ABOUT US

​Real Estate Trainers (RET) was founded in 1972 when Bob Morris and Larry McHarg approached Century 21 about providing educational services for them. Since then, RET has expanded its reach to many other real estate companies. In 1982, RET expanded its services to include appraisal education and began offering live appraisal courses in 1991. In 2010 RET began offering NMLS courses for Mortgage Loan Originators who hold their license through the DRE. From Salespersons to Brokers, and Appraisers to Mortgage Loan Originators, RET is full-service real estate school for all real estate educational needs.

Real Estate Trainers is a pioneer in California real estate licensing education for all types of licenses, but our crash courses are what really set us apart. RET challenged the standard real estate crash course, using a more defined and license-specific teaching method. RET has helped thousands of students pass their state exams. Our Salesperson and Broker crash courses are so effective that other real estate schools refer them to their students! Our Appraiser crash course is so popular we often get students coming from other states to learn how to pass their exam! Our MLO crash course has helped a high percentage of students pass their exams the first time!

Today, Larry’s son, Lance McHarg, serves as the company’s President. Remaining family-owned and operated, and committed to family-values, Real Estate Trainers is all about you, the student. We are continuously developing our educational services to give you the easiest, most practical way to understand the content and enjoyable as possible.

MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS

Lance McHarg

​Lance joined the Real Estate Trainers family October, 1999, starting as a Counselor helping individuals determine which courses & what paths to take to become licensed and/or to keep their license. At that same time, Lance expressed an interest in teaching real estate courses. By 2000, Lance had taken his required courses to take not only the state exam for sales, but for broker licensing also. Shortly thereafter Lance became an instructor for Real Estate Trainers.
 
Lance is proficient in teaching pre-license education as well as salesperson & broker exam review. Lance brings an infectious style to his presentation that the majority of students enjoy. His style of storytelling and examples really helps the student to understand the concepts to be able to pass their exam.
 
In his off-time, Lance enjoys spending quality time with his daughters & grandchildren. He is also active in his church, and loves taking long rides on his motorcycle. Lance has done many motorcycle trips to the east coast, most of our national parks, Canada and Mexico.  

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Tricia Andrade

Tricia Andrade has over two decades of experience within the real estate industry; including commercial, multi-family, and residential properties on both coasts of the United States. Having trained countless professionals in the industry, Tricia’s working history has covered sales, business development, compliance, project management, and more. With operations, team development, and leadership proficiency, Tricia’s diversified skill set has powerful cross-industry application.

​She is currently a Realtist and serving on the Board for ARPB Women's Council Northern California Chapter.

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Sharon Butler

Sharon Butler has been involved in real estate since 1979 when she purchased her first piece of property! In 1984 Ms. Butler was hired at a small family owned mortgage company, Orange County Home Loans, where she learned all aspects of processing a loan file. Learning how to process a loan is the first step to becoming a great loan officer! Once Ms. Butler mastered the art of processing loans, she knew the next level would be to become a loan officer. Back in the 1980's all which was required to become a loan officer was a real estate license. Having her mandatory course behind her, all that was needed was passing the real estate state test, this was Ms. Butlers first encounter with Real Estate Trainers. "I remember taking the class at Real Estate Trainers, thinking I want to teach here some day!"  By 1989, Ms. Butler opened Pacific Residential Financing with her brother Richard Gundzik.  Ms. Butler and Mr. Gundzik still work together running Mutual Home Mortgage. Ms. Butler secured her brokers license in 2006 after of course taking the "Brokers Cram Course" at Real Estate Trainers! Through 38 years of Real Estate, Ms. Butler has done everything from loans, to representing first time home buyers, listing homes,  flipping homes and now the only passion next to Real Estate, teaching real Estate!

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Armen Makasjian

Armen is a California native. He received his bachelor’s degree in real estate from California State University in 1987. That same year, he received his California real estate broker license and became actively engaged in real estate sales for his father’s real estate company which was established in 1963. In 1992, Armen received his residential appraisal license specializing in FHA appraisals, divorces, partnership dissolutions, purchase transactions and appraisal field review for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. 

Upon receiving his Certified General appraisal license, his appraisal expertise expanded to various commercial and industrial site, and special use properties which include schools, churches and partial interest valuations. Armen is currently active in real estate sales and appraisals, and he frequently provides consulting for various neighborhood councils and attorneys on new projects involving project entitlements, pro-forma analysis and highest and best use analysis. 
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Armen enjoys spending time with his family. His hobbies include playing the piano, hiking and collecting coins.

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Rhonda McCune

​After earning a BA degree in Business from CSUF, Rhonda worked for a mortgage banker and it was there she learned the art/science of appraisal. Over the years she appraised many income producing properties from shopping centers to office buildings.  
 
Licensing of appraisers began in the 1990's and subsequently she started teaching appraisal classes part-time for Real Estate Trainers.  She had a real estate license also and would occasionally teach the Principles class.  She has represented many buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, worked as a consultant for developers and takes this experience to the weekend Salesperson State Exam Prep course.
 
Rhonda enjoys spending quality time with her daughters and grandchildren.  She is a former city Councilwoman and Mayor and has served on many commissions and committees which, again, gives her insight to helping our students obtain their license and become real estate professionals.

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George Haines

Dr. Haines was born and raised on the East Coast, the oldest son of 8 children.  His degrees include BS from Penn State U, BD and ThM from Princeton, PhD from New York University, 2 post doctorates from UCLA and a JD doctor of juris prudence from Western State University College of Law.  He has been teaching 25 different courses in Real Estate Education for 48 years. 

As a real estate licensee Dr. Haines has been a real estate broker in both the residential and commercial fields.  In the residential side he has sold homes in Orange, LA, Santa Barbara, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties as well as out of state in Nashville, Tennessee.

On the commercial side, Dr. Haines has sold an office building, a US Post Office, a ranch for custom housing development, land for residential development, land for development for a business park, a church and a number of multi housing complexes in Houston, Texas, gravel quarry in Maryland with a road construction business and a granite quarry in Pennsylvania.
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Dr. Haines has been a consultant to a hospital personnel supply corp, churches, ambulance company, construction contractors and businesses for sale of their receivables and he is involved in new ventures in the health field.