Welcome to Thornton's Real Estate Academy and Real Estate Renegade. We've put together answers to some of the most frequently asked questions we receive. If you have additional questions, feel free to give us a call or send an email.
Are your courses approved and accredited?
Yes. We are approved by the Kentucky Real Estate Commission and are accredited by the Kentucky State Board for Proprietary Education.(PDF) We were the first company in Kentucky to receive approval for the entire 96 hour real estate pre-license course online and are widely considered the "online" experts for Kentucky. From a credit standpoint, there's no difference between our classes and any "in class" course you might take, but from a convenience standpoint, there's no comparison.
Do I have to be online at any certain time?
No. Our system is available 24/7 and you login and out at your convenience. We literally have students from all over the world that are now accessing material round the clock.
Do I get a textbook?
Yes, at least for the 96 hour Kentucky pre-license course and all 48 hour broker courses. We always include a current edition textbook (No extra charge- Included with Tuition) and we even ship it out USPS Priority Mail so it arrives in 1-2 days. If you are a current licensee taking a shorter class (3 or 6 hour continuing education course) all material is included online as you'd likely finish before we could get something in the mail.
Do I have to use the same computer all the time?
No. You can use any computer with Internet access. We have students who use their company computer (we hope with permission
) during lunch time and then access the course from their home computer at night or on the weekends.
Do I need high speed Internet access?
Yes. Our newly updated learning management system contains more audio/video files than ever before, so a 256K DSL connection would be the absolute minimum connection speed. A high speed cable or T1 connection would be optimal.
Can/how do I ask questions?
You are encouraged and free to ask questions anytime. The preferred method is to submit a question via our internal messaging system or to send an email to your instructor so you'll get a quicker response. Response times will vary, but during normal business hours we make every effort to respond to every inquiry/question in less than 30 minutes. You can view previous students comments, but you will not find a more responsive real estate school in the country when it comes to answering your questions in a timely and professional manner.
Is there a time limit to finish the course?
It depends on the course.
For the 96 hour pre-license or any 48 hour broker course you have 6 months from when you start the course to finish. If you started a course on Dec 1st, you'd need to finish by June 1st of the following year.
For existing real estate agents than need the required yearly continuing education (CE), the six month rule still applies, but in order to receive credit your continuing education must be completed every year by Dec 31st so if you started the course on Dec 1st, you'd only have one month or until midnight Dec 31st to finish in order for you to receive credit.
How many hours will it take to finish a course?
The posted course times are approximate because all activities must be completed to receive credit. A 3 hour course will take approximately 3 hours to complete while a 96 hour course will take approximately 96 hours.
What's this "proctored exam" I read about?
The Kentucky Real Estate Commission requires that all online courses approved for 48 or 96 hours of credit include a "final proctored exam." This just means someone approved as a proctor has to physically monitor you while you take the final exam. We have approximately 20 monitors available throughout the state so in most cases you wouldn't have to drive any more than 30 minutes to take the final exam. We provide a complete list of locations/contact information once you are ready to schedule your exam. There is no cost to you for the proctored exam as it's included in your course fee. For the 3 or 6 hour continuing education courses there is not a proctored exam. You simple take a final exam online at the end of the course to receive credit.
Do you offer a payment plan?
No. We do not have a payment plan. We keep things very streamlined to keep tuition low in addition to our inclusive pricing which includes extras. (Most real estate schools charge an extra fee for your textbook) Payment for your courses can be made by check, VISA, MASTERCARD, or AMERICAN EXPRESS. In addition, upon request we will also provide an email to accept payment made via PAYPAL.
Can I mail in a check instead of paying online with a credit card?
Yes. If you don't want to use our online check processing service, you can send a check to:
Thornton's Real Estate Academy
P.O. Box 50610
Bowling Green, KY 42102
Do you accept the GI Bill or have any type of tuition assistance?
