Notes

The Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) regulates just about all non-medical areas within the service industry, including real estate. The DRE is, in turn, responsible for supporting the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) and the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board (FREAB) along with working with the Bureau of Education and Testing (BET) in establishing and enforcing educational requirements. All submitted paperwork, duties, responsibilities, cases and fees are funneled through the DRE and into the appropriate hands.


In addition to mandating fees and application forms, the law also mandates the time periods that the DRE and FREC have to complete their various application reviews. This helps ensure that persons receive reasonably prompt responses to their applications. For example, within 30 days of receipt of an application, the DRE must certify that an application is complete and that the said applicant is in fact capable of receiving licensure. Within 90 days of receiving this, the FREC must decide whether the said applicant may in fact take the state-mandated real estate licensing exam.

In addition to mandating fees and application forms, the law also mandates the time periods that the DRE and FREC have to complete their various application reviews. This helps ensure that persons receive reasonably prompt responses to their applications. For example, within 30 days of receipt of an application, the DRE must certify that an application is complete and that the said applicant is in fact capable of receiving licensure. Within 90 days of receiving this, the FREC must decide whether the said applicant may in fact take the state-mandated real estate licensing exam.

Over the course of the application process, the FREC will conduct a background check. It will require you to submit electronic fingerprints, which it will subsequently use to determine whether you have a criminal record that you have failed to disclose. Failing to disclose any information or lying on your application is a sure way to guarantee that you will not receive licensure.

Once an individual obtains a Florida sales associate license, there are still some post-licensing and continuing educational requirements that must be met. Post-licensing courses must be taken and completed after the license is initially obtained, and before the first renewal. Continuing education courses are required for each subsequent renewal after the first initial renewal. Licenses are renewed and a fee paid every two years. Licensees are required to fulfill the continuing education requirements for each renewal.

The post-licensing course for sales associates must consist of 45 classroom hours and be completed prior to initial licensure expiration. The continuing education course must consist of 14 classroom hours and be completed prior to every biennium renewal after the first one. These courses can be taken in a licensed real estate school by a licensed real estate instructor or it can be taken via a FREC-approved online course, like this one.

The successful completion of the pre-licensing course is valid for two years from the completion date. If it has been longer than two years since the course was taken when the application is submitted, then you must retake the course and pass the course final. The application is only valid for two years from the date the DBPR receives it. If you fail to take and successfully complete the real estate sales associate examination within two years of submitting your application, then another application including all of its requirements must be submitted. The successful completion of the post-licensing course must be done before the initial license expiration.

To receive a broker's license in Florida, most persons must be sales associates first. In general, the requirement outlined in FS 475.17 states that persons must have held an active sales associate's license for at least two years out of the previous five years in some state or territory here in the U.S. or in another country with comparable real estate statutes. In addition, all broker candidates must have already completed the sales associate's post-licensure education requirement, which, if the student recalls, is 45 classroom hours. In addition to these requirements, broker candidates must also complete an additional 72 classroom hours of pre-licensing instruction. The content for the course is dictated by the FREC under their "Course II" outline. Once a person completes these requirements, he or she must then pass the state-mandated Florida Real Estate exam administered by Pearson VUE with a score of 75 percent.

In this lesson, we looked more closely at the mutual recognition agreements that Florida holds with Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. In addition to examining the specific requirements related to each agreement, we also examined the meaning of state residency and the obligation of both resident and non-resident licensees to keep their status and information with the FREC current and correct.

In order to receive licensure through a mutual recognition agreement, an applicant must be 18 years of age or older; must hold a high school diploma or its equivalent; must pass the Florida-specific law exam with 30 out of the 40 questions answered correctly; must hold an active and current license in his or her home state; must NOT be a resident of Florida; and must be in good standing with his or her home licensing authority. There are additional requirements that are applicable to some states, which are available on the FREC website.

The FREC seal grants prima facie evidence of license authenticity. Once a licensee holds an authentic license, the licensee must register the license with either a broker or owner developer in order to activate it. Sales associate licenses, broker's licenses and real estate school, and educator licenses must be registered with the FREC. Trainee appraiser licenses, registered residential appraiser licenses, and registered general appraiser licenses (along with their schools and educators) must be registered with the FREAB. Individuals may register as individuals, corporations, professional limited liability companies, or limited liability companies.

When a person holds an active, registered license that has already been renewed by completing the post-licensing requirement, that person must complete the 14-hour continuing education requirement in order to keep it active. Failing to do so will result in the person's license being placed on involuntary, inactive status. A person who wants to avoid involuntary inactive status but who does not want to keep the license active must complete the continuing education requirement, submit all accompanying documentation, and complete the change of license status form.

Exemptions from licensing include public railroads and governments, licensed attorneys, and corporation employees selling company owned real estate. In order to remember the cases that require an active license as a real estate professional, remember the acronym ABLE ARMS and that if you facilitate a real estate transaction involving another person's property for compensation of any kind, then you must be properly licensed.