If you’re wondering how long does it take to get a real estate license, the quick answer we can give is… it varies.
The general rule of thumb is it can range between 2-3 months if you’re just applying for the license.
Haven’t gone to real estate school to become a the real estate agents yet?
If you haven’t gone through real estate school or online courses yet as well as the other prerequisites, that’s another few months; 3-6 to be exact.
In this article, we’ll break down the timeline of steps and exactly what pre-licensing requirements you need to join the real estate professionals and become a legitimate real estate broker or real estate agent.
Timeline of Getting a Real Estate License
Curious how the time is spent, and if you’re on track? In this part, we’ll break down the process of what you’ll be doing as the months progress.
Before anything else, you must pass the background check and satisfy the following conditions to get a real estate license:
- Must be at least 18 years of age
- In almost all cases, the state requires a high school diploma
Months 1-3 (Optional): Real Estate Education Requirements
If you haven’t yet, the first step to get a real estate license is to take official real estate courses.
These act as the foundation for the knowledge you’ll need to move forward, and will also help you fulfill the educational requirements.
What’s different now? You won’t have to go through years of college all over again like a traditional degree to complete these educational requirements.
As mentioned earlier, this only takes 3-6 months.
In online real estate school, you can complete the same credit hours of required coursework in a shorter 2-5 months with the option to take synchronous or asynchronous classes. Either way, these will complete the education requirements. If you already have a license in another State, you may be eligible for a license reciprocity.
Months 4-5: Application and Scheduling the Real Estate License Exam
The next major step is the application process for the real estate license.
You submit the following, either in paper form or online (depending on your governing body):
- Complete real estate education paperwork
- Real estate license application forms
The processing time can range from a few days to several weeks and cost around 300 USD (including application, test, and real estate license)
Should your application be approved, this will open up your opportunity to take the state licensing exam. Onto the exam process!
Months 5-6: Taking the Real Estate Exam
You take the final exam – just like college exams in high school or university. The real estate agent exam can also be conducted online depending on the administrator.
Month 6: Results and License
There are some modern iterations of the real estate license broker exam wherein test results are given right after.
In most cases though, the process of checking real estate exam answers doesn’t happen overnight. This holds true especially when the exam isn’t automated. It may take days to weeks, or even a month before exam results are announced and acceptance letters are mailed.
Congratulations on passing the real estate licensing exam and being one of the new receivers of real estate licenses!
Keep in Mind…
Different rules may apply in various states across the country. As such, these may affect the above timelines as well. These are the usual sources of timeline changes:
Credit Hours
The hours required for real estate school differ. To illustrate, here are some examples:
- New Jersey: 75 hours from an accredited provider (valid for 8 years) OR a four-year course
- Florida: 63 hours from an accredited provider (valid for 2 years)
- Tennessee: 60-90 hours from an accredited provider
Surprisingly enough, some states like Texas require hours in the 100s. An example is Texas, requiring a whopping 180 hours of pre-licensure education!
Processing Time
Depending on the internal policies as well as current demand for real estate licenses at the time of application, the governing bodies for these licenses can take awhile before processing documents completely.
Exam Protocol and Announcements
In some states, the real estate exam is taken on certain days in person. Therefore, a prospective test-taker would have to wait for these days and schedule accordingly.
Others have it constantly throughout the year and provide more flexible scheduling plans. These factors can either delay or speed up their entire process.
As mentioned earlier, checking and announcement can also play a role:
- Some exams have same-day results, especially if automated
- Others will have results over e-mail, or over snail mail (which can also be delayed by courier delivery schedules)
Wrapping Up…
With this, we hope we’ve sufficiently answered the question “How Long Does It Take To Get a Real Estate License?”
Keep in mind that while real estate laws should be similar in most states, there may be a minute difference between real estate rules in Murfreesboro, New York or a small town in the boonies.
Whether your career path is to become a real estate agent or an associate broker, the license will definitely come in handy to fulfill your goals.
