What pre-licensing courses are required to become a real estate broker?

Broker pre-licensing requirements vary by state, but they typically add coursework on top of the salesperson education, plus experience. Regulator-published examples: New York requires 152 hours of broker qualifying education, Florida a 72-hour broker course, Pennsylvania 240 hours, and Texas 270 classroom hours of qualifying courses plus 630 additional hours of related education. Most states also require at least 2 years of experience as a licensed sales agent, and some states let a real estate degree substitute for part of the requirements.

Broker applicants in Alabama must complete a 60-hour broker prelicense course approved by the Alabama Real Estate Commission and have held an active salesperson license in any state for at least 24 months of the 36-month period immediately preceding the application date. The licensing exam must be passed within 6 months of course completion with a score of 70 or higher. There is no post-license course requirement for brokers. The 60-hour broker prelicense course satisfies all 15 hours of continuing education (CE) required for the next license period.

Broker applicants in Alaska must complete 30 classroom hours of approved broker training. They must also document 36 consecutive months of active and continuous experience as a real estate licensee within the last 60 months, with real estate as their principal occupation. Additional requirements include passing the broker exam, applying for licensure within 6 months of passing, obtaining errors and omissions (E&O) insurance, and either owning a real estate business or working as the broker for a corporation or partnership.

Arizona broker license applicants must complete a 90-hour Broker Pre-licensing Course and 9 hours of Broker Management Clinic courses (three separate 3-hour courses: BMC #1, BMC #2, and BMC #3). The 90-hour pre-licensing certificate must have been completed within 10 years of the application date, and the 9 hours of Broker Management Clinic certificates must have been completed within 2 years of the application date. Applicants must also have a minimum of three years of actual experience as a real estate licensee during the five years immediately preceding the application, hold a Fingerprint Clearance Card from Arizona DPS, submit a Broker Candidate Experience Verification form, and pass the broker examination administered by Pearson VUE.

Broker applicants must complete 60 hours of real estate education, of which 45 hours must be the Commission-developed Broker Pre-License Education course, from an accredited postsecondary school or an AREC-licensed school. The education must be completed within 36 months immediately preceding the application date. Broker applicants must also have been licensed as an active salesperson or broker for at least 24 months within the previous 48-month period, and must be at least 18 years old.

California requires eight statutorily required college-level courses to qualify for the broker examination: Real Estate Practice, Legal Aspects of Real Estate, Real Estate Finance, Real Estate Appraisal, Real Estate Economics or Accounting, and three additional courses from a specified list. The elective list includes Real Estate Principles, Business Law, Property Management, Escrow, Real Estate Office Administration, Mortgage Loan Brokering and Lending, Advanced Legal Aspects, Advanced Real Estate Finance, Advanced Real Estate Appraisal, Computer Applications, and Common Interest Developments. If both Real Estate Economics and Accounting are taken, only two elective courses are required. Each course is a minimum of 45 hours. Effective January 1, 2024, the Real Estate Practice course must include components on implicit bias and fair housing with an interactive role-play component. Members of the California State Bar are exempt from the course requirement but must still satisfy the experience requirement.

Colorado requires 168 hours of qualifying education from a nationally accredited community college or university or a school approved by the Colorado Department of Private and Occupational Schools (DPOS). The 168 hours comprise six mandatory courses: Real Estate Law and Practice (48 hours), Colorado Contracts and Regulations (48 hours), Trust Accounts and Recordkeeping (8 hours), Current Legal Issues (8 hours), Real Estate Closings (24 hours), and Practical Applications (32 hours). A degree from an accredited college or university with a major course of study in real estate can substitute for the 168-hour requirement, and licensed attorneys need only 12 hours of education in trust accounts, closing, and recordkeeping.

Broker applicants must complete a 60-hour Real Estate Principles and Practices course, a 15-hour Real Estate Brokerage Principles and Practices course, and a 15-hour Legal Compliance course. In addition, applicants must fulfill an elective requirement by completing either two 15-hour pre-licensing elective courses, one 30-hour pre-licensing course, or demonstrating 20 real estate transactions in the previous 5 years. Broker applicants must also have been actively engaged as a licensed salesperson in Connecticut for at least 3 years, with at least 1,500 hours of experience including no fewer than 4 closed real estate transactions during that period.

