David McDowall
Broker / Owner Instructor
David brings a wealth of knowledge to our office. He has an advanced degree in Mining Engineering from Colorado School of Mines. He spent over 30 years working at the Homestake Mine. He had many assignments during that time. Assistant Mine Superintendent for Services, Chief Mine Engineer – Open Cut, Site manager Whitewood Creek Superfund cleanup, Vice President Whitewood Development Corporation, Vice President Homestake Forest Products, Technical Services Superintendent Maintenance Superintendent and Land Manager.
Since retirement David has been President of Spearfish Economic Development Corporation and President of the Booth Society. In addition, David started DakotaWest School of Real Estate which has turned out to be one of the best and highest rated real estate schools in the state. His understanding and experience in the real estate industry provides the basis of his educational instruction. His real life stories help to bring the materials alive and relative. David also brings also his diversity in having lived in many states as he was growing up and has visited nearly 20 countries.
As the co-owner and Manager of RE/MAX In The Hills, David believes that every real estate experience with our customers and clients should be the very best it possibly can be.
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A Career In Real Estate
A career in real estate can be rewarding. You are a business within a business. The job is representing buyers and sellers. They hire you to help them buy or sell a home, business, land or even a ranch. It can be exciting most of the time but it is a lot of work to become a success.
It is a business with income based on the work you do and the people skills you have. It also has costs to not only start the business but to run and operate your business. You must understand that it takes time to build a clientele and to start receiving income from your work. If this sounds like the beginning of a new and rewarding career, then we invite you to review the licensing process.
June 2023 Class Schedule
Licensing Process
Since we are dealing with property and money and people it is required that we be licensed by the state and educated to a minimum standard to start.
- Get the required pre-licensing education, cost is about $1,100.00
- Take and pass the state exams for new licensees, cost is a minimum of $190.00
- Fill out an application including a back ground check, cost is $267.50
- Find a real estate company to work for, costs to join a board of realtors and possibly the company franchise if one are variable.
Pre- Licensing Education
DakotaWest School of Real Estate, a school for real estate, is the logical place for you to begin with your pre-licensing education. The course requires 54 Hours by Distance Learning (which should be completed prior to the first day of in-class instruction) and 62 Hours of Classroom Instruction. DakotaWest shares an office with RE/MAX In The Hills but is not directly associated with them. Several other schools are available in Rapid City if you so choose.
We have graduates in nearly every office in the northern Black Hills and get referrals from many of them. We also have graduates in Rapid City and the southern hills. The school does not recruit for RE/MAX In The Hills nor does it allow anyone else to recruit during class. Finding that first job is up to you, the new agent. You would need to visit the office of your choice to find out if they have openings. Typically, about half of the people in a class have not yet selected a company to work for.
We provide a quality education that gives you a good foundation for your career in real estate. The education begins with an online portion that teaches the new broker associate the basics of real estate. The book is studied and tests need to be passed online. The online process is going to take anywhere from two weeks to a month depending on the time available and your dedication to getting it done. This part should be completed prior to beginning the class room portion. The second portion must be done in the class room. You can begin the online at any time but it should be completed before you begin the class room work.
Click here to access online course https://portal.recampus.com/re/dakotawest
About Us
David McDowall is licensed in South Dakota. He holds a Masters Degree in Engineering from Colorado School of Mines. David retired in 2001 after 30 years of service at the Homestake Mine. While working at the mine, he spent 3 years as the Land Manager. David offers a wealth of knowledge and practicality in his approach to owning a real estate business as well as working in the real estate industry.
DakotaWest School of Real Estate looks forward to helping you prepare for success in passing the South Dakota Real Estate exam and for a career in the real estate profession. Feel free to contact us with additional questions.
Below are some of the recent comments from past students:
- Very knowledgeable regarding all aspects or the course
- Great to listen to and learn from. Never a moment I wasn’t glad I chose this class.
