(**) Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning RealEstateCareerHQ.com will get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through the links, but at no additional cost to you.
Rather than making income solely based on your sales production, being a real estate broker in Georgia allows you to build a team of sales agents. You’ll be recruiting, providing training and support to your underlying agents. In return, you would get a share of their commission.
To become a real estate broker in Georgia, you must:
- Be at least 21 years old;
- Have at least 3 years of active real estate sales experience in the past 5 years;
- Complete 60 hours of pre-license courses from an approved education provider;
- Pass the Georgia Real Estate Broker Exam;
- Go through a background check;
- Submit a Real Estate Broker Application and a $170 fee to the Georgia Real Estate Commission;
- Complete the 36 hours CE and license renewal requirement
Georgia Real Estate Commission is the regulatory body that protect consumers in matters relating to real property transactions. They are responsible for issuing the licenses and regulates the real estate industry.
In this guide, you’ll learn the steps to become a real estate broker in Georgia, income updates, and FAQs on this profession.
(If you are just starting the real estate career, but haven’t obtained the salesperson license yet, you should read over this career starter guide first.)
But before we start, I want to give a brief disclaimer. This post is not intended as legal advice or state/federal real estate training. It is for general information only. Please always follow your State laws and best practices.
When choosing a real estate school, I prefer one where you could take the courses online. This way, you could study at your own pace whenever and wherever. The CE Shop is a trustworthy real estate education provider. You may click here to see whether they offer pre-licensing course in your state. (**)
A Quick Table Summary of Becoming a Real Estate Broker in Georgia
| Work Experience Requirement | Education | Exam | Fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Have at least 3 years of active real estate sales experience in the past 5 years | 60 hours of pre-licensing course 36 credit hours of continuing education every four year | National Simulation – 11 simulation problems Achieved MPL for both IG and DM sections | Pre-license education $188.30 Exam fee $121 Application fee $170 Background check $51.50 |
7 Steps to Become a Real Estate Broker in Georgia
Step 1: Meet the eligibility requirement
You’ll need to be at least 21 years old, have a valid Social Security Number, high school graduate or the holder of a certificate of equivalency.
Step 2: Fulfill the work experience requirement
You need to have at least 3 years of active experience as a sales agent or broker in the preceding 5 years before the filing of the application.
Step 3: Complete the pre-licensing education
You need to take 60 hours of pre-licensing classes from an approved provider. The course will equip you with real estate knowledge such as brokerage start-up, trust accounts management, agency 101, non-agency relationships, property representation, fair housing, training and supervision, ethics and negotiation, financing, risk managements and more.
Pre-licensing Education Exemptions
There are situations where you could be exempt from taking these classes. For instance:
- You already completed a minimum of 9 semester hours or 15 quarter hours of either course work majoring in real estate, real property or contracts from a U.S. or Canada accredited college or university or
- You have completed all the Graduate, Realtors® Institute designation courses required by the Georgia Association of Realtors®
- You have successfully taken at least 60 hours of pre-license course work from another state. However, the courses must be approved by the real estate regulatory agency in that area. You’ll also need to obtain a letter from the agency to verify their approval of the courses.
Step 4: Go through a background check
The Georgia Real Estate Commission needs to protect the public interest, and they will conduct a background check on all real estate license applicants. To do so, you will obtain a Georgia Criminal Information Center (GCIC) report from a local police station or sheriff’s department. There is a $51.50 fee.
You need to bring the report to the AMP testing center before receiving a license.
In those cases the Commission may grant a license as associate broker or broker only if:
(a) at least ten (10) years have passed since the revocation of the applicant’s occupational license or since the applicant’s conviction or release from any probation, whichever is later;
(b) no criminal charges are pending against the applicant; and
(c) the applicant presents satisfactory proof that he or she now bears a good reputation for honesty, trustworthiness, integrity, and competence to transact the business of a licensee in such a manner as to safeguard the interest of the public.
