What is PHP and why do smart investors want this designation?

Boston AREIA is proud to offer Professional Housing Provider (PHP) designation to our members.    The National PHP designation is a nationwide education-based program sponsored by the National Real Estate Investors Association and designed to recognize the high level of knowledge and professionalism among the designation holders.   Having a basic education in a variety of real estate-related courses will not only increase an investor's ability to reach their goals in real estate investment, it will also raise the investor's level of professionalism and status in the eyes of the public and government officials.  It also aids in encouraging legislators to think of educated investors as a larger group for political action.   Having a PHP Designation will help you:  

  • Build credibility
  • Demonstrate your professionalism
  • Learn while you earn (credits, that is)
  • Help raise public awareness
  • Put yourself in a position to be recognized as an investor who adheres to a high standard of excellence and ethics

Why obtain the National PHP designation?

Only persons completing the educational requirements will be permitted to hold themselves out to the public as a Professional Housing Provider. The designee will be recognized in the form of an award certificate, pin and the right to use the designation. He or she should recognize that having a basic education in the topics outlined below will increase his or her ability to reach his goals in real estate investment. In addition, National REIA and the PHP program raise the investors level of professionalism and status in the eyes of the public and government. It also aids in encouraging legislators to think of educated investors as a larger group for political action. Other tangible benefits, including discounts on courses and educational materials, will be available as the number of graduates grows.

How will I obtain these hours?

These hours may be obtained through local association meetings and seminars or through courses taught outside of the local groups. All outside courses and seminars must meet the following requirements: they must be taught live or online; they must be pre-approved by the National PHP committee; and they must provide a certificate of attendance acceptable to the National PHP committee.

Course of Study

The course of study will be divided into 42 clock hours of core courses and 18 hours of elective topics for a total of 60 hours of formal education. Click here for a complete list of courses required.

Continuing education to maintain National PHP designation

Once the National PHP designation has been obtained, designees must complete 20 hours of continuing education every two years in order to maintain the designation. These hours are elective and may be used by the designee to continue his or her education as he sees fit.

Attendance

In order to receive credit for any meeting, candidates need to be in attendance for at least 90% of the meeting. It is the responsibility of the individual candidate to keep track of his or her own attendance certificates.

Credit for courses and seminars held outside the local association

Candidates can receive credit for educational opportunities held outside of our association, if the course or seminar outline has been pre-approved by National REIA. Attending meetings of other local associations participating in the National PHP programs will be credited automatically; however, candidates will need to obtain the ENTIRE attendance form and return the back copy to BostonAREIA. Attendance to the annual National REIA conference will automatically count for credit for the seminars offered.

Certain college courses and professional education (for realtors, appraisers, home inspectors, and so on) may also carry National PHP credit; however, these must be pre-approved by the National REIA PHP committee. The pre-approval process will be as follows:

The candidate must submit a copy of an outline of the course, including the topic(s), the qualifications of the speaker, the total time of the class, and the approximate time allotted for each topic.

This outline should be submitted to any member of the National REIA PHP committee or the home office at least 2 weeks in advance of the course date.