Delaware broker exam applicants must complete a 99-hour Delaware broker pre-licensing course and submit a copy of the completion certificate. Broker applicants must also have been actively licensed as a salesperson or broker for 5 continuous years immediately before filing, have 3 years of active practice, and submit a Sales or Lease Transaction Listing form showing 30 transactions completed during the 5 years before application. The exam is administered by Pearson VUE and includes both national and Delaware law portions.

DC requires 135 hours of broker pre-licensing education from a DCREC-approved provider. Applicants must also have 2 years of experience as a licensed salesperson with an active license immediately preceding the application date. After completing the education requirement, applicants must pass both the national and state (DC) portions of the broker exam and submit the license application within 6 months of passing.

To become a broker in Florida, applicants must complete a 72-hour pre-licensing course based on the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) Course II syllabus and pass the end-of-course exam with at least 70%. A 4-year degree or higher in real estate from an accredited institution exempts the applicant from this pre-licensing requirement. The course is valid for 2 years from the date of completion, and applicants must also demonstrate at least 24 months of active experience as a sales associate during the preceding 5 years under one or more brokers.

Georgia requires broker applicants to complete a 60-hour broker pre-license course from a GREC-approved school, or an equivalent of 15 quarter hours or 9 semester hours of real estate coursework from an accredited college, university, or law school. The course final exam must be passed with a minimum score of 72%, and students who fail twice must retake the entire 60-hour course. Broker applicants must also show proof of having held a real estate license in active status for at least 3 of the 5 years immediately preceding the application.

Broker candidates must complete a prelicense course accredited by the Hawaii Real Estate Commission and obtain a Broker Experience Certificate before registering for the exam. The experience certificate requires at least 3 years of full-time experience (40 or more hours per week) as a Hawaii-licensed salesperson associated with a Hawaii-licensed broker within the 5-year period immediately prior to application. Out-of-state licensees with a current, unencumbered broker license in an ARELLO-recognized jurisdiction may qualify for an equivalency to the broker experience requirement. Candidates must be at least 18 years old and have a high school diploma or equivalent.

Broker prelicense education requires a minimum of 90 hours, including Brokerage Management (28 hours) and Real Estate Law (30 hours), plus two elective courses such as Real Estate Finance (20 hours) or Valuation and Analysis (20 hours). A Designated Broker or Branch Office Manager applicant must also complete the Business Conduct and Office Operations course within 3 years preceding the application.

Illinois requires 75 hours of pre-license education for broker licensure, divided into two courses. The 60-hour Real Estate Topics course covers introduction to real estate (30 hours) including license law, real property, federal laws, agency structure, seller relationships, and buyer relationships, plus state laws and transactions (30 hours) including Illinois law, advertising, appraisal, financing, calculations, contracts, transfer of title, and leasing. The 15-hour Applied Real Estate Principles course is an interactive practicum involving role play, case studies, and situational examples such as listing presentations, buyer representation, purchase agreements, and escrow handling.

Indiana requires a single 90-hour pre-licensing course from a state-approved provider to become a real estate broker. The course covers real estate principles, contracts, financing, property valuation, Indiana license law, agency relationships, fair housing, property management, disclosures, math, and investment and taxation. After completing the course, candidates must pass a school final exam with a minimum score of 75% to receive a certificate of completion. The certificate must be uploaded with the broker license application, and both portions of the state licensing exam must be passed within 1 year of the course completion date.

Iowa broker applicants must complete 60 hours of Commission-approved broker pre-license education within the 24 months before taking the broker examination, consisting of nine courses: Contract Law and Contract Writing (6 hours), Iowa Real Estate Trust Accounts (6 hours), Principles of Appraising and Market Analysis (6 hours), Real Estate Law and Agency Law (6 hours), Real Estate Finance (6 hours), Federal and State Laws Affecting Iowa Practice (6 hours), Real Estate Office Organization Administration and Human Resources (12 hours), Real Estate Technology and Data Security (6 hours), and Ethics and Safety Issues for Brokers (6 hours). Applicants must also have 24 months of active salesperson experience before applying.

