How to get a real estate license in Texas: six steps, one mentor.
Six steps, in order: complete 180 hours of courses, apply to TREC, get fingerprinted, prep for the exam, pass it, and get sponsored by a broker. Each step below shows what it costs and how long it takes, and you'll have a mentor instructor beside you for all of it.
Who can get a Texas real estate license?
Anyone paid to help others buy, sell, or lease Texas property (apartment locators included) needs a license from the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC). The requirements are the same at every school.
General qualifications
- 18 or older
- U.S. citizen or lawfully admitted alien
- Meet TREC's standards for honesty, trustworthiness, and integrity
- 180 hours of TREC-approved courses (Step 1)
Criminal record? Fitness Determination
A record doesn't automatically disqualify you. If you have criminal offenses, unpaid judgments, or anything else you're unsure about, an optional $54 Fitness Determination lets TREC tell you before you enroll. See getting licensed with a criminal record, or call us first.
Military service members, veterans, and spouses
TREC waives the base application and exam fees (not fingerprinting or tuition) when you upload proof with your REALM application. See the veteran and service member career guide.
Broker licenses
Everyone starts as a sales agent. A broker license takes 4 years of active experience, 720 experience points, and 900 education hours. See how to become a Texas real estate broker.
Complete your pre-licensing education: six TREC-approved courses.
Texas requires 180 hours of pre-licensing education, six TREC-approved qualifying real estate courses: our 180-hour Texas real estate license courses, 30 hours each. They're self-paced, so you work at your own pace, with daily live Zoom support and a mentor instructor checking your progress. Already took a course elsewhere? See single courses or compare Texas real estate school paths.
TREC now needs your Pre-Licensing Education Application Number so we can report your courses to TREC.
- Create a free REALM account. Just an account; you apply in Step 2.
- Find TREC's email, "Pre-Licensing Education Notification." Your number ends in "-QEdu." See what the email looks like
- Enter it when you launch your first course.
Already enrolled? Keep studying; we just can't issue your final course completion certificates until the number is on file. Stuck? Call your mentor instructor.
- Principles of Real Estate I
- Principles of Real Estate II
- Law of Agency
- Law of Contracts
- Promulgated Contract Forms
- Real Estate Finance I
How the qualifying education course work fits together
- Each course ends with an online, open-book final: 70% to pass, 2 attempts.
- Under TREC's 3-day rule, finals are staggered 3 days apart, so 18 days is the fastest possible pace. You can work on several courses at once.
- 6 months of access, with a pacing plan your mentor instructor builds around your timeline.
- We report each completion to TREC under your Pre-Licensing Education Application Number. You don't upload anything.
Submit your sales agent application to TREC.
Once you've completed all six courses, log in to TREC's REALM Portal with the account you created in Step 1 and file your application with the Texas Real Estate Commission. It takes about 15 minutes. The license you get comes back "inactive," which is normal. It goes active the day a sponsoring broker signs on (that's Step 6).
Get fingerprinted for your background check.
Texas law requires your fingerprints on file with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for a background check. You get printed through IdentoGO by IDEMIA, TREC's vendor. Booking takes about 5 minutes; the only tricky part is finding your UEID. After your appointment, see the fingerprinting-to-clearance workflow.
Why now, not after the exam: TREC can't issue your license until your background check clears, so getting printed early means nothing is left to wait on once you pass.
Finding your UEID number and booking IdentoGO
- 1Once all six courses are complete and your application is filed, log in to your REALM account.
- 2Open your application record, your UEID number (your unique fingerprint ID) is listed on it.
- 3Go to the IdentoGO Texas site, choose the TREC service, and enter your UEID.
- 4Pick a location and time (booking takes about 5 minutes online), then bring your TREC eligibility letter and a photo ID.
Exam prep: master the exam while TREC does its paperwork.
The days while TREC processes your application are your best study window for the state exam: courses fresh in your mind, nothing else to do. Students who use it walk into Pearson VUE ready.
Included in both Success Packs, or $169 on its own ($199 regular) with a PDF prep book. The X6+ Accelerator adds a printed prep book and 700 printed flashcards.
Schedule and pass the Pearson VUE licensing exam.
Once TREC authorizes your exam, book a seat at any Pearson VUE testing center (800-997-1248). It doesn't have to be in Texas: you can test at any Pearson VUE center in the U.S. It's two portions in one sitting: 125 questions in 240 minutes, 70% to pass each.
The extra questions are unscored "pretest" items you can't tell apart, so answer every question the same.
What to expect on exam day
- Per the Pearson VUE candidate handbook, walk-in exams aren't available. Reserve your seat online or by phone at least 24 hours ahead.
- It's proctored and closed-book: no notes, books, phones, or watches in the exam room.
- A calculator isn't required but is recommended, and the test center doesn't provide one. Bring a hand-held financial calculator without alpha characters.
- You get your score report at the test center. If you miss a portion, the report shows how you did by content area.
If you need a retake: three attempts per portion
You only retake the portion you failed: wait 24 hours, then reschedule and pay $43 again. You get three attempts at each portion within one year of filing. Fail one portion three times and you need 30 more hours of education (60 if both, TREC Rule §535.57(f)), then you get three more attempts. Didn't pass? Call us; we review your score report together and build the plan.
Once you pass and your background check clears, TREC emails your license. Before test day, see our exam study tips.
Find your sponsoring broker and go active.
Agent
Your new license is inactive until a licensed Texas broker sponsors you, and you can't perform any brokerage activity until then. Once you pick a brokerage (you can start talking to them before test day), you or your broker submit the sponsorship request in the REALM Portal and your license moves to active status. A TREC license lookup on yourself confirms it. Compare brokerages on mentorship, training, leads, and split, not just the first desk offered.
Once you're sponsored, see what onboarding into your broker's back office actually looks like, and how to get MLS access through a local Realtor association.
Additional education before your first license renewal
Your license renews every two years. The first renewal requires 98 hours of Sales Agent Apprentice Education (SAE), which can't be deferred. After that, each renewal needs 18 hours of continuing education.
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