Below are the steps to obtain your real estate sales agent license using separate exam and license applications. This method is slower, but requires less money upfront by not including the license fee with the exam fee. For a faster method of obtaining a license, see the “Steps to Become Licensed” section.

1. EDUCATION: 3 COURSES REQUIRED

• 3 courses are required: Real Estate Principles, Real Estate Practice and Legal Aspects of Real Estate (elective).

2. STUDY YOUR MATERIALS

• You have 1 year from enrollment to complete each course.
• To check your comprehension, take the quizzes at the back of the books.

3. PASS YOUR COURSE EXAMS

• All course exams are open book.
• Each course exam has 100 multiple choice questions.
• You have 2 hours and 30 minutes to complete each exam.
• You have unlimited exam attempts during your 1-year enrollment period.
• 60% passing score for each exam.
• Upon passing your exam, you will receive a Certificate of Completion. Retain this for the future license exam application.

4. APPLY FOR THE AGENT STATE EXAM

• You may either:
  • Apply to take the State Exam first and on passing the exam, apply for the license, or
  • Apply for the State Exam and license at the same time to cut processing time. See
    “Steps to Become Licensed” – Combined License and Exam Application for more details.
• DRE processing time: 3-6 weeks.
• After you apply, you have 2 years to pass the State Exam
• Fill out and sign RE 400A (Salesperson Examination Application).
• Pay a $60 exam fee by check payable to “Department of Real Estate” or by credit card using – RE 909 (Credit Card Payment). 
• Mail RE 400A, your payment of the fee, and copies of your 3 Course Certificates of Completion to:

Department of Real Estate
Examination Section
PO Box 137001
Sacramento, CA 95813-7001

You will receive an email or letter from DRE clearing you for the State Exam. Schedule your State Exam date and location by registering for an eLicensing account at dre.ca.gov. You may check for available State Exam Dates.

5. PREPARE FOR THE STATE EXAM

• Attend a live State Exam Prep course (not required but highly recommended):
  • Review your three textbooks
  • Review the State Exam Prep Class handout
  • Review State Exam Study Guide
  • Take Practice Exams
  • Review Flash cards
  • Review terms and definitions
  • Review math study guides
  • Review exam taking tips

6. TAKE YOUR STATE EXAM

• Take only your current government-issued photo ID into the testing room – nothing else.
• You will receive your exam results immediately on completion.

7. GET YOUR FINGERPRINTS SCANNED

• Fill out and sign 3 copies of RE 237 (Live Scan Service Request).
• Hand all 3 copies of RE 237 to a Live Scan service provider.
• Pay a $20-$40 Live Scan Rolling Fee and a $49 fingerprint processing fee to the Live Scan service provider.

8. APPLY FOR YOUR LICENSE

• DRE processing time: 3-6 weeks.
• You have 1 year after passing the State Exam to apply for your license.
• DRE will send an RE 202 (Salesperson License Application) to you for completion.
• Send the completed RE 202, one copy of RE 237, and the $245 licensing fee by check payable to “Department of Real Estate” or by credit card using – RE 909 (Credit Card Payment), to:

  Department of Real Estate
  Examination Section
  PO Box 137002
  Sacramento, CA 95813-7002

• An e-mail will be sent to you once your license has been Issued. License certificates can be printed online using the DRE eLlcenslng system.
• Now CELEBRATE!!!

What if I Don’t Pass The State Exam?

If you do not pass the State Exam with a 70% or greater, you may apply to retake the examination.

Apply to retake the State Exam using the eLicensing online system

Alternatively, you may use the Salesperson Examination Change Application RE 415A to apply for a retest.

You may attempt the State Exam an unlimited number of times during the two-year period following the date of filing your original application.

The cost to retake the State Exam is the same cost as the original attempt — $60 for agent licensing.

Tip: You will be informed of your final score and the percentage of questions answered correctly across each of the seven topical areas covered on the State Exam. Use this feedback to focus your retest preparation on the areas where you obtained the weakest scores.

Forms

Below are some of the forms required for the State Exam Licensing process.

RE 435 – Salesperson Exam/License Application

RE 400A – Salesperson Exam Application only

RE 237 – Live Scan Service Request

RE 909 – Credit Card Payment

DRE – Obtaining a California Real Estate Salesperson License