Broker applicants not licensed in another state must complete 60 hours of pre-license education: a 30-hour Kansas Real Estate Broker Fundamentals Course (valid 12 months from the course date) and a 30-hour Kansas Real Estate Broker Management Course (certificate and application must be received within 6 months of the course date). Broker applicants with a current license in another state complete 34 hours: the 30-hour Broker Management Course plus a 4-hour Kansas Law Course. All broker applicants must also have been actively engaged as a salesperson for at least two of the last three years in activities requiring a real estate license and meet minimum transaction point thresholds.

Kentucky broker license applicants must complete 21 academic credit hours, equivalent to 336 classroom hours, of qualifying education. Of these, 12 credit hours (192 classroom hours) must be in real estate courses, including 3 credit hours (48 classroom hours) in Brokerage Management from a Commission-approved provider; the remaining 144 classroom hours may be non-real estate electives from an accredited college or university. Sales associate pre-license hours cannot be counted toward the broker education requirement after March 1, 2022. Applicants must also have 2 years of experience as a licensed sales associate averaging at least 20 hours per week immediately preceding the application.

Broker pre-licensing requires 150 hours of LREC-approved coursework, which must include a mandatory 30-hour course (Real Estate 202) covering Louisiana Real Estate License Law, Commission Rules and Regulations, Law of Agency, and Civil Law pertaining to real estate. No substitution is allowed for this 30-hour Louisiana-specific course. The 90 hours required for a salesperson license do not count toward the 150-hour broker requirement, so licensed salespersons must complete an additional 150 hours. Up to 120 hours completed in another jurisdiction may be credited, provided at least 30 hours are completed in the mandatory Louisiana-specific course, and a final examination is required for pre-licensing credit.

To earn a Broker/Designated Broker license in Maine, an applicant must have been licensed as an Associate Broker affiliated with a real estate brokerage agency for 2 years within the 5 years preceding the application, and must complete the Designated Broker Course with a minimum final grade of 75%. The application must be submitted within one calendar year of completing the course. No separate broker licensing exam is required. The progression begins with the 55-hour Sales Agent Course, followed by the 60-hour Associate Broker Course after 2 years of practice as a Sales Agent.

To qualify for a Maryland broker license, an applicant must complete a 135-hour broker pre-licensing course from a Commission-approved education provider, which must include a 3-hour course in real estate ethics. The applicant must also have held an active real estate salesperson license for at least three consecutive years immediately prior to applying, with no breaks in licensure such as inactive status, late-renewal reinstatements, or suspensions. Attorneys qualified to practice law in Maryland may have the educational and experience requirements waived but must still pass the broker exam administered by PSI.

To become a broker in Massachusetts, a salesperson must complete 40 additional hours of pre-licensing broker education at a Board-approved real estate school, on top of the 40 hours already required for the salesperson license. Broker candidates must also have at least 3 years of experience working for an active Massachusetts broker at a minimum of 25 hours per week, hold a current Massachusetts salesperson license, obtain a notarized $5,000 surety bond, and pass the broker exam. The work experience must be current or completed no more than 2 years prior to the broker examination date.

Michigan requires 90 hours of approved prelicensure education for a broker license, including at least 9 hours on civil rights law and equal opportunity in housing. The education must be completed within 36 months before the date of application, unless the applicant held an active salesperson license during that period. A law degree equals 60 clock hours of real estate education, an MBA in business administration or finance equals 60 clock hours, and a bachelor's degree in business or finance equals 30 clock hours. Broker applicants must also have 3 years of full-time experience in real estate or a related field.

To become a real estate broker in Minnesota, applicants must complete a 30-hour broker pre-license course and apply for the broker's license within 12 months of completing it. Applicants must also be at least 18 years old, have a minimum of three years of active licensed salesperson experience within the previous five years (or qualify for an experience waiver), and pass the broker's examination. Experience waivers are available for applicants with a real estate degree from an accredited college or university, licensed practicing attorneys with real estate law experience, public officers with real estate-related duties, and qualifying military members, veterans, or spouses.

