How to Get a Real Estate Broker License in Texas

A career in real estate means you control your destiny. Once you become a real estate broker, the sky is the limit. As a real estate broker, you can work independently without concern over having a sponsoring broker and spliting commission on each purchase. In addition, a real estate broker can manage a team, which means they get a percentage of commission that all the agents who work for them receive.

With a fast-growing Texas real estate market, managing your own brokerage is a great goal. If you have the required experience and want to take charge of your real estate career, now is a fantastic time to make that change.

As a broker, you will be able to help other real estate agents grow their careers, take a management position, own your own company, keep all your commission, and take in a large percentage of your employee's commission. It is a profitable and fantastic opportunity to take your career to the next level.

 

What is a Real Estate Broker?

A real estate broker is a career option available to real estate agents who have the correct amount of experience. Brokers can operate as an agent, but an agent cannot work as a broker without passing a brokerage exam and attaining an additional license.

After continuing their education and obtaining a broker license, real estate brokers have several career directions they can take.

The first direction a real estate broker can take is operating independently. Brokers can choose to sell real estate without reporting to a managing broker. This means that a broker can sell homes and receive full commission. Most real estate agents must pay their sponsoring broker between 50%-80% of their commission. Working as a broker means that you are entirely independent and can operate on your own.

Brokers can also start their own brokerages. They can manage a team of real estate agents and take a back seat to selling a property. These managing brokers make money by collecting commissions from their agents in return for employment, guidance, and additional benefits.

Pre-Requisites to Get a Texas Real Estate Broker License

To qualify for a broker's license exam, you must:

• Be a US citizen or a lawfully admitted alien
• Be at least 18 years old
• Be a Texas resident unless:
  • You were licensed in Texas as sales agent or broker in the last two years, or
  • Are a licensed broker in another state
• Must meet the Texas Real Estate Commission's (TREC) requirement of honesty, trustworthiness, and integrity
  • Consider requesting a Moral Character Determination before applying for the license

How Much Do Real Estate Brokers in Texas Make?

On average, a real estate broker in Texas makes an average of $72,460.00 a year. This salary is 21% higher than the US average broker salary.

Steps to Become a Real Estate Broker in Texas

In addition to the listed requirements, an individual interested in obtaining their broker's license in Texas must take a TREC designed course and pass the final exam.

You must have at least four years of active experience as a licensed real estate agent within the sixty months before sending the application. After you meet these requirements, follow these steps to obtain your license.

1. Complete 270 Hours of Pre-License Education

You must complete 270 credit hours of pre-licensing education. The courses needed for this education are:

• Principles of Real Estate I 
• Principles of Real Estate II 
• Law of Agency 
• Law of Contracts 
• Promulgated Contracts Forms 
• Real Estate Finance 
• Real Estate Brokerage 

• Real Estate Marketing I: Building a Real Estate Practice 
• Real Estate Property Management 

TREC calls for all the candidates to complete these courses.

The educational conditions do not end there. To apply for your broker's license, you must complete an additional 630 credit hours of qualifying education classes or TREC-approved Continuing Education (CE) courses. The approved courses are:

• Real Estate Appraisal
• Real Estate Law
• Real Estate Marketing
• Real Estate Math
• Property Management
• Real Estate Investments
• Residential Inspections for Real Estate Agents

A bachelor's degree or greater might satisfy these requirements if completed from an accredited college or university. You must submit a copy of your college transcript to the TREC after applying.

The following topics are TREC-approved for qualifying education course credit when completed for academic credit through a university or college.

• Accounting
  • Principles/Intro
  • Bookkeeping
  • Income Tax
  • Managerial
• Advertising
  • Principles/Intro
  • Public Relations
• Architecture
  • Drawing
• Business
  • Intro to Business
  • Business Communications
  • Business Math
  • Business Principles
  • Business Writing
  • Business Ethics
• Construction
  • Basic Design
  • Building
  • Electricity
  • Environmental Design
  • Framing
  • Materials
  • Roofing
  • Structures
  • Surveying
• Finance
  • Business
  • Corporation
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Financial Institutions
  • Money and Banking
  • Mortgage Lending/Loan Processing

• Investments
  • Principles/Intro
  • Investment Analysis
• Law
  • Agency
  • Agricultural
  • Business
  • Commercial
  • Contracts
  • Institutions and Management
  • Legal Environment
  • Oil and Gas
  • Property
• Management
  • Principles/Intro
  • Business Organizations
  • Farm and Ranch
  • Office
  • Personnel
  • Public Administration
  • Occupational Administration
• Marketing
  • Principles/Intro
  • Agricultural Marketing
  • Marketing Management
• Real Estate
  • Law, Finance, Contracts
  • Farm and Ranch Properties
  • Real Estate Trends
  • Title and Closings
  • Ethics
  • Taxation
  • Internship
  • Staging (Interior Design)

Source: TREC (TEXAS REAL ESTATE COMMISSION)

2. Meet the Experience Requirements

As discussed earlier, there are specific requirements you should meet to earn your broker license. These are the general requirements for candidates:

• You have to have at least four years of experience as a licensed agent that precedes a length no greater than 60 months to the filing of the software
• The experience must total 3600 points and be recorded on the Qualifying Experience Report for a Broker License.

3. Apply to Become a Texas Real Estate Broker

After you meet the requirements, apply online for your broker license and submit the required fee. Use your TREC registered username or Texas Appraiser Licensing username and Application Board (TALCB) to log in before submitting your application. Register using the same link if you do not have an account. You can also submit the application through mail.

4. Pass a Background Check

To be a real estate broker, you must pass a background check. It is required by law to have fingerprints on file with the Texas Department of Public Safety. Expect a delay in your process if there is an investigation into your background.

5. Pass the Texas Real Estate Broker Exam

Passing the exam is the final stage of acquiring your license. Study hard as you prepare for your real estate broker license exam. You get just three attempts to pass. After three attempts, you must undergo additional education if you fail the exam.

After Becoming a Real Estate Broker

After passing your exam and receiving your Texas Real Estate Broker license, you can now start your career as a broker. You can choose to work independently or employ a team of sales agents to expand your business and take full advantage of Texas's broad real estate market.

Remember that while you can employ an agent to handle clients as you manage the administrative part of the business, the fundamental responsibility of all transactions and legal components now falls on you as the broker. You still earn commissions, and if you employ real estate agents, you must split some of that amount with them.