Should I Hire An NMLS Exam Prep Tutor
For every hundred people who read this article, forty-nine will never pass the NMLS National Mortgage Licensing Exam. Yup! You read that correctly. Per the NMLS itself, the NMLS exam’s overall failure rate is 49%. This means that slightly less than half of those who desire to pass the NMLS exam will never be able to. And that’s a staggeringly high overall failure rate for an exam of this caliber.
I am perfectly aware that times are tough. And I also understand that people transitioning into the mortgage industry may not have much expendable cash. So is hiring an NMLS exam tutor worth the investment and expense?
I have been preparing people for the NMLS exam for over thirteen years. Throughout that time, I have worked with over 24,000 test candidates. As such, I can say, with 100% certainty, that I have a concrete grasp on what it takes to pass this exam.
I can, without any hesitation, assure you that no 20-hour, pre-licensing course can effectively prepare anyone for the NMLS exam. This is because there is no way for the 20-hour, pre-licensing course to effectively deliver the 150 hours’ worth of material needed to be learned in order to pass.
Oh sure! You can absolutely prepare on your own. Or invest in test prep programs that, for the most part, contain obsolete material. But don’t you think that the NMLS exam’s overall 49% failure rate attests to the general ineffectiveness of these exam prep methods? Albert Einstein insightfully defined insanity as repeating the same behaviors while expecting different results.
To properly prepare for the NMLS exam, the test candidate must victoriously master the four strategies for exam success:
- Knowledge
- Understanding
- Proficiency
- Strategy
I’ve authored several articles in which I’ve discussed these strategies in depth, and you may find them, along with this article, on my website blog. I will not, therefore, consume your time with that here. Suffice it to say that, preparing for this exam on one’s own requires a strict and uncompromising dedication and commitment to hard work involving regular study above and beyond what the 20-hour, pre-licensing course delivers.
If no 20-hour, pre-licensing course is adequate for preparing test candidates for the NMLS exam, how does a test candidate effectively prepare on his or her own? That’s a great question! To prepare on one’s own, the test candidate must be able to capitalize on all available resources. These resources consist of all material received from the test candidate’s 20-hour, pre-licensing course provider, assuming that the course actually provided take-away material (and most do not) and was not completed so long ago that the material is now obsolete. Additional study material is available through the resources listed at the bottom of the NMLS Test Content Outline and, of course, the internet. One quick word of solid advice though. If you’re opting to research test content on the internet, be certain to ensure that the source is relevant, valid, and the material is timely.
So how does one honestly know that he or she is ready to take the NMLS exam? Well, quite frankly, there is no way! The test candidate will simply need to cross their fingers, take the exam, and hope for the best.
No Pressure!
If a test candidate fails the NMLS exam, he or she can certainly take it again. Of course he or she would have to pay for it again, and wait 30 days. If the test candidate were to fail the exam a second time, he or she could certainly take the exam again. But he or she would also have to pay for the exam again, and wait another 30 days. If the test candidate failed the NMLS exam a third time, he or she could unquestionably take it a fourth. But, this time, not only would he or she have to pay for it a fourth time, he or she would have to wait six months.
So Let’s Review!
You can’t get paid until you close loans. You can’t close loans until you originate them. You can’t originate them until you’re sponsored, you can’t get sponsored until you’re licensed, and you can’t get licensed until you pass this exam. Did I get that right?
Times are tough. Money is limited. The cost of an NMLS exam prep tutor may simply be viewed as an added expense. But can you actually afford not to invest in yourself? Are you also saying that the money to pay for repeated exam attempts and the income delays incurred by having to wait to re-take the exam … those are all acceptable? Why should you be a part of the 49% who never pass this exam? Wouldn’t you much rather prefer to be a part of the 51% who do?
Your Solution!
Through one-on-one, NMLS exam prep tutoring, the test candidate receives a personal assessment of his or her exam readiness. Tutoring provides the test candidate with a complete inventory of what he or she needs to know, how to apply that knowledge, and a guarantee that all of the material discussed is current, valid, and applicable. A competent NMLS exam prep tutor can prepare a strategy for learning what needs to be learned in order to guide the test candidate down the pathway to success. Can you actually afford not to invest in yourself and your career?
Please visit www.nmlstraining.com to explore all of the one-on-one, personalized tutoring and exam preparation services designed to help guide you down the pathway to success. You’ll be originating mortgages sooner than you know, all-the-while watching those “49 percenters” grow smaller and smaller in your rearview mirror.