Mississippi requires broker applicants to complete 120 total hours of real estate courses, which includes the 60-hour salesperson pre-license course plus 60 additional hours of broker-specific education. Applicants who have not held an active salesperson license for at least 12 months must instead complete 150 classroom hours of real estate courses acceptable for college credit at an institution approved by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Pre-license course content covers license law, agency relationships, contracts, financing, property valuation, fair housing, and professional ethics.

Missouri requires a 48-hour Broker Pre-Examination Course from an MREC-approved education provider. The applicant must hold an active Missouri salesperson license for at least 24 of the 30 months immediately preceding the broker application, and must pass both the national and state portions of the Missouri broker exam. The license application must be submitted within six months of the 48-hour broker course completion date.

Broker applicants must complete 60 hours of approved pre-licensing education within the 18 months preceding the application, per MCA 37-51-302 and adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) 24.210.611(9). Applicants must also pass the Montana Real Estate Broker Examination within the past 12 months, have a minimum of two years' experience as a licensed salesperson, earn 30 experience points from transactions within the last 36 months, and provide proof of errors and omissions insurance.

Broker applicants must complete 60 clock hours (2 courses) of pre-license education in addition to the 96 hours required for a salesperson license, and may not repeat courses taken for the salesperson license. A 6-hour Professional Practice Standards course (#0003) is also required if it was not taken within the last 4 years. Broker applicants must have 2 years of full-time salesperson experience (or part-time equivalent) and pass the broker exam with a 75% score.

Nevada requires 64 semester credits to qualify for a broker license, including 45 hours of Real Estate Principles, 45 hours of Real Estate Law (including 18 hours of Nevada law), 45 hours of Real Estate Appraisal, and 45 hours of Broker Management, a Nevada-specific course. The education requirement also includes 15 hours of contracts, 15 hours of agency, 15 college credits in real estate-related subjects, and general college credits (35 for first-time applicants, 37 for out-of-state applicants). Experience can substitute for some education credits, with 2 years of licensed experience equaling 16 credits, up to 64 credits for 8 years.

Broker applicants in New Hampshire must complete 60 hours of approved broker pre-licensing education before taking the broker examination. The broker exam consists of a national portion with 75 multiple-choice items and a state portion with 40 multiple-choice items, requiring a 70% passing score on both sections. Applicants must also have experience as a licensed salesperson and have completed several real estate transactions. The broker exam fee is $70, and the broker license application fee is $121.

Broker applicants must complete 150 hours of prelicensure education: a 90-hour general real estate course, followed by a 30-hour course on Agency/Ethics and a 30-hour course on Office Management and related topics. After completing all three courses, applicants submit their school certificate and a completed Experience Report for Broker Applicant form to the Education Qualification Section of the Commission. Broker applicants must also have been continually licensed and employed full-time as a New Jersey salesperson for the three years immediately preceding application, and must pass the broker exam and apply for a license within one year of completing the prelicensure education.

New Mexico requires 90 hours of prelicensing education from commission-approved providers, consisting of three 30-hour courses: Real Estate Principles and Practice, Real Estate Law, and Broker Basics. All 90 hours must be completed before taking the broker exam, and the courses must have been completed within the three years prior to applying for the exam.

Broker licensure requires 152 hours of approved qualifying education. The standard path is the 77-hour salesperson qualifying course plus the 75-hour broker course. Applicants who completed the older 75-hour salesperson course need the 75-hour broker course plus a 2-hour continuing education course on fair housing or implicit bias. Those who completed the previous 45-hour broker course must also take a 32-hour broker remedial course. A bachelor's degree with a concentration in real estate may qualify for a waiver of the qualifying course requirement, but the applicant must still pass the state broker exam.

North Carolina requires completion of a 75-hour Broker Prelicensing Course from a Commission-certified education provider, with a mandatory end-of-course examination. The course must be completed within 3 years prior to filing the license application. It is available in person, via synchronous distance learning (live online), or through self-paced online distance courses. The regulatory minimum passing score on the end-of-course exam is 75%, though individual providers may set a higher threshold.

