Understanding the Post-Licensing Course Guidelines for Florida Real Estate
Are you a real estate salesperson in Florida ready to advance in your career and take the next leap forward?
Completing additional education and coursework is a great way to progress in your profession and add advanced knowledge to your repertoire.
As a licensed salesperson in the competitive real estate market of Florida, it is important that you continue to invest in upskilling yourself.
To stay competitive, real estate salespersons need to keep themselves updated with emerging trends, evolving consumer expectations, and the latest industry developments.
The best way to remain sharp and agile professionally is to complete additional post-licensing education in Florida.
With the help of practical training and real-world information about specific courses, you can gain in-depth information about advanced, in-depth topics and niches in your industry.
By completing post-licensing education, you can continue to gain mastery over your profession and make use of the learning resources to advance in your career.
In addition to gaining knowledge and professional development, there is another critical reason why completing additional education is important for your career.
Like most states, Florida requires all active real estate agents and brokers to complete mandatory post-licensing education to qualify for renewing their licenses.
According to the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), if you have an active real estate salesperson license, you must complete 45 hours of state-approved additional education for successful license renewal.
Getting your FL salesperson license is important if you wish to continue working with clients and participating in the buying or selling of real estate in the state.
If you are approaching your license renewal due date or simply want to acquaint yourself with the license renewal process, we have put together this in-depth guide to answer your questions.
In this article, we will give you an overview of what exactly is a Florida post-licensing course, how to choose one and what are the state-specific license renewal requirements.
What is Post Licensing Education
Real estate is a dynamic, ever-evolving, and shifting industry with a lot of moving parts and components akin to a giant wheel.
On top of it, the industry is highly regulated by state and federal authorities who are constantly working for the betterment of consumers and industry professionals.
Many newly licensed professionals often presume that after getting a real estate license, they are done with
To ensure real estate professionals are keeping themselves relevant and updated to meet the growing demands of their profession, most real estate regulatory bodies have formulated additional courses.
Post-licensing education is a compilation of mandatory and elective courses structured together in an established format.
By completing the 45-hour FL sales post-licensing course, real estate salespersons can qualify to renew their licenses for the first time.
If you are a real estate broker, you must complete 60 hours of additional post-licensing education by or before your first license renewal date.
If you hold an active salesperson or broker’s license in Florida, you must complete post-licensing education from a state-approved education provider before the license renewal due date.
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) in Florida is the state authority responsible for issuing and renewing licenses.
It is the responsibility of the DBPR in Florida along with the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) to establish the post-licensing requirements and course curriculum.
Florida Post Licensing Requirements
Are you a newly licensed real estate salesperson in Florida curious to learn about the state-specific license renewal requirements?
Like most states, Florida requires all active license holders to update their real estate licenses before their renewal due date.
To renew your real estate salesperson license for the first time, you must complete education covering 45-hour post licensing real estate in Florida.
The course credits must be completed before the license renewal date within a span of 18 or 24 months.
Typically, a license renewal due date is either March 30th or September 30th depending on your license issue date.
Once you have completed the mandatory post-licensing education, you can submit the license renewal application to the Florida DBPR for approval.
After your application and attached documents have been verified and approved by the DBPR in Florida, your license will be successfully renewed.
What is included in the post-license education
Many first-time license renewal applicants often wonder what exactly is covered in the 45 hours of pre-license education and how it is relevant for license renewal.
As mentioned earlier, the purpose of post-license education is to impart the most recent, updated, and advanced knowledge of real estate laws, guidelines, regulations, and trends.
With the help of specialization courses and in-depth topics, newly licensed agents in FL can expand their knowledge and add new skills to their resume.
Constantly learning about the latest developments and industry regulations will also help you become more competitive and relevant in the real estate job market.
Let’s take a look at what is included in the 45 hours of pre-licensing education and the corresponding topics you will cover.
- Florida license and state laws
- Real estate ethics
- Real estate marketing
- Real estate specialization
- Real estate property analysis
- Real estate math
- Property management
- Pricing and listing
- Contracts and Closing
- Construction terminology
- Foreclosures
- Real estate economics
- Real estate investments
The 45 hours of post-license education also includes 14 hours of continuing education course credits which is a mandatory requirement for all salespersons in Florida.