- Thank you for teaching me what would have taken me months to learn on my own.
- Instructor was very knowledgeable and gave many “real life” examples to help relate materials.
- David really knew what he was teaching. He explained information very well and made it easy to understand.
- Material was presented in a very professional manner which made things easy to comprehend.
- I really enjoyed the course and learned a lot. It was beyond my expectations.
- GREAT! Extremely knowledgeable, very thorough … communicates in a way that is easy to understand.
- I would and will highly recommend this class.
The South Dakota Real Estate Licensing Process
Candidates for a Broker Associate License must:
- Complete the “Real Estate Principles and Practices” course (116 hours) at a state approved school, including passing the final exams. This course can be taken in two ways:
- 116 hours in-class instruction
- 54 hours by ON LINE Studies and 62 hours of in-class instruction
- Pass the state exam with a score of at least 75% on each of the three tests:
- 50 multiple choice questions on South Dakota laws, rules and regulations
- 10 Simulation exercises designed to test the candidates skills in information gathering and decision making
- 100 multiple choice questions on Real Estate Fundamentals
A “Candidate Handbook” will be provided by the school which gives details about the state exam.
The state exam is given each day (Monday – Friday) in Rapid City by appointment. Normally, appointments must be made about one week in advance of the test date. You may schedule all tests for the same day or you may schedule them for separate days. The cost per test is $95.00. If a candidate fails either of the multiple choice tests or the simulation test, they will need to reschedule and pay to retake the test.
After passing all of the state exams, the candidate must submit an “Application for Real Estate License” together with an application fee of $225.00 to the SD Real Estate Commission within 60 days of passing the first exam.
Upon approval of the application, the candidate will receive an inactive license. The license will be activated when the licensee associates with a brokerage company.
Fee Schedule
Distance Learning Pre-License Course (54 hours) – $600.00 * (includes Modern Real Estate Practice Book and ON-LINE Access)
*Paid on line with credit card when registering for on line course
Broker Associate Course for Pre-licensing (62 hours) – $500.00* (Includes 6 hours of state law plus additional books)
*In Class courses can be paid by cash, credit card (MasterCard or Visa) or personal check
Textbooks are Included in Cost:
Modern Real Estate Practice (21st Edition)
SD License Law & Administrative Rules
South Dakota Exam Prep.
*Other study guides are also included in the cost of class
State Examination: The state Broker Associate examination is given in Rapid City.
If you have questions, please call David at 717-2501.
To Future Students:
REAL ESTATE PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES
Subject: MODERN REAL ESTATE PRACTICE (21st Edition)
It is very helpful to read ahead in this book. Concentrate on understanding the words in bold print.
We will cover all of the “Key Points” in class, but at times we move quickly so having read the chapters first is very helpful. We normally cover the first 4 chapters in the first two days of class.
There is a quiz at the end of each chapter. It is good to practice with these. The answers are at the back of the book. Don’t mark the correct answers now – so that you can use these quizzes later to review the material.
It is likely that you will “get stuck” (not understand some concepts) the first time through the book. If that happens, don’t stop reading! Just skip over that material and go on. We will spend the time in class to bring your understanding up to the required level.
In accordance with Administrative Rule of South Dakota, 20:69:04:19 – Pre-licensing Education Certificate of Attendance, “No certificate of attendance may be issued to a licensee who is absent for more than ten percent of the classroom”. This translates to each student can miss up to 6 hours in the first 60 hour course and one hour in each of the seven 8 hour segments, which covers the last 62 hours of instruction.
Getting Started
Email David, dmcdowall@rushmore.com, for access to the Online course.
DakotaWest School of Real Estate, 1145 N. Main St. Spearfish, SD 57783
Class size is limited – reserve your spot today!
Join RE/MAX In The Hills
For an interview, or to discuss how to put your Real Estate plan into action, email Marysia McDowall at marysiamcdowall@rushmore.com , or call her at 605-642-2500.