Resident broker applicants in North Dakota must complete a 60-hour NDREC-certified broker pre-licensure course. Applicants must also have been actively engaged full-time as a licensed real estate salesperson for at least 2 years, or have substantially equivalent experience as determined by the commission. No real estate license may have been revoked in any state within 2 years before application, and applicants must be at least 18 years old. Residents must take and pass both the state and national broker examinations administered by PSI Services LLC.

Broker applicants must complete education that varies based on when they were first licensed. For those first licensed on or after April 9, 2025, the requirement includes Ohio Real Estate Law (40 hours), Ohio Real Estate Principles and Practices (40 hours), Real Estate Appraisal (10 hours), and Real Estate Finance (10 hours), plus four broker-specific courses: Financial Management, Human Resources/Personnel Management, Applied Business Economics, and Business Law. All broker applicants must also hold an active Ohio salesperson license for at least 2 of the last 5 years and document 20 real estate transactions.

To become a broker in Oklahoma, an applicant must have two years of active licensure within the previous five years as a sales associate or provisional sales associate. The required pre-licensing education includes a 90-hour broker course and a 15-hour Broker in Charge course. After completing the education, the applicant submits a Change License request through the License Portal and uploads a Transaction Experience Waiver. Broker applicants must also pass the broker exam, which requires a 75% passing score on each portion, and the exam fee is $90 per portion through Pearson VUE.

Oregon requires 150 hours of pre-license education from an Agency-approved real estate school, covering topics such as real estate law, Oregon real estate practices, finance, contracts, agency, brokerage, and property management. Only courses completed on or after January 1, 2013 meet licensing requirements. After course completion, the school transmits eligibility electronically to PSI, making the applicant eligible to schedule the license exam.

Broker candidates in Pennsylvania must complete 240 hours (16 credits) of professional real estate education from an accredited college or approved education provider. The curriculum spans 10 topics, including Real Estate Finance, Real Estate Law, Valuation of Residential and Income-Producing Property, Real Estate Investment, Residential and Non-Residential Property Management, Real Estate Sales, Brokerage and Office Management, and Residential Construction. Courses must be completed within 10 years of passing both portions of the broker exam. A Juris Doctor degree or bachelor's degree in real estate satisfies this education requirement.

RI broker pre-licensing requires 90 hours of approved classroom or live-broadcast instruction from a DBR-approved provider. The 45-hour salesperson pre-licensing course does not count toward the 90-hour broker requirement, and the Department of Business Regulation (DBR) will not accept individual certificates adding up to 90; a single 90-hour certificate must be issued by one school. Broker 90 courses are valid for 4 years from the date a complete application is filed, and all coursework must be delivered live, either in-person or via monitored broadcast such as Zoom.

A South Carolina broker license requires completion of two pre-licensing courses: Unit IIIA (Broker Management) and Unit IIIB (Brokerage Principles), totaling 60 hours. Broker applicants must be at least 21 years old and have 5 years of active South Carolina associate licensure within the past 7 years, a requirement effective May 21, 2024. Applicants with a juris doctor degree, bachelor of law, baccalaureate, or master's degree with a major in real estate from an accredited institution are exempt from pre-licensing education.

The broker associate license requires a 116-hour pre-licensing course from a commission-approved provider. To upgrade to responsible broker, the licensee must complete an additional 24-hour Responsible Broker Course and hold 2 years of active status as a broker associate. Both license types require a passing exam score of 75% and approval of the application.

Broker candidates in Tennessee must complete 120 classroom hours of approved real estate education, 30 hours of which must be an "Office/Broker Management" course at a TREC-approved school. Candidates must also have held an active affiliate broker license for 36 months (if licensed after May 12, 1988) or 24 months (if licensed on or before May 12, 1988, or with a baccalaureate degree with a major in real estate). The Tennessee Real Estate Commission (TREC) approval process for the broker exam takes approximately 4 weeks.