Answer: No. Since our most expensive course is only $599 we're not really set up to provide tuition assistance or accept/provide the GI Bill/government grants. The only exception to this is the new Spouse Career Advancement Account from the Department of Defense. We are now the only licensed real estate school in Kentucky that's listed as an approved school. (Click here for list)
If tuition assistance/grants are critical in your decision process, we recommend you check with your local college/university to see if they offer real estate courses as they typically have these types of programs although their tuition is much higher for the same courses. As an example, Western Kentucky University (located in Todd Renegade Thornton's home town) would charge a resident over $1,734 dollars for the courses needed to qualify for a Kentucky real estate license. (Plus you'd have to pay extra for books/parking permit/etc.) If you had any doubts about the exceptional value our courses provide, realize there's a difference/savings in tuition of over $1,155 dollars.
Why should I attend your pre-license classes instead of attending a larger/more well known school in Kentucky? They charge more so their classes must be better.
We hate to burst the bubble of the other schools who still claim to be the largest/best/most respected in Kentucky, but each week we receive a list (Directly from the Kentucky Real Estate Commission) of everyone that passes the Kentucky real estate exam. In some weeks, our school has accounted for up to 45% of all students that passed the exam. (That's for the entire state) We're not sure how anyone could be larger than us considering there are dozens of approved schools, but if you want additional proof, the screen shot below illustrates over a period of time where students have been located that have logging into our system. Of course this doesn't count students in other states or other countries who are preparing to move back to Kentucky.
As to the cost of our courses, it's true that you could pay more. We're not sure why you would want to pay more and get less, but remember cost doesn't always equal value. Students consistently rate our school/courses with the highest rankings possible. In addition, we're so confident in our online pre-license course that we offer anyone a free 7 day preview. Our advice is try our online pre-license course out and then contact any of the "other/larger/better/etc." schools and ask for a free preview of their classes. Compare all your options and choose the best course. If they won't give you a free preview, then your decision should be even easier.
What is your tuition refund policy?
For continuing education courses, you can request a full refund within 3 days of registration assuming you have not started the course. For the 96 hour pre-license course, you can preview the entire first section for free. (No payment required for preview/registration) Once you pay/move beyond the introductory section, no refund requests will be processed.
Are your courses approved and accredited?
Yes. We are approved by the Kentucky Real Estate Commission and are accredited by the Kentucky State Board for Proprietary Education.(PDF) We were the first company in Kentucky to receive approval for the entire 96 hour real estate pre-license course online and are widely considered the "online" experts for Kentucky. From a credit standpoint, there's no difference between our classes and any "in class" course you might take, but from a convenience standpoint, there's no comparison.
Do I have to be online at any certain time?
No. Our system is available 24/7 and you login and out at your convenience. We literally have students from all over the world that are now accessing material round the clock.
Do I get a textbook?
Yes, at least for the 96 hour Kentucky pre-license course and all 48 hour broker courses. We always include a current edition textbook (No extra charge- Included with Tuition) and we even ship it out USPS Priority Mail so it arrives in 1-2 days. If you are a current licensee taking a shorter class (3 or 6 hour continuing education course) all material is included online as you'd likely finish before we could get something in the mail.
Do I have to use the same computer all the time?
No. You can use any computer with Internet access. We have students who use their company computer (we hope with permission
) during lunch time and then access the course from their home computer at night or on the weekends.Do I need high speed Internet access?
Yes. Our newly updated learning management system contains more audio/video files than ever before, so a 256K DSL connection would be the absolute minimum connection speed. A high speed cable or T1 connection would be optimal.
Can/how do I ask questions?
You are encouraged and free to ask questions anytime. The preferred method is to submit a question via our internal messaging system or to send an email to your instructor so you'll get a quicker response. Response times will vary, but during normal business hours we make every effort to respond to every inquiry/question in less than 30 minutes. You can view previous students comments, but you will not find a more responsive real estate school in the country when it comes to answering your questions in a timely and professional manner.
Is there a time limit to finish the course?
It depends on the course.
For the 96 hour pre-license or any 48 hour broker course you have 6 months from when you start the course to finish. If you started a course on Dec 1st, you'd need to finish by June 1st of the following year.
