How many continuing education credits are required to renew a real estate broker license?

Broker continuing education hours are set by each state. Brokers generally complete the same hours as salespersons, with broker-specific additions in some states: Texas brokers complete 18 hours per two years including a six-hour Broker Responsibility Course, Georgia brokers must complete at least 18 hours of broker-topic education within their 36-hour renewal total, and New York brokers complete the same 22.5 hours required of salespersons.

Alabama requires 15 hours of continuing education to renew a broker license every two years, completed by September 30 of even-numbered years. Brokers must complete a 3-hour Risk Management course, a 3-hour Mandatory Broker CE course, and 9 hours of elective CE.

Designated, self-employed, and delegated associate brokers must complete 30 hours of continuing education every 2-year renewal cycle, including 9 hours of Broker Management Clinic courses that satisfy the Commissioner's Standards category. Associate brokers who are not designated, self-employed, or delegated under A.R.S. section 32-2151.01(G) need 24 hours, the same as salespersons. The 30-hour requirement includes 3 hours each in Agency Law, Contract Law, Disclosure, Fair Housing, and Real Estate Legal Issues, plus 6 hours of general elective credit.

Arkansas requires 7 hours of continuing education annually to renew an active broker license, the same total as for salespersons. For 2025, Principal Brokers and Executive Brokers complete a 1-hour safety course, a 3-hour required broker supervision and agency course, and a 3-hour elective. Associate Brokers may choose either the broker track or the salesperson track. CE is not required for the first renewal cycle after initial licensure, and excess hours do not carry over to future renewal cycles.

California requires 45 clock hours of DRE-approved continuing education to renew a broker license. First-time broker renewal includes five separate 3-hour courses in ethics, agency, trust fund handling, risk management, and management and supervision, plus a 3-hour fair housing course with an interactive component, a 2-hour implicit bias course, and a minimum of 18 hours in consumer protection. Second and subsequent renewals require a 9-hour survey course covering seven mandatory subjects or individual courses in all mandatory subjects, plus 18 hours of consumer protection.

Active Colorado real estate brokers must complete 24 hours of continuing education per three-year license cycle. Of those 24 hours, 12 must come from three different versions of the four-hour Annual Commission Update Course, and the remaining 12 hours can be any combination of elective credit hours approved by the Colorado Real Estate Commission. Newly licensed brokers have no CE obligation during their initial licensure period, which ends on December 31 of the year the license was issued.

Connecticut requires 12 credit hours of continuing education per two-year cycle to renew a real estate broker license. The 12 hours include one 3-hour mandatory course covering current real estate and fair housing legislation, licensing laws, and regulations, plus 9 hours of elective courses. Brokers may also satisfy the requirement by passing a 40-question Connecticut CE Examination through PSI during the cycle instead of completing coursework.

Delaware requires 21 hours of approved continuing education during each full licensure renewal period (May 1 to April 30 of even-numbered years) for brokers, the same requirement that applies to associate brokers and salespersons. The first-renewal CE requirement varies by license issue date, ranging from 0 to 21 hours depending on when the license was issued within the renewal cycle.

DC brokers must complete 15 hours of continuing education per two-year renewal cycle, all of which are mandatory. The 15 hours consist of 3 hours DC Fair Housing, 3 hours DC Ethics, 3 hours DC Legislative Update, 3 hours Property Management, and 3 hours DC Broker Supervision. Brokers renew by February 28 of odd-numbered years.

Florida requires 14 hours of FREC-approved continuing education per 24-month renewal cycle for brokers who have completed their first renewal, consisting of 3 hours Core Law, 3 hours Ethics and Business Practices, and 8 hours specialty education. For the first renewal after initial broker licensure, brokers must complete 60 hours of post-licensing education instead of the 14-hour CE requirement. Florida Bar members in active good standing are exempt from the 14-hour CE requirement.

Brokers must complete 36 instructional hours of continuing education during each four-year renewal period, including at least 3 hours on license law. Effective July 1, 2025, brokers and associate brokers must also complete 18 of the 36 hours in broker-specific CE topics such as training and supervising licensees, reviewing brokerage agreements, and managing a firm. The remaining 15 hours may be electives.

The continuing education requirement is identical for salespersons and brokers: 20 hours per two-year renewal cycle, consisting of 6 core hours (Core A and Core B, each 3 hours) and 14 elective hours. Renewal must be completed by November 30 of each even-numbered year.

Broker license renewal on active status requires 2 different Idaho Commission Core courses not previously taken, plus 12 elective hours of choice. This is the same requirement as subsequent salesperson active renewals. Inactive renewals require no education at the time of renewal, but all required education must be completed before the license is activated by the broker.

