How to get the 4 types of Georgia real estate licenses? Whether you want to be a real estate agent or broker, you’ll need one of these licenses to buy and sell property in Georgia. To become an agent, you must be at least 18 years old. To become a broker, you must be at least 21 years old. You also have to take specific real estate classes, pass an exam (or two, depending on the license), and go through a criminal background check.
Which license do you need? The main difference between a real estate agent and a real estate broker is how long they have been in the business and what kind of training they have had. One difference is that an agent must work for a licensed broker, while a broker can work for himself or herself and/or hire agents to work for him or her. In Georgia, you need to take more classes and work as an agent for at least three years before you can become a broker.
How to get the 4 types of Georgia real estate licenses
In Georgia, there are two kinds of licenses, so the requirements will be different for each. For example, a real estate agent in Georgia is allowed to handle real estate deals, but they must work for a licensed broker. A broker, on the other hand, can own their own business and hire other agents to work for them.
Agent license requirements:
- Must be 18 years old or older
- Must take 75 hours of real estate classes from an approved provider or 10 quarter hours or 6 semester hours of real estate classes from a recognized U.S. or Canadian college, university, or law school.
- Must pass the final exam and apply for a license within a year of the exam date.
- Must tell the truth about everything and pass a background check.
- Needs to be backed by a broker3
Broker license requirements:
- You must be at least 20 to take the test, and you must be at least 21 to get your license.
- Must have worked in real estate for at least three years, either as an agent or in the field as a whole.
- Must take 60 hours of real estate classes from an approved provider or 15 quarter hours or 9 semester hours of real estate classes from an accredited U.S. or Canadian college, university, or law school.
- Must pass the final exam and apply for a license within a year of the exam date.
- Must tell the truth about everything and pass a background check.
A note about background checks: on your application, you must list any and all convictions for crimes. Getting convicted of a crime may or may not mean you can’t vote, depending on the crime. If you don’t tell them about even a small conviction, your application will be turned down right away. If you have a criminal record, you can submit an application for a background check before you try to get a license.5
How long does it take in Georgia to get a license to sell real estate?
Depending on where you live, it takes about four to six months to become a real estate agent from start to finish. In Georgia, though, you could get your license in as little as three to nine weeks. But if you haven’t already found a sponsoring broker, it could take you up to a couple more months. The average salary of a real estate agent in Georgia is $42,963.1 per year.
For a broker, the path may be a little longer because they have to take an extra 60 hours of pre-broker real estate classes and have already worked three years as an agent or three years in the real estate field in general.
4 The average salary for a real estate broker in Georgia is $55,336.2 per year.
How much does it cost in Georgia to get a license to sell real estate?
Agents who want to work in real estate in Georgia will have to pay between $540 and $690 for their first license, while brokers will have to pay between $785 and $959 because they have to take more classes. Here’s what each of those costs looks like.
On average, pre-licensing exam coursework will cost agents between $200 and $350.
Brokers can expect to pay between $245 and $269 more for the extra hours of course work.
6
Agent and broker licenses cost a total of $170.43.
The fees for both exams cost a total of $121.43.
A criminal background check must also be done for both licenses, which will cost about $50.
Note that there may be other fees for things like joining an association, renting an office space, getting more training, or asking for an exception to certain rules. Also, agents and brokers can expect to pay $145 for continuing education and $100 to $125 every four years to keep their licenses valid. 8
Real Estate License Reciprocity
Georgia has agreements with every other state. To buy or sell real estate in Georgia, you must have a valid license from your home state that is still valid. 9
If you meet the above requirements, you can send in an application for a real estate reciprocal.
10 Before they can work in Georgia, agents and brokers from Florida must also pass an exam about the state. If a broker wants to start their own business, they must fill out a “open-a-firm” application. 11
Georgia Real Estate License Exam
Before you can take your Georgia real estate license exam, you must have taken the required number of pre-licensing classes and, if you want a broker’s license, shown proof that you have worked for a certain number of years. A company called Applied Measurement Professionals (AMP) is hired by the Georgia Real Estate Commission (GREC) to give the state’s real estate licensing exams.
You can apply to take your exam online through the AMP portal, unless you are applying with college course credit, out-of-state reciprocity, or because you live in Florida. 15 In those cases, you’ll need to mail the application from the candidate handbook. 16
There are 152 multiple-choice questions on the agent exam, and 52 of them are about Georgia.
17 You have four hours to finish the test, and as soon as you’re done, you’ll get your score. 18 You must also bring your broker sponsorship application if you want your license to be active right away. 19
The structure of the broker exam is different from that of the agent exam. Instead of multiple-choice questions, you will have three hours to solve 11 simulation problems. 20 If you live in Florida and want to be a broker in Georgia, you’ll need to pass the Georgia Supplement Exam, which has 48 multiple-choice questions. 21 If you don’t pass your test, you can ask to take it again. 22
Read more: 3 types of real estate licenses.
Leave a Reply