How to Get Your Florida Real Estate License (2023 Steps)

To begin the initial steps of getting your real estate license in Florida, you will first need to meet the following Florida real estate licensing prerequisites:

• You must be at least 18 years old.
• You must have a high school diploma or GED.
• You must have a social security number.

The prerequisite requirements above are the same for most states but not all. For example, some states such as Alaska require you to be 19+ years old to get your real estate license and some states such as California allow you to apply for a license with an ITIN number as opposed to a social security number.

Assuming you have met these prerequisites here are the requirements to get your Real Estate License in Florida:

How To Get Your Florida Real Estate License

1. Take a Pre-licencing Course: Complete an approved 63-hour Florida pre-licensing course online or in person. This course will be valid for 2 years after the course completion date. If you hold a 4-year degree or higher, in real estate you may be exempt from the pre-license education requirement.
   
   You can research the best real estate schools for Florida on our site. We recommend getting your Florida real estate license with the Colibri Real Estate school.
   
   
2. Submit Your Application: Submit a completed application, electronic fingerprints, and the $89 required fee.
   
   
3. Pass Your States Final Real Estate Licensing exam: You must score at least 75 or pass the Florida Real Estate Law Exam with a grade of at least 30. The exam is conducted by Pearson Vue.
   
   We do recommend that you take a Florida real estate exam prep course before taking the state exam.
   
   
4. Activate Your New Real Estate License: You must activate your license, otherwise, the license is issued in an inactive status.

We will go more into the cost to obtain your Florida real estate license further in the article.

How Do I Register My Real Estate License with the Florida DBPR?

The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation (also known as the Florida DBPR) sets the specific policies and requirements needed to get your Florida real estate license.

The Florida DBPR also offers some financial-related exemptions such as a low-income waiver and military personal waivers. The military fee waiver also may allow exemptions for military spouses, veterans, and the national guard.

Once you create an account with the Florida DBPR (at MyFloridaLicense.com) you can access all the required documents to register and activate your new Florida Real Estate agent!

The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation is also the big boss of the Florida Real Estate Commission whom we will discuss next!

What Is the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC)?

If you are a Florida real estate agent, it’s important to be familiar with the Florida Real Estate Commission.

The Florida Real Estate Commission (also known as FREC) is a regulatory body that oversees real estate activity in the state of Florida including licensees, education requirements, and consumer protection.

This particular article about Florida real estate license requirements is going a little off-topic about FREC but some of this information may end up on your real estate exam so, you’re welcome.

Established in 1949, the Florida Real Estate Commission is responsible for licensing and regulating real estate agents, brokers, and appraisers.

The commission also administers examinations to aspiring real estate professionals and investigates complaints filed against licensees. If you’re looking to become a licensed real estate agent in Florida, or if you have a complaint against a professional licensee, the FREC is the place to go.

FREC has 7 members who are appointed by the Florida Governor and even confirmed by the Senate. The FREC members serve for four years each and are kind of a big deal.

The age of at least one FREC appointee must be 60+ years old which a somewhat strange to us as an actual requirement of the Florida Real Estate Commission. Yes, they require one member to be 60+ years old. Wait, isn’t that age discrimination (LOL)? FREC, what’s your answer to that, or should I report FREC to FREC? Again, just adding some humor to a somewhat dry topic.

Of the seven Florida Real Estate Commission appointees, four of them must be licensed real estate brokers, who need to have held an active real estate license for 5 years.

One FREC member must be a licensed broker or a licensed real estate sales associate who has held an active real estate license for the 2 years preceding the appointment.

As a final requirement to be on the FREC board, two of the FREC members are not allowed to be and never have been, real estate brokers or sales agents at all.

As a Florida real estate licensee, you will likely need to interact with the FREC from time to time. You’ll be learning more about FREC when you start taking your Florida real estate pre-licensing course.

How Much Does it Cost to Get Your Florida Real Estate License?

In most cases, your total cost to get your real estate license in Florida should be under $400. It’s a really small price to pay considering how lucrative a career in real estate can be. Here is a bit of a breakdown of the Florida real estate license costs:

• The cost of fingerprints is $53.50
• The Florida DBPR licensing application fee is $83.75.
• The Florida state exam fee is $36.75
• The cost for your state-approved Florida pre-licensing course can be anywhere from about $200 to $300+. It depends on what real estate school you choose and if it’s an in-person or an online-based course.
• Once you have your Florida Real Estate License there will be some post-licensing and continued education course/hour requirements so you will have additional costs to keep your Florida real estate license active. The good news is it’s generally only a couple hundred per year which is easily paid for after your first sale!

Florida Real Estate Post-Licensing Requirements

After you’ve received your initial real estate education and gotten through those pesky exams with flying colors (or at least close), you can go ahead and activate your license. However, there are still more educational requirements that you will need to do in those first 18 to 24 months.

