The National Private Lenders Association (NPLA) announced on Feb. 13 the launch of the NPLA Private Lending Academy and Certified Broker Course, a training and certification platform designed to improve execution quality and support long-term professionalism in business-purpose real estate lending.

“Brokers sit at the center of execution in private lending,” NPLA Executive Director Jon Hornik said in a release. “The Certified Broker Course is designed to raise the standard so submissions are cleaner, risk is addressed earlier, and lenders and brokers can move faster with more certainty.”

The course is built for brokers who want a clear operating standard for deal packaging, underwriting alignment, compliance and risk controls.

“As someone who has spent two decades brokering and structuring business-purpose real estate loans, I’ve seen exactly where deals break,” Chris Pepe, CEO of LoanGeek and course instructor, said. “This course gives brokers a real framework for structuring deals correctly, communicating with lenders effectively, and reducing fallout.”

Participants who complete the course will receive an official certificate and will be eligible to be listed in the NPLA member portal directory as an NPLA Certified Broker, providing NPLA lenders with clear visibility into brokers who have met the program standard.

In addition to the core curriculum, certified brokers will receive ongoing access to continuing education, monthly calls focused on real deal execution and lender presentations and a resource library that includes broker tools such as scripts, checklists by property type and standardized deal submission guidance.

For more information, contact [email protected].