As thoughts turn to the end of summer, sitting at the cabin, attending the State Fair and getting the little ones off to school, education providers are turning to the state of Minnesota’s Commerce department to find out what the new required module will be for the new year.
This year, only one class is needed to fulfill the state requirements. This half-day course covers an hour of agency and an hour of fair housing also. There is no additional broker module required.
In addition to the fair housing and the agency hours, the other topic covered will be about green technology and using these methods to build. The climate is changing and so are the ways the builders are building. This course teaches a variety of interesting topics that consumers would like to know about.
This course covers Agency Law, its history, foundation, and Minnesota License laws regarding Agency relationships in a real estate transaction. This course will also look at federal Fair Housing law, its history, laws, and regulations. Prohibitions under the federal Fair Housing Act and the Minnesota Human Rights Act will be covered. The energy efficiency portion of the course will cover the importance of home energy assessments in existing homes and an overview of the MN market for energy efficiency in new homes and building codes. It will also cover the need and importance of a pre-construction HERS report and provide resources for more information.
As licensees see fields added to Multiple Listing Systems around the state, questions arise about the content, the measurement and the input for the field. A new score field has been added to most MLS and it reflects the Home Energy Rating System or HERS for short.
DNR Forestry experts expect Minnesota’s climate to become less suitable for aspen, paper birch, tamarack, and black spruce. On the other hand, it’s projected to become more suitable for species such as American basswood, black cherry, northern red oak, bur oak, sugar maple, red maple, and eastern white pine. These changes will impact housing components, utility bills and consumers.
By learning more about the environment and the science behind, consumers can benefit. Making a dwelling more energy efficient is appealing to many buyers. Consumers are concerned that as energy costs increase, so does their monthly expenses. A house is a large consumption device that can deprive a person’s purse and wallet of much-needed cash. Programs exist to lend people money to make energy efficient improvements. Houses are moving toward a net zero point where the property produces more than it consumes.
These interesting topics are the tip of the iceberg as things like climate and environment change. Keeping on top of codes and the news would be prudent for a licensee. This class could provide some much-needed insight into Building Green. Mike Brennan