For existing real estate agents than need the required yearly continuing education (CE), the six month rule still applies, but in order to receive credit your continuing education must be completed every year by Dec 31st so if you started the course on Dec 1st, you'd only have one month or until midnight Dec 31st to finish in order for you to receive credit.
How many hours will it take to finish a course?
The posted course times are approximate because all activities must be completed to receive credit. A 3 hour course will take approximately 3 hours to complete while a 96 hour course will take approximately 96 hours.
What's this "proctored exam" I read about?
The Kentucky Real Estate Commission requires that all online courses approved for 48 or 96 hours of credit include a "final proctored exam." This just means someone approved as a proctor has to physically monitor you while you take the final exam. We have approximately 20 monitors available throughout the state so in most cases you wouldn't have to drive any more than 30 minutes to take the final exam. We provide a complete list of locations/contact information once you are ready to schedule your exam. There is no cost to you for the proctored exam as it's included in your course fee. For the 3 or 6 hour continuing education courses there is not a proctored exam. You simple take a final exam online at the end of the course to receive credit.
Do you offer a payment plan?
No. We do not have a payment plan. We keep things very streamlined to keep tuition low in addition to our inclusive pricing which includes extras. (Most real estate schools charge an extra fee for your textbook) Payment for your courses can be made by check, VISA, MASTERCARD, or AMERICAN EXPRESS. In addition, upon request we will also provide an email to accept payment made via PAYPAL.
Can I mail in a check instead of paying online with a credit card?
Yes. If you don't want to use our online check processing service, you can send a check to:
Thornton's Real Estate Academy
P.O. Box 50610
Bowling Green, KY 42102
Do you accept the GI Bill or have any type of tuition assistance?
Answer: No. Since our most expensive course is only $599 we're not really set up to provide tuition assistance or accept/provide the GI Bill/government grants. The only exception to this is the new Spouse Career Advancement Account from the Department of Defense. We are now the only licensed real estate school in Kentucky that's listed as an approved school. (Click here for list)
If tuition assistance/grants are critical in your decision process, we recommend you check with your local college/university to see if they offer real estate courses as they typically have these types of programs although their tuition is much higher for the same courses. As an example, Western Kentucky University (located in Todd Renegade Thornton's home town) would charge a resident over $1,734 dollars for the courses needed to qualify for a Kentucky real estate license. (Plus you'd have to pay extra for books/parking permit/etc.) If you had any doubts about the exceptional value our courses provide, realize there's a difference/savings in tuition of over $1,155 dollars.
Why should I attend your pre-license classes instead of attending a larger/more well known school in Kentucky? They charge more so their classes must be better.
We hate to burst the bubble of the other schools who still claim to be the largest/best/most respected in Kentucky, but each week we receive a list (Directly from the Kentucky Real Estate Commission) of everyone that passes the Kentucky real estate exam. In some weeks, our school has accounted for up to 45% of all students that passed the exam. (That's for the entire state) We're not sure how anyone could be larger than us considering there are dozens of approved schools, but if you want additional proof, the screen shot below illustrates over a period of time where students have been located that have logging into our system. Of course this doesn't count students in other states or other countries who are preparing to move back to Kentucky.
As to the cost of our courses, it's true that you could pay more. We're not sure why you would want to pay more and get less, but remember cost doesn't always equal value. Students consistently rate our school/courses with the highest rankings possible. In addition, we're so confident in our online pre-license course that we offer anyone a free 7 day preview. Our advice is try our online pre-license course out and then contact any of the "other/larger/better/etc." schools and ask for a free preview of their classes. Compare all your options and choose the best course. If they won't give you a free preview, then your decision should be even easier.
What is your tuition refund policy?
For continuing education courses, you can request a full refund within 3 days of registration assuming you have not started the course. For the 96 hour pre-license course, you can preview the entire first section for free. (No payment required for preview/registration) Once you pay/move beyond the introductory section, no refund requests will be processed.
Last modified: Monday, January 4, 2010, 11:01 PM