Quote from Georgia Real Estate Commission InfoBase- Chapter 3
Step 5: Submit application to the Georgia Real Estate Commission
Similar to the registration process of being a real estate salesperson, you need to submit the application to the Georgia Real Estate commission.
You also need to provide other necessary documents, such as the transcript of pre-license classes completion and the application fee of $170.
Step 6: Pass the Georgia Real Estate Broker Examination
National Broker Examination
This part of the exam consists of 11 simulation problems. But only nine will be scored, the other two are pretested questions.
Each simulation will be assigned with a property type, primary issue and other secondary topics.
| Primary Issues | # of Problems |
Agency Relationships and Property Representations | 3 |
| Fair Housing and Other Governmental Regulations | 2 |
| Handling Money | 2 |
| Training and Supervision of Licensees | 1 |
| One primary issue varying by examination form | 1 |
| Property Types | # of Problems |
| Residential | 4 |
| Commercial | 2 |
| Property Management | 1 |
| Two property types varying by examination form | 2 |
Section Topics Include:
- Agency
- Contracts
- Freehold and Leasehold
- Property Management
- Finance
- Government Regulations and Private Restrictions
- Description and Measurement
- Valuation
- Conveyance
- Calculations
- Ethical Behavior (must be incorporated in at least 4 problems)
Each simulating question contains three parts: Scenario, Information Gathering (IG) sections, and Decision Making (DM) sections.
A content expert will evaluate your answers, and you must achieve an overall minimum passing level (MPL) or raw scores of 70 for these sections.
Georgia Broker Supplement Exam
This section of the exam would include
- State Laws and Rules – 31 questions
- Management – 12 questions
- Closing and Calculations – 5 questions
The Colibri is the online school that I like. Their Exam Prep have helped thousands of students pass their exam on the first try. They even have a “Pass or Don’t Pay” Guarantee. That’s why confident they are with their program. You may click here to view their exam prep. (**)
Step 7: Maintain the broker license
You need to renew your real estate license once every four years. You may do so up to 120 days (4 months) before to the renewal date by through the Commission Online Services. There is a $125 renewal fee.
Furthermore, you have to complete 36 hours of approved continuing education for every 4 years renewal period. Of which, it must include 3 hours of License Law.
How much does it cost to get a real estate broker license in Georgia?
It costs approximately $530.80 to get a real estate broker license in Georgia. Here’s the breakdown:
- Pre-license education $188.30
- Exam fee $121
- Application fee $170
- Background check $51.50
However, if you were setting up a real estate brokerage, the cost of getting a broker license is only part of the expenses. There is also other office expenses such as salary of administrative staff, office lease, furniture, equipment, software subscriptions.
How long does it take to become a real estate broker in Georgia?
It takes at least 3 years to get a real estate broker license in Georgia. That is the required amount of real estate sales experience. But it also depends on the time it takes you to complete the pre-license courses, exam, background check, application.
You may speed up in getting the Georgia real estate broker license by taking online courses. This way, you’ll have the flexibility to finish the pre-licensing education at a quicker pace.
How Much do Real Estate Brokers Make in Georgia?
Real estate brokers in Georgia make an average of $62,200/year. It typically ranges between $39,700 to $76,420. Top earning real estate brokers are making over $95,490. (*)
Your earning depends on many factors. For example, the amount of time per week you are dedicated to run the business and the number of agents in your sales team. Having the skills and vision to delegate tasks to others rather than DIY is another major determining factor.
(*) Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2019)
Here’s another post you could be interested. “Do Brokers Make More than Real Estate Agents? (Facts Revealed)”
I have more questions about the real estate broker license in Georgia, whom should I contact?
The best would be to contact the Georgia Real Estate Commission:
- Phone: 404-656-3916
- E-Mail: grecmail@grec.state.ga.us
If you are reading up to this point, I bet you must be interested in getting a real estate license. Your first step is to complete the pre-licensing courses. You should select one that has an excellent reputation and long-term track record of satisfying students. The Colibri is exactly that! You may click here to check it out yