Student Success Story: Meet Olivia Nicodemus, Real Estate Agent

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Olivia Nicodemus Hondros Real Estate Student Success

We love getting the chance to brag about our alumni! As we’ve previously posted, you’ll see that our graduates often find great success.

Olivia Nicodemus finish her pre-licensing courses with us in 2006 and completed our Associate Degree Program in 2007. Starting her real estate career when she was just 19, she quickly learned the ropes and became a well-respected agent in the Dayton, Ohio area. The Dayton Area Board of Realtors named her a Top 5 Under 40 agent in 2015.

Tell me a little bit about what made you decide to go to Hondros?

When I was younger I actually went to JVS for architectural drafting. I knew I wanted to go into real estate but I had no idea why. I took architectural drafting because it was literally the closest related field that I could get into real estate. I finished in May, enrolled in Hondros pre-licensing classes and started my classes immediately. I was so burned out from high school and thought “I want to get out there in real life and I want to start making money!”

What would you say was your favorite thing about Hondros?

The site staff were incredibly helpful. They coordinated all my classes for me and made my schedule, which was very nice since students are able to do it themselves. They took that extra time to ensure I was prepared.

Also, I remember the great instructors. It’s adult learning. You’re not treated like you’re a child and you’re not taking all these unnecessary prerequisites. They were really friendly and they all had real life experiences they shared. Some had hilarious stories, but hearing those real life stories helps paint the picture of what a day in the life of a real estate agent’s really like. You don’t feel like you’re reading out of a book. You’re hearing stories.

The convenience of having multiple locations really helped me. The online learning was really cool, too. I took my pre-licensing classes in Dayton the whole time. The degree program was different as I took half of it online and the other half in class at the Westerville campus.

I read you won an award from the Dayton Area Board of Realtors? Tell me a little more about that.

In 2015, I was named a “Top 5 Under 40” agent. It was just an application process that asked about my educational background and what I’ve done so far in the industry. A lot of it had to do with sales volume and exactly what you’re selling. I think I was selected because I’ve been in real estate since I was 19, which is kind of unusual.”

Are you still taking your continuing education courses through Hondros?

Yes. For me, it’s local and it’s affordable. The online CE is really convenient, too. I love Hondros. What I haven’t told you is that my husband’s actually a realtor. I got him into real estate. He was a paramedic for six years when I met him, and he got tired of me making more money than him! So he quit being a paramedic. I sent him to Hondros. He took all of his classes, passed his exam on the first time – I didn’t even pass my exam on the first time, made me look bad – and so now we both do our CE at Hondros.

Can you give current pre-licensing students an idea of what to expect once in the field?

Learning from a classroom environment is really different from what it’s like when you’re actually in the field. Really when you’re starting any type of job, you don’t know what you’re doing until you go through it and you experience it. So you can learn all the laws and all of the textbook stuff that you need to follow, but when you’re actually dealing with people, and the process, you gain a deeper understanding. At the time I was taking my courses, I had never purchased a home so I didn’t know what the process looked like at all.

Okay, so you get a house under a contract, and then you have to have inspections, and then you have to order an appraisal because you’re getting financing, and then you have to negotiate the different repairs during the inspection process, and then you have to get a title company involved, and then you get to closing. Early in my career, there were plenty of times that I didn’t know what I was doing. Behind the scenes, I would seek out advice and ask for help, which is something all agents do starting out.

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