Brokers renewing an established license must complete 12 hours of continuing education (CE) per renewal cycle, consisting of a 6-hour core course (including at least 2 hours of fair housing training) and 6 hours of electives (including 1 hour of sexual harassment prevention training). New brokers who received their initial license within the renewal period must complete 45 hours of post-license education (three 15-hour courses, each with a 50-question final exam) instead of standard CE for their first renewal. No more than 12 hours of CE may be completed in one calendar day.

Indiana brokers must complete 12 hours of continuing education each year from July 1 to June 30, totaling 36 hours over the 3-year renewal cycle. Brokers who also hold Managing Broker eligibility must dedicate 4 of their 12 annual hours to managing broker CE. A broker who completes the 30-hour post-licensing education requirement within the first two years after license issuance satisfies the CE requirement for that period and does not begin annual CE until the third year. Brokers with Inactive or Referral license status are not required to complete CE to renew.

Iowa requires the same 36 hours of continuing education for brokers and salespersons renewing to active status: 8 hours of Law Update, 4 hours of Ethics, and 24 hours of Commission-approved electives per three-year cycle. At least 12 hours must be completed through live instruction, and a maximum of 24 hours may be taken through distance learning. Up to 18 excess elective hours from the previous cycle may be carried forward, but mandatory Law Update and Ethics hours cannot.

Kansas broker license renewal requires the same 12 hours of continuing education as a salesperson, including at least 3 mandatory hours in the "Kansas Required Core" course and 9 elective hours. The broker renewal fee is $175 on a 2-year cycle, and a $100 late fee applies if the renewal is submitted after the expiration date. An expired license must be renewed within 6 months of expiration or it will be forfeited.

Brokers follow the same continuing education requirements as all other active Kentucky licensees: 6 hours of Commission-approved CE each calendar year, with at least 3 hours in real estate law. CE must be completed by December 31 of each calendar year. Brokers must also complete the 6-hour Kentucky Core Course once every 4 years. The Core Course satisfies the CE requirements for the year it is taken, covering federal, state, and common laws relating to real estate.

For 2026, Louisiana brokers renewing in active status must complete 12 hours of continuing education: 8 mandatory hours and 4 elective hours. The mandatory hours include the general course Transparency, Technology, and Trust (4 hours, required of all active licensees) and the broker-specific course Broker Leadership and Compliance (4 hours, required of brokers and associate brokers only). All continuing education must be completed by December 31.

Active brokers and designated brokers in Maine must complete 21 hours of Commission-approved continuing education per 2-year renewal cycle, including a 3-hour mandatory core course and 18 hours of electives. Effective April 1, 2025, the core course is the "Reasonable Care and Diligence Core Course." CE certificates are not submitted at renewal; the Commission conducts random monthly audits.

Maryland requires 15 hours of continuing education to renew a real estate broker license. Brokers, designated branch office managers, and team leaders complete 12.5 mandatory hours plus 2.5 elective hours. For residential brokers, the mandatory hours include Legal and Legislative Update (3), Fair Housing (2), Ethics (3), Principles of Brokerage Relationships and Disclosures (3), and Supervision (1.5). All 15 hours must be completed at least 30 days before the license renewal date, effective October 1, 2024.

Massachusetts requires 12 hours of continuing education per 2-year license term to renew a broker license as active. At least 6 of the 12 hours must be completed in specific subject-matter categories, including Fair Housing, Agency Law, Environmental Issues in Real Estate, Zoning and Building Codes, Real Estate Appraisal and Financing, and Real Estate Board Regulations. The broker renewal fee is $142, and brokers must also submit a surety bond as part of the renewal process. If the 12-hour CE requirement is not completed by the renewal date, the Board must renew the license as inactive.

A Michigan real estate broker must complete 18 clock hours of continuing education per 3-year license cycle. Each year of the cycle requires at least 2 hours on laws, rules, and court cases, and at least 1 hour on compliance with fair housing laws. The remaining 9 hours may be elective topics relevant to real estate practice. The annual fair housing requirement took effect February 13, 2024 under 2023 Act 246.

Minnesota brokers must complete 30 hours of continuing education per 2-year renewal period, with at least 15 hours completed during the first 12 months of each period. The 30 hours must include 1 hour of Agency Laws training, 1 hour of Fair Housing training, and an annual required general module course. For the 2026-2027 cycle, the general module "Cybersecurity in Real Estate" (3.75 hours) also satisfies the broker module requirement, so no separate broker module course is needed. Brokers with a commercial-only designation are exempt from the agency, fair housing, and module requirements but must still complete the remaining CE hours.

