MacIntosh Real Estate School
Frequently Answered Questions...


What forms of payment
Do you accept?

All of them!… cash, check, money order, cashiers check… and of course, credit cards. Since the vast majority of our students are from all over Colorado (and other states as well) and have found us through our website - we use an online third-party credit card processing website called PayPal. This is a totally secure site and we never see your credit card information. You may access the PayPal payment site by clicking the credit card symbol at the bottom of our enrollment agreement (click the 'ENROLL' button above).

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Is the School accredited?

MacIntosh Real Estate School is completely accredited by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies/Division of Private Occupational Schools Board - for Certification of the Colorado Associate Broker educational requirements of the Colorado Real Estate Commission.

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What kind of Experience do you have?

MacIntosh Real Estate School as a specific entity has been providing the broker education program for well over a decade. Prior to that, Bruce MacIntosh, Sr. started Real Estate Prep in 1960, and taught the coursework until his passing in 1999. That school was the most popular program in Colorado until he and his partner sold their interests in the 1980's.

Bruce MacIntosh, Jr., Director of the School, has carried on the tradition of excellence. He is a licensed attorney and Colorado Broker, Certified Instructor and has decades of real estate and teaching background and experience. Since the mid-1990's, he has transformed an upstart real estate school into the most successful correspondence broker education program in Colorado.

So... even though we are the least expensive school (by a wide margin!), we have the most extensive background and experience behind us!

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When can I start? Do I have to wait for the next class session to begin?

The MacIntosh Real Estate School curriculum is completely self-paced, and so you may start at any time. Since we are a correspondence school, you do not have to wait for another session to begin. Of course, another advantage of this system is that you do not have to worry about whether other students are going faster or slower than you, and there will be no instructor moving too quickly through the materials or wasting your valuable time while tending to other students' needs.

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What is the time-limit for completing the program?

The official length of time the coursework should be completed is eight months. However, if you find you need more time, you may simply request an extension in writing (by email). Since our program is strictly correspondence and we realize that our students have jobs and families, we don't make you conform to an artificial class schedule and try to let you take as long as you need (within reason) or finish as quickly as you like.

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How does your program compare to that of your competitors'? OR Why are you consistently the least expensive real estate program in Colorado?

As for how our program compares to other competitors... I really can't really speak to that for several reasons: The first is because I really try to stay away from commenting on the quality of another school's program. Realistically, I haven't attended their school and they haven't attended mine - so it would be extremely unprofessional to try to speak to that. More to the point: The differences in the programs, and which one would be best for *you* - all depends on your needs.

When someone asks why we are the least expensive school, I think it is more appropriate to ask why the other schools are $300 to $1,400 more expensive than we are. Anyway, I can only address our price: Since we are exclusively correspondence, we do not incur the large costs of classrooms and instructors. The other schools, of course, pass that cost on to their students - including their correspondence students, who do not take advantage of the classes. We, on the other hand, feel that it is important to provide a low-cost alternative for those people who want to get their Associate Brokers education, but can't (or don't need to) attend classes because of their location or lack of time.

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What is the pass-rate for your students taking the state license exam?

Our pass-rate in 2007 was 90%! This figure is consistently one of the highest of all 31 real estate schools in the state - and without a doubt the highest rate for a correspondence-based real estate school.

And as the main page of our website says, we have been awarded the Colorado Real Estate Commission's "Honor Roll" of Schools in the Top 10 of Quarterly performance for Highest Pass-Rates for first-time test-takers on the State Broker's exam.

We truly feel proud of this, since our program is exclusively correspondence and our success relies in great part on the efforts of our students to diligently complete the course without an instructor in front of them "cracking the whip."

We attribute this success to our methodology and materials, which are always relevant and completely up-to-date. I believe that we are unique in Colorado in this respect, because every other school uses "standardized" texts (which are neither designed to fulfill the Colorado educational requirements, nor prepare the student for the very difficult state licensing exam,) and/or forces their students to study from the Colorado Real Estate Manual, (which - despite its name - was never originally intended to be used as a textbook and contains a huge amount of irrelevant, confusing information.) We have specifically designed the program and materials to, of course, fulfill the 168-hours of educational requirement, but also to prepare the student for the state licensing exam. This is a methodology that we have used and has been very successful for almost a half-century!

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What materials do you actually get with the course?

The entire coursework is contained in three bound manual/workbooks. (Book ONE: Uniform course; Book TWO: Colorado course; Book THREE: Closings, Record Keeping, Practical Applications, and Legal Issues courses, and the Glossary/Index.) They contain all the text, short-answer questions, quizzes, and final exams.

In all, there are almost 1000 short-answer questions, and another 1000 questions in the quizzes, final exams and prep exams - all of which are designed to cover every possibility that might appear on the state license exam. In most cases, they replicate actual questions from the state license exams. Each chapter (topic) in the text is followed by just-as-detailed short answer fill-in-the-blank) questions on the text, and then a quiz on that topic. At the end of each course is a final exam that you must pass in order to pass that course. You may take these final exams through our online testing website.

We also have "preparatory" exams which are taken online through our website and are designed to exactly simulate the actual state exam, (same difficulty level of questions, etc.) These preparatory exams are extremely accurate simulations and have been *extremely* helpful for students in preparing for the state exam.

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Will I have to buy any more books/materials?

You will not need to buy any other textbooks or study-aids to fulfill your educational requirements or prepare for the state exam. Everything you need is contained in this program, which is completely up-to-date and accurate when the student enrolls.