The Florida Real Estate Post-Licensing Requirements for New Sales Agents are as follows:

• New Real Estate Sales Associates Post-Licensing Requirements:
  1. Complete 45 hours of post-licensing education.
  2. Once completed, the Florida DBPR will require proof of your post-licensing education completion. Most online real schools will submit this information for you automatically.
  3. Pay your license renewal fee to DBPR. You can pay this fee through their website, by mail, or by phone by calling DBPR at (850) 487-1395.
• New Real Estate Broker Post-Licensing Requirements:
  1. Complete 60 hours of post-licensing education.
  2. Once completed, the Florida DBPR will require proof of your post-licensing education completion. Most online real schools will submit this information for you automatically.
  3. Pay your real estate broker license renewal fee to DBPR.

Make sure those post-licensing education deadlines don’t get away from you!

What Courses Do I Need to Take to Reach My 45 post-licensing hours requirements?

The specific Florida real estate post-licensing courses subjects are mandated by FREC (whom we discussed above). The actual course content will vary some based on the school but all of them will include topics in real estate law, code of ethics, contracts, real estate practice, and real estate principles.

Once you finished your Florida Real Estate Post-licensing education requirements, there are some final bits of education you will have to complete on an ongoing basis. These are considering your real estate “Continued Education”.

How Much Does the Florida Real Estate Post-Licensing Course Cost?

The cost of your Florida real estate post-licensing course depends on which school you choose but is generally about $100 to $150.

For example, the Florida 45-Hr. Sales Post-Licensing course cost from The CE Shop is currently $109. The Florida Post-Licensing course from Colibri Real Estate is $99.00 to $129 depending on the package.

There are often promo codes and discount codes that decrease your costs further.

Florida Real Estate Continuing Education Requirements

After you have completed your Florida Real Estate post-licensing requirements, you will need to complete your continuing education requirements to keep your real estate license active.

As a Florida real estate agent your continuing education requirements are 14 educational hours every two years before your real estate license expiration date.

Florida Continuing Education Course and Hours Breakdown:

1. You are required to complete 3 Hours of Florida Core Law.
2. You are required to complete 3 hours of Real Estate & Business Ethics.
3. The additional 8 required continuing education hours are considered specialty credit and these course selections can vary.

You will have multiple options to complete these required hours including taking an in-classroom course, an online real estate CE course package, or even a physical continuing education textbook that you can complete at home. FREC, whom we wrote about above, approves these courses for Florida continuing education credit for real estate licensees.

How To Get Your Florida Real Estate Broker License

To become a Florida Real Estate Broker, You must meet the same prerequisites as a typical real estate sales agent in that you must be at least 18 years old with a high school diploma (or GED) as well as have a social security number. However, there are some additional prerequisites and broker eligibility requirements which we will discuss below:

Here Are The Requirements Needed to Become a Florida Real Estate Broker:

1. You must have kept an active real estate sales associate license for at least 2 years (24 months) out of the past 5 years.
2. Submit your fingerprints to the state of Florida. You can register for a Fingerprint card through Pearson Vue here.
3. Complete a state application for your Broker’s license through the Florida DBPR. You can check the status of your Florida real estate broker application here.
4. You must take and pass a state of Florida-approved 72-hour Real Estate Broker course.
5. After you have taken the 72-hour Florida Broker Licensing course (you’ll get a completion slip) you will need to pass the state exam. The application you submitted in step 3 above must be approved by the state before you attempt to take the Florida Broker final exam.

The Florida real estate broker state exam consists of 100 multiple choice questions and you must pass with an exam score of at least 75%. You are allowed multiple attempts for a fee.

How Much Does it Cost to Get Your Florida Real Estate Broker License?

Before you can become a Florida Real Estate Broker, you will we have needed to have an active sales associate license for 2 out of the last 5 years. We reviewed the cost to become a real estate sales associate above. So, if you want to become a broker, you will have needed to pay those costs first.

Here are some additional costs to get your Florida Real Estate Broker License:

• The cost for the 72-hour Florida broker course is about $225 for an online-based course to $450 for a live-streamed course. This price can vary quite a bit depending on the real estate school you select and if it is online-based or a live classroom-based course.
• The state application fee is currently $91.75
• The Pearson Vue fingerprinting fee is $57.25
• The state exam fee paid to Pearson VUE is $36.75

How To Get Your Florida Real Estate License Online

We have outlined the step-by-step process to get your Florida real estate license above.  Assuming you have met the FL prerequisites, the first step is to take a Florida real estate pre-licensing course.

Based On Our Research, We Suggest You Get Started With One of These Florida Real Estate Pre-Licensing Schools:

1. The Colibri Real Estate Florida Real Estate Pre-Licensing Course
2. The CE Shop Florida Real Estate Pre-Licensing Course
3. The AceableAgent Florida Real Estate Pre-Licensing Course

You can also read in-depth the CE Shop, AceableAgent, and Colibri Real Estate reviews on our website so you can choose the Florida pre-licensing real estate school that’s right for you.

Any questions or comments, please let us know below!

You can now take a look at the Real Estate License Requirements for another state or get started with your pre-licensing at one of the top online real estate schools.

A social share is also always appreciated. All the best in getting your Florida real estate license, and best of luck in your new career!