Mississippi requires the same 16 clock hours of approved continuing education per two-year renewal cycle for both brokers and salespersons. The 8 mandatory hours consist of 2 hours in License Law, 2 hours in Contract Law, and 4 hours in Agency Law, with 8 elective hours. A broker who has completed the 30-hour broker post-license course and received a permanent license is exempt from the 16-hour CE requirement for the first renewal of that permanent license.

Missouri requires 12 hours of MREC-approved continuing education per 2-year renewal cycle to renew a broker license, with at least 3 hours in a CORE course. The remaining 9 hours may be core or elective credit. Broker licenses expire June 30 of even-numbered years, and for the 2026-2028 renewal period, the CORE course must cover Fair Housing.

Montana requires each active broker to complete 12 hours of Board-approved continuing education every licensing year, which runs from November 1 through October 31. For brokers holding a supervising broker endorsement, 4 of the 12 hours must be in supervising broker continuing education, and the remaining 8 hours may be completed as electives. Brokers without a supervising broker endorsement may complete all 12 hours as electives through Board-approved courses.

The continuing education requirement is the same for brokers as for salespersons in Nebraska: 18 clock hours every 2 years. At least 12 of the 18 hours must be in Commission-approved continuing education, with at least 6 of those hours in designated "R" subject matter courses. Up to 6 hours may be Commission-approved training.

Brokers and broker-salespersons must complete 36 hours of continuing education every 2 years for subsequent renewals, with at least 18 hours completed through live instruction. The mandatory topics include agency, contracts, ethics, law and legislation, risk reduction, and broker management, with the remaining hours as general electives. First-time brokers complete the standard 36 hours of CE in their first year rather than a separate post-licensing requirement.

New Hampshire requires the same 15 hours of continuing education for broker license renewal as for salesperson renewal: one 3-hour core course plus 12 elective hours per renewal cycle for active status. For inactive renewal, only the 3-hour core course is required. All continuing education is tracked through CE Broker, and courses must be accredited by the Real Estate Commission.

Brokers must complete 12 continuing education (CE) credit hours per license term to renew, the same requirement that applies to salespersons and broker-salespersons. At least 6 of the 12 hours must be in core topics, including 2 hours in ethics, 1 hour in Fair Housing and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, and 1 hour in agency. The remaining 6 hours may be any combination of core and elective topics.

New Mexico issues two types of broker licenses, and the CE requirements differ by type. Associate brokers must complete 36 hours of continuing education per 3-year cycle, while qualifying brokers must complete 42 hours per 3-year cycle. Both require 12 hours of annual core courses, a 4-hour ethics course, and core elective hours, which are 4 for associate brokers and 8 for qualifying brokers; qualifying brokers also take a 6-hour QB refresher course per cycle.

New York requires 22.5 hours of approved continuing education to renew a real estate broker license, the same total required of salespersons. The 22.5 hours must include 3 hours of fair housing, 2 hours of implicit bias, 2 hours of cultural competency, 2.5 hours of ethical business practices, 1 hour of recent legal matters, and 1 hour of law of agency, with the remaining hours as electives. Attorneys admitted to the New York State Bar are the only licensees exempt from this requirement.

Brokers and broker associates must complete the same 12 hours of continuing education per CE cycle as salespersons. For the 2025-2026 CE cycle (November 16, 2025 through November 15, 2026), all 12 hours are elective topics with no mandatory topic hours. New brokers who passed the broker exam during this CE cycle are exempt from CE for this cycle.

Ohio brokers must complete 30 hours of continuing education every 3 years. Within the 30 hours, brokers must include 3 hours each of Canons of Ethics, Core Law, and Civil Rights, plus a 3-hour Broker Responsibilities course covering the duties of a principal broker. The broker renewal fee is $243 every 3 years.

Resident Brokers in Oklahoma must complete 30 hours of continuing education every three years, consisting of a 15-hour Broker in Charge course, 6 hours of Contracts and Forms, and 9 hours of electives. Non-resident Brokers must complete 8 hours total: 1 hour Broker Relationship Act, 1 hour Code and Rules, and 6 hours Contracts and Forms. These requirements took effect June 1, 2025.

Oregon requires 30 hours of continuing education to renew an active broker license. For a first active renewal before January 1, 2026, brokers must complete a 27-hour Broker Advanced Practices (BAP) course and a 3-hour Law and Rule Required Course (LARRC). For renewals on or after January 1, 2026, the BAP course is 26 hours, the LARRC is 2 hours, and a new 2-hour Fair Housing course is required, totaling 30 hours. Subsequent renewals require the LARRC, the Fair Housing course, and enough electives from certified providers to reach 30 hours.