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Is your program completely online or do you offer CD-Roms, Video or Audio tapes?

The program is completely self-contained in our comprehensive workbook/manuals that are always up-to-date with the current laws. This includes all the text, extensive short-answer questions and quizzes, and final exams. We intentionally do not have the entire program on CD-Rom (or online) because it is very fatiguing (and not very convenient) for someone to spend 168 hours studying in front of a computer. Also, the problem with either software or "online" studying is that it does not utilize all the effective means of studying. Yes, you are reading it, and maybe even typing things in blank fields, but you aren't able to take it anywhere you go, write on it, highlight it, etc.

We are online, in that our students may also take their final exams for the courses through our online testing website. As the Director of the School, I grade these in person, so that I may offer analysis for questions and areas that need studying, and then email back with results. I also email thorough responses to students with questions (in general or regarding the materials) on a daily basis. So we are actually a combination of written and "electronic".

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What are the basic requirements to get my license?

In order to obtain your real estate license (called the Associate Broker's license) you will need to take and pass 168 hours (6 courses) of required education and also pass the difficult state licensing exam. The licensing program at MacIntosh Real Estate School can not only provide that 168 hours of education through correspondence study, but also prepares you to take and pass that state license exam the first time.

Once you have submitted your fingerprints for a background check (at the testing center), you submit both of those "passing" certifications with your application along with the signature of that Employing Broker who is going to hire you.

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After I get my license, then what?

The Colorado Real Estate Commission and state law requires that every broker must be licensed as an Associate Broker for two years prior to being able to become an Independent or Employing Broker. This means that technically you must hang your "active" license under someone else's (an Employing Broker) for at least two years.

Their reasoning in this is pretty sound, even though it causes some hardship: they want to make sure you know the (very unique) Colorado practice, laws and forms before you can go off and make mistakes on your own. (This doesn't mean that you must be working 40 hrs a week, etc., it just means that your license must be "active" - hanging under an Employing Broker - as opposed to "inactive".)

So, once you pass the education and the state license exam, you must either apply for an active license, (hanging your license under that of another Broker's,) or if you haven't chosen a place to work, you may apply "inactive".

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Do you offer placement?

We do everything we can to help you find work when you are ready. We have brokers constantly contacting us about their needs for Associates, and if they are in your area, I can pass on that information to you. For a couple of reasons it is difficult and actually unwise to be too specific with that kind of assistance.

The first reason is purely practical: The school is strictly correspondence and our students are spread out all over the state. In addition, there are so many different areas of real estate you could actually go into, it would be misleading and unethical for anyone - including us - to say that they are an expert on everything, everywhere.

The second reason we intentionally don't pursue "placement" to a great extent is because I believe it is actually unethical for a school to "steer" a student to work at a particular brokerage. Some schools have affiliations with certain brokerages, and other real estate schools are actually only "sidelines" for brokerages who pick their "best" students to recruit. This is a questionable practice, because they promise you job placement, and may not actually deliver that. Also, that means that the school is looking out for their best interest, not yours. In addition, we intentionally stay independent because I believe it would be very unfair to you for me to say which company is best for you, because only you know what are your training and financial needs.

There is a huge need for agents out there. Employing brokers are falling all over themselves trying to get new agents, and not just in the "traditional" residential sales field. You could go into Property Management, New Home sales, commercial real estate, etc., and the need for agents in those areas may be different.

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I have a license from another state, or a previous Colorado license. What education and testing do I need?

The Real Estate Commission has a complicated matrix which can tell you what, if any, education or testing you need. This matrix can be accessed on our "About Us" page (by clicking the "About Us" tab, above). There are so many variables, such as when or how long you have had your license, what state it was issued in, and whether it was a salesperson or broker license.

If you can not find the answer on the matrix, you can call the Real Estate Commission (303-894-2166). They will ask the appropriate questions and let you know what steps you need to take, including classes and testing, and the application process. After that, if you do need classes and test preparation, we can certainly provide that to you. Simply email us (by clicking the "CONTACT" tab in the menu above), tell us what you need, and we can tell you the cost.

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I am an attorney - What education do I need for my real estate license?

If you are an actively-licensed attorney, you will need the 12-hour Attorney course in Trust Accounts, Record Keeping and Closings. MacIntosh Real Estate School does offer this course. Since you are also required to pass both parts of the state license exam, we can help prepare you for that with additional program materials and online prep exams. Please email for more information and pricing.

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If I have a question, is there someone I can talk to?


If you have a question about enrollment, you are welcome to call us at 303-465-1665. If you don't reach someone personally, please leave a message and we will return your call as soon as possible. (So, please leave us a number where you may be reached in the evening, since we have better luck returning calls at that time.)

We are pretty high-tech... so, believe it or not, you will get an answer to any of your enrollment questions almost immediately if you email me directly (by clicking the "CONTACT" tab in the menu above, or the "Email" link, immediately below.

Once enrolled, you may have specific questions about the text materials or tests. MacIntosh Real Estate School is working to be at the forefront of modern technology as the real estate industry moves into the 21st century: We answer all questions about the materials or tests by email. Generally, someone is answering emails every day of the week, anywhere from 8 to 15 hours a day!

By answering questions by email, we can do thorough research and give thoughtful and detailed written answers. Then, you will have these answers to supplement your materials and refer to later when you begin to prepare for the state license exam; you don't have to rely on remembering what someone said on the telephone.

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I have another question... What should I do?

Please click this link: EMAIL

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