Broker applicants in Texas must complete 270 classroom hours of qualifying real estate courses, which include the same six 30-hour courses required for a sales agent license plus a 30-hour Real Estate Brokerage course. The six sales agent courses are Principles of Real Estate I, Principles of Real Estate II, Law of Agency, Law of Contracts, Promulgated Contract Forms, and Real Estate Finance. The Real Estate Brokerage course must be completed not more than two years before the application date. An additional 630 classroom hours of related qualifying or approved CE courses are also required, including a 6-hour Broker Responsibility Course, though a bachelor's degree or higher can satisfy up to 300 of those 630 hours.

Utah broker applicants must complete 120 hours of approved broker pre-licensing education at a certified school, consisting of 30 hours of Utah Law (including 3 hours of testing), 45 hours of Broker Principles (including 4 hours of testing), and 45 hours of Broker Practices (including 4 hours of testing). In addition to education, broker applicants must have three years of full-time licensed active real estate experience within the past five years (or two years full-time plus one year of professional real estate experience), accumulate at least 60 documented experience points, and pass the broker exam with a scaled score of 75 on both the general and state portions.

Vermont requires broker license applicants to complete a broker pre-licensing course of at least 40 hours approved by the Vermont Real Estate Commission. Broker applicants must also have at least 2 years of experience as a licensed salesperson, including at least 8 separate and unrelated closed transactions among buyers and sellers bearing no familial or contemporaneous business relation to the applicant. Applicants must pass both the national and state examinations within the 2 years preceding application and be affiliated with a Vermont-licensed office.

Virginia broker applicants must complete 180 hours of Board-approved pre-licensing courses. This includes a mandatory 45-hour Real Estate Brokerage course, plus either three broker-specific courses (Real Estate Appraisal, Real Estate Finance, and Real Estate Law) or two broker-specific courses and one broker-related course. The maximum allowable credit for a single broker-specific course is 60 hours, and 45 hours for a broker-related course. Any Principles of Real Estate course taken to meet the salesperson education requirement is not acceptable toward the broker requirement. Broker applicants must also have been actively engaged as a salesperson full-time (averaging 40 hours per week) for 36 of the 48 months preceding application.

Washington requires 90 hours of approved pre-licensing education to become a real estate broker: a 60-hour Real Estate Fundamentals course and a 30-hour Real Estate Practices course. Both courses must be completed within 2 years before applying for the exam. The education provider electronically submits course completion records to PSI Testing Excellence, the exam vendor, which can take up to 7 days before the candidate can register for exams.

Broker applicants must complete 180 clock-hours of Commission-approved pre-licensing education, equivalent to 12 college credit hours. Those who already hold a West Virginia salesperson license need only 90 additional clock-hours of broker education. The 90-hour broker course consists of 30 hours of Brokerage Operation and Management, 25 hours of Human Resources Management and Interpersonal Skills, and 35 hours of West Virginia Specific Real Estate for Brokers. Broker pre-licensing courses must be completed within the 5-year period preceding the application date.

Wisconsin broker applicants must complete a Board-approved 72-hour pre-license program for Brokers within four years before applying. Alternative paths include completing 20 academic semester hour credits in real estate or real estate-related law, or submitting evidence of being licensed to practice law in Wisconsin. Endorsement applicants who held a broker license in another state must complete a 6-hour broker education program and a 13-hour salesperson pre-license program. Broker applicants must also have at least two years of experience as a licensed salesperson within the last four years, with at least 40 points of documented experience.

To convert from a salesperson to a broker in Wyoming, applicants must complete Broker Course I, Broker Course II, and the Wyoming Law Course, then pass both the National and State Broker exams and submit an application with two fingerprint cards. Applicants for Responsible Broker status must also complete the Wyoming Broker Management course. Wyoming requires 2 of the 4 years immediately preceding the application to have been spent in active engagement in real estate activity as a licensee, or proof of a degree in real estate. Out-of-state broker applicants must hold an active license in another state, complete the Wyoming Law Course and Broker II Course, complete Broker Management (if seeking Responsible Broker status), and pass the Wyoming State Broker exam.