programmes for real estate and construction professionals.

RICS has already been offering specialised educational programs customised for the Indian market, to up-skill working professionals at par with international standards.