Pennsylvania requires 14 hours of Commission-approved continuing education during each 2-year license period to renew a broker license, the same requirement that applies to salespersons. Continuing education is not required for the initial license. Broker renewal fees are $126.00 for most broker license types (Sole Proprietor, Corporation/LLC/Partnership, and Broker of Record) and $96.00 for Associate Brokers. All renewals must be completed online through the Pennsylvania Licensing System (PALS) website, with no grace period after the May 31 deadline of each even-numbered year.

The continuing education requirements are the same for both broker and salesperson licenses in Rhode Island: 24 hours of DBR-approved education per 2-year licensing period, with at least 9 hours in CORE instruction and 3 of those 9 core hours in Fair Housing.

Active broker licensees in South Carolina need 10 hours of continuing education per renewal cycle, consisting of 4 hours of mandatory core courses and 6 hours of elective courses. Broker-in-Charge licensees have a different 10-hour structure: 4 hours of BIC course, 4 hours of mandatory core, and 2 hours of electives. Up to 4 hours of elective courses may be carried forward to another renewal period. CE must be completed before submitting the license renewal.

Broker associates and brokers renewing an active license must complete at least 24 hours of continuing education during the preceding two license years, with at least 12 hours in required subject areas. New broker associates must complete 60 hours of post-licensing education across their first two active license cycles (30 hours per period) instead of standard CE. Required subject areas include real estate contracts, license law, fair housing, ethics, environmental issues, antitrust, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and brokerage services.

Brokers must complete 16 hours of continuing education every 2 years, including a 6-hour Tennessee Real Estate Commission (TREC) Core Course. Brokers licensed after January 1, 2001 must also complete 120 additional hours of Commission-approved education within the initial years following their broker license issuance. If not completed on time, an extension is allowed while accruing a $50 monthly fee. After completing the 120-hour post-licensing requirement, brokers return to the standard 16-hour CE cycle.

Texas brokers must complete 18 hours of continuing education (CE) per two-year renewal cycle. For brokers who sponsor one or more sales agents or serve as delegated supervisors, the breakdown is 4 hours Legal Update I, 4 hours Legal Update II, 3 hours Contract-Related, 6 hours Broker Responsibility, and 1 hour elective. Brokers not required to take the Broker Responsibility Course follow the standard 18-hour breakdown of 4 hours Legal Update I, 4 hours Legal Update II, 3 hours Contract-Related, and 7 hours elective.

Active brokers must complete 18 hours of continuing education every 2-year renewal cycle, the same requirement as sales agents. At least 9 of those hours must be core topic courses, including a 3-hour Division-approved mandatory course. All CE must be completed by the 15th day of the renewal month for on-time renewal.

Virginia brokers must complete 24 hours of continuing education every two years. For licenses expiring on or after June 30, 2026, the breakdown is 19 mandatory hours and 5 elective hours. The mandatory hours include 6 hours of Broker Management, 2 hours of Broker Supervision, 3 hours of Ethics and Standards of Conduct, 2 hours of Fair Housing, 2 hours of Legal Updates, 2 hours of Real Estate Agency, and 2 hours of Real Estate Contracts. Before that date, the split was 16 mandatory and 8 elective hours.

First active broker renewal requires 90 hours of continuing education: 30 hours Advanced Practices, 30 hours Real Estate Law, 3 hours Current Issues in Washington Residential Real Estate, and at least 27 hours of other approved CE. Subsequent active renewals require 30 hours: a 3-hour Current Issues course and at least 27 hours of other approved CE. If the licensee has not yet taken the initial 6-hour Washington Real Estate Fair Housing course, that must be taken first; after that, a 3-hour Fair Housing course is required at each renewal. At least 15 of the 30 hours must be completed within 24 months of the renewal date, and up to 15 unused hours completed within 48 months may be carried forward.

Brokers and associate brokers must complete 7 hours of Commission-approved continuing education per fiscal year, with 3 of those hours from broker-level education curriculum approved by the commission. The remaining hours are elective. This broker-level requirement took effect beginning fiscal year 2024.

Wisconsin real estate brokers must complete 18 hours of approved continuing education per biennium, consisting of 12 hours of mandatory courses and 6 hours of elective courses. Unlike salespersons, brokers have no CE exemptions at their first renewal or any renewal, per changes effective October 1, 2015. The biennium runs from December 15 of an even-numbered year through December 14 of the next even-numbered year.

Associate Brokers in Wyoming must complete 45 total hours of continuing education per three-year renewal cycle: 24 required hours plus 21 elective hours. Responsible Brokers must complete 53 total hours: 24 required hours, 21 elective hours, and 8 Wyoming Broker Management hours. The 8-hour Wyoming Broker Management course is a required component for Responsible Brokers and counts toward elective credit for licensees who take it but are not using it as a requirement.