Michelle Pettway is the team officer of Michelle Pettway and Associates with PalmerHouse Properties.

Every week, we ask a real estate professional for their Short List, a collection of tips and recommendations on an essential topic in real estate. This week, we talked with Michelle Pettway, the team officer of Michelle Pettway and Associates with PalmerHouse Properties, about the ways that agents can save time in their business.

The Georgia Real Estate Commission has two major rules changes in store for real estate licensees:

1. Starting on July 1, 2015, licensees will be required to complete 36 hours of continuing education courses. This rule will apply to all four types of real estate licenses: salesperson, broker, associate broker and community association managers. Grandfathered licensees (those issued a license prior to Jan. 1, 1980) are exempt from the rule change. Anyone who is required to renew on June 30 should be sure to complete 24 hours of CE, pay fees before June 30 and submit the “Lawful Presence Verification” at least 72 hours prior to June 30; the verification has to be notarized and must be submitted with valid acceptable Identification.

2. Starting July 1, 2016, all licensees will be required to complete a GREC approved 3 HR CE course on license law. License law is designed to help protect the public. The course will cover such topics as federal fair housing laws, unfair trade practices, advertising, brokerage relationships and licensees acting as principals.

In addition to those things, I have a few suggestions for classes real estate agents should add to their calender. On August 1, 2015 the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau-designed closing procedures will take effect. It would be a good idea to take a course now that will prepare you for those changes (there are changes to the documents, as well as the closing timeline, that agents should be aware of). Finally, technology is ever changing, and we live in a virtual world. Agents should make it a point to take technology classes that will keep them abreast of how consumer are using technology to help with their real estate needs.

For more information on GREC rules or upcoming classes, please be sure to visit my website at www.restinstitute.com or email me at info@restinstitute.com.

Michelle Pettway is the team officer of Michelle Pettway and Associates with PalmerHouse Properties. Licensed since 2001, Michelle is a member of the DeKalb Association of Realtors and the secretary for the DeKalb Chapter of WCR; she is the owner/director/instructor of her own real estate school, Real Estate Systems Training Institute (which specializes in pre-license/post-license courses), and she specializes in short sales, REO, traditional sales and luxury homes in Gwinnett and DeKalb County.