The Swedish school FEI in Alicante trains foreign nationals to qualify for the real estate agent registry
16/04/2023 – ALICANTE. The Generalitat’s regulation requiring real estate agents to register in an official registry and complete specific training to practice will come into effect, pending appeals, next autumn. This regulatory change will push many intermediaries with years of experience but without a formal qualification to complete the necessary training (with numerous options available, including courses offered by the College of Real Estate Agents, API) to comply with the new legislation.
However, the scenario envisaged by the Generalitat and the various institutions offering this training (typically online and approximately 200 hours in duration) leaves a significant group of affected agents out of the equation: foreign real estate agents. In Alicante province, these agents play a prominent role due to the high demand for property from foreign buyers, who account for 42% of second-home purchases on the Costa Blanca. Currently, no specific training is offered in English, nor can they complete the registration process in that language.
For this reason, the Swedish business school FEI, one of the oldest (founded in 1888) and most prestigious in Sweden, has launched a course specifically designed for foreign real estate agents operating in Alicante province (although students are also enrolling from other provinces and even from abroad). FEI has long maintained a branch in Alicante, specialising in real estate sector training, as one of its main clients is the real estate agency Fastighetsbyrån, which has trained its agents in Spain, even though formal accreditation was not required until now.
FEI’s head of sales, Jon Lindsmyr, and Alicante real estate agent Adrián Barbudo, a user of the Swedish school’s facilities in Alicante to deliver remote training for API in Catalonia, decided to launch a specific course focused on the registration of foreign agents after identifying the niche created by the new regional regulation and the lack of training options in English.
“Foreign buyers account for 42% of home purchases in Alicante, and the vast majority buy from another foreigner. There are thousands of agents who do not speak Spanish, making it difficult for them to meet the requirements,” Barbudo explains. Lindsmyr adds, “Many real estate agents began working informally; they are people who bought a house in Alicante through a fellow national and then thought they could do the same.”
This is, therefore, the first course offered in English in Spain, setting itself apart from most competitors by being delivered in person (with in-person attendance also including remote participation) and featuring specialised instructors in each area, such as appraisers and lawyers. FEI ran the first course in February, completed the second in April, and the third edition starts this Monday. So far, “around 50 students from various nationalities have attended, including British, Swedish, Danish, and Belgian students.” Barbudo and Lindsmyr highlight, “Our course’s best endorsement is that we have already managed to register students.”
Although most students live in Alicante, FEI’s course has also attracted real estate agents from other provinces, given the likelihood that the registry promoted by the Generalitat, which has been mandatory in Catalonia for a decade, will gradually extend to other regions. “Andalucía and the Balearic Islands are expected to implement it next year,” says Barbudo. “This registry is being created to protect buyers,” explains Lindsmyr. “It ensures transparency, that the agent is traceable, and that they are accountable. Buying a house is the biggest investment you will make in your life, so the real estate agent must be ethical.”
To deliver this course, FEI uses proprietary technology developed before the pandemic popularised video conferencing applications.
“We use blended learning,” explains the school’s head of sales. “From Monday to Thursday, students study the material at home, with control questions for each topic, and on Friday there is a four-hour session with the instructors to consolidate knowledge and answer questions.” Since both the instructors and students are active professionals, real-life cases are often discussed in the in-person sessions. “Attendance at 75% of the in-person classes is mandatory, although connecting remotely counts as attendance—for example, for students from other provinces or even those who are still abroad but plan to come and work.”
FEI’s two classrooms in Alicante can accommodate around thirty students, although they are currently using only one. Cameras record both the instructor and students, and the screens allow remote attendees to “join” and view the class as if they were physically present. During at-home exams, students' devices are monitored to prevent them from searching for information. The FEI delegation in Alicante also has technical support from IT specialists in Sweden, who are on hand to address potential issues. “We aim to offer virtual students the same experience as if they were attending in person.”
Originally written by David Martinez for Alicante Plaza in Spanish, published 2023-04-16. Translated to English by FEI Business School.