Nouveau Riche University

Infobox_University
name=Nouveau Riche University
established=November, 2002
type=vocational school
location=Phoenix, AZ USA
president=Jim Piccolo
website=http://www.NouveauRiche.com

Nouveau Riche University is an unaccreditedcite news | author=CNET.com | title=The World's Most Hated Blogger? | publisher=CNET | date=14 May 2007 | url=http://news.com.com/Casey+Serin+The+worlds+most+hated+blogger/2100-1028_3-6183383.html?tag=st.prev] vocational school specializing in real estate investing. Class topics range from introductory real estate investing to advanced techniques such as creative real estate investing techniques including wholesaling, multi-units, and short sales; examples of course titles are "Fix & Flip" and "Creative Financing." The company claims revenues will top $80 million in 2007, and receives revenue from tuition, commissions on properties sold through affiliated company "Investor Concierge", and fees from additional associated companies through sales of ancillary services to students. The company markets its courses through free seminars and through methods some have described as multi-level marketing, which the company states it does not use.

The school

Nouveau Riche has taught thousands of students at classes in various locations around the United States. NRU currently offers 36 classes with 3 tuition packages ranging from $6,000 to $16,000 and a 15-volume residential real estate encyclopedia for $300 per month.citation|url=http://collegeinfo.nouveauriche.com/e_tuitionpackages.htm|title=Tuition Packages|publisher=NouveauRiche.com] In 2007 more than 9,000 people have attended Nouveau Riche University. and at a recent NRU College held in Phoenix, Arizona more than 2,200 students gave the instructors a 93 percent approval ratingRobert Lucas Savage. " [http://www.graduateriche.com/blog/?tag=nouveau-riche-university At Nouveau Riche University entrepreneurs in the field of real estate investing learn to earn.] ", Your Business at Home Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 1, January 2008, p. 44-49]

According to "CNET" and "Fortune Small Business Magazine", a typical tuition package is $16,000 for 2 years of real estate investment education. According to "Your Business at Home Magazine", there are three tuition packages ranging between 30-120 instructional hours. Students have one year to redeem their purchased hours and may designate a partner to attended classes at no additional charge.Megan Voss. " [http://www.graduateriche.com/blog/?p=12 Structured Success in Real Estate Investing.] ", Your Business at Home Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 1, January 2008, p. 22-25] Multiple six-day colleges are held throughout the year.citation|url=http://collegeinfo.nouveauriche.com/venues.asp|title=2008 Nouveau Riche Locations|publisher=nouveauriche.com] Those who purchase the Regents package for $16,000 (currently 98 percent of all students) may repeat classes for an additional year and have access to streaming video classrooms for select courses.

The [http://www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=CCRS American Council on Education] lists Nouveau Riche under the CREDIT program list of reviewed courses. The ACE (which is not recognized by the U.S. Department of Educationcitation|url=http://www.azbiz.com/articles/2007/09/07/opinion/columnists/lionel_waxman/doc46e19d74d6e4f832835457.txt|title= Scottsdale school has the answers ... for itself|date=7 September 2007|publisher=Inside Tucson Business] ) makes it clear that it is not accrediting universities; instead the ACE helps "adults obtain academic credit for formal courses taken outside college and university degree programs".citation|url=https://www.acenet.edu/nationalguide/resources.cfm|title=American Council on Education CREDIT program] The ACE claims several of the Nouveau Riche course sequences can be used for transfer credit at major universities. A full Nouveau Riche program provides one credit hour of transfer credit.

Even though Nouveau Riche is not accredited or affiliated with any institution of higher learning, in the past it used some symbolic university customs. For instance, Nouveau Riche formerly held a graduation ceremony, complete with cap, gown and an Honorary Doctorate Degree diploma after a 5-day symposium.cite news | last =Pryor| first =Lisa| coauthors = Garnaut, John| title =And still they roll up to talk property| publisher =Sydney Morning Herald| date =2003-12-09| url =http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/08/1070732147837.html?from=storyrhs] The instructors were referred to as faculty, and management was called the chancellor and board of regents.

Classes are taught using the principles of instructional systems design, and have at times featured real-estate author and lecturer Dolf de Roos. According to Fortune Small Business, "the tests are sometimes self-graded, and the homework is optional."

History

Nouveau Riche was started in November 2002 by Jim and Mary Piccolo in Australia and New Zealand.citation|url=http://www.onlinemlm.com/mlmdirectory.php?type=detail&search=917|title=Nouveau Riche|publisher=onlinemlm.com] . In December 2002, the corporate headquarters were established in Scottsdale, AZ. The name was changed to Nouveau Riche University in 2005 after review by the ACE, under management by Jim Piccolo and Bob Snyder.

Nouveau Riche University plans to build a campus in 2008 on a 24 acre site north of Phoenix that it recently purchased. The convert|140000|sqft|m2|sing=on campus is planned to have administrative buildings, glass-and-steel classrooms and luxury dorms linked by a man-made river.citation|url=http://regulus2.azstarnet.com/blogs/clockingin/5859/nouveau-riche-university-gets-real--estate|title=Nouveau Riche University gets real estate|date=25 September 2007|publisher=AZStarBiz]

Nouveau Riche University takes its name from the term Nouveau Riche, which refers to those with "New Money", or who made money within their own generation.

Marketing methods

Courses are marketed through free seminars and through sales solicitations by current students, following a certification procedure. The one or two day seminars have a conversion rate of about 10% to paying students.

Signs and websites labeled "Real Estate Investor Seeks Apprentice" were used in the past to find new students for Nouveau Riche University, [citation |url=http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/nouveauriche/nouveau_riche01.shtml |title=The "Real Estate Investor Seeks Apprentice" Signs] but the company has banned use of those signs as of January of 2007.Fact|date=December 2007

Nouveau Riche University is described by some writers as using techniques of multi-level marketing to attract students, and that the commission for the first two sales by a student go to the student's "mentor" (who recruited the student), not the student. However, the company claims this is inaccurate and that it is not a multi-level marketing company.

Associated companies

A number of companies are associated with Nouveau Riche University including ' [http://saveourscore.com Save Our Score] ' credit score specialists to help high-risk borrowers improve their credit-score for a fee, ' [http://incitinc.com Inc. It, Inc.] ' incorporation service, ' [http://numberwonaccountants.com Number Won Accountants] ' accounting firm, and the ' [http://nrcmortgage.com NRC Mortgage] ' company.

Active students of Nouveau Riche University have exclusive access to the [http://investorconcierge.com Investor Concierge] , which is a web marketplace for investment properties that the website states can provide positive equity (i.e., sale price less than the appraisal value), and positive cash flow. The Investor Concierge typically sells students about 100 properties a month, most ranging in price from $100,000 to $200,000, many of which are located in Georgia, Michigan, and Texas.cite news | author=Patricia B. Gray | title=Who would buy real estate in this market? Nouveau Riche University makes money by getting its students to buy investment property - no matter how scary the market gets. | publisher=Fortune Small Business | date=8 August 2007| url=http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/06magazines/fsb/real_estate.fsb/?postversion=200708070]

Notes

External links

* [http://www.nouveauriche.com Nouveau Riche University] - Official Website
* [http://www.graduateriche.com Your Business at Home Magazine, Nouveau Riche University Feature]