Note that it is recommended that you reach out to the Florida DBPR or FREC to get the most updated and recent information regarding the course curriculum.
Students are free to choose whether they want to join an in-person, classroom environment or enroll in a self-study, online course which can be completed from anywhere.
Note that after you have completed the coursework, you must take a closed book test which consists of 100 multiple-choice questions and you will get 200 minutes to complete the 45-hour post-licensing Florida exam questions.
It is mandatory for all applicants to complete and pass the exam by scoring at least 70 percent or above.
After successfully completing the 45 hours of post-license education and clearing the final exam, you must report the same information to the Florida DBPR within thirty business days.
You must submit the certificate of completion of post-licensing education after concluding each course to the DBPR.
Generally, it costs anywhere between $70 to $150 to complete the post-licensing course credits and renew your Florida salesperson license.
It costs $32 to renew your salesperson license in Florida and $36 to renew a broker’s license.
Wondering if anyone is exempted from completing the post-licensing education in Florida?
If you have a bachelor’s degree in real estate, you are not required by the DBPR to take any additional courses.
Note that if you are unable to complete the 45-hour pre-licensing education before the due date, your salesperson license might stand null and void.
In some cases, you might also be required to pay late charges and penalties to renew your
Benefits of completing post-license education in Florida
You have worked hard to get your salesperson or broker’s license in Florida and you probably are thinking why exactly do you need to complete additional education again?
While getting your real estate salesperson license requires completion of pre-licensing education, it is also important to stay relevant by learning new things and expanding your skills.
This is where post-license education comes into the picture to help you keep yourself updated, current, and relevant in the industry.
Real estate is a competitive and dynamic industry with updated rules, regulations, and guidelines for professionals.
To ensure your knowledge is accurate and in line with the state and federal laws, it is important that you invest in completing additional education.
Another important reason why completing post-license education is the fact that by doing so you will qualify to renew your real estate salesperson license.
Imagine all the time, effort, and cost invested by you to earn your salesperson license getting wasted in just a couple of months.
Without completing the mandatory 45 hours of post-license education, your license will not be renewed.
In the worst-case scenario, you might have to start all over again, complete the pre-license education and pass the state licensing exam.
Just the thought of this might make many active license holders’ shudder - if you wish to avoid getting your license becoming null or canceled, completing pre-licensing education is a must.
Completing post-licensing continuing education will ensure your salesperson license in Florida is current, updated, and active.
There’s another important benefit of getting your license renewed - consumers prefer working with salespersons and agents who have up-to-date, accurate, and industry-approved credentials.
Post-licensing education will give you the bragging rights to showcase your commitment to your profession.
It will help you become more trusted and be perceived as more sincere in the minds of your target clients.
Since the real estate industry works on trust and accountability, it is important that you invest in building a trustworthy reputation which can help you attract more clients and spread the word about your services.
Last but not least, completing additional courses will give you more in-depth, detailed knowledge about working in the real estate industry.
As you advance in your career, you can choose to build upon the specific knowledge acquired with continuing education and find a niche to focus your efforts.
With the help of specific courses and advanced topics, you can expand your knowledge and skill set.
This will give you a confidence boost and you can utilize the post-license curriculum and topics to become better at doing your job.
It is rightly said that an investment in knowledge pays the best returns and if you wish to build a successful career in the long run, you must take post-license education seriously.
Tips to maximize your learning
If you are ready to complete post-licensing education and renew your salesperson license in Florida, it helps to understand how to maximize your learning.
Firstly, it is important that you choose a reputed, experienced, and state-approved education provider for completing post-licensing education.
Learning from expert trainers and experienced instructors is the foundation for getting the best value for your time and money.
Secondly, you must make the most of learning resources such as downloadable e-books, study guides, mock tests, and sample questions to better understand the curriculum and exam format.
Lastly, you should always seek answers to your doubts to practice and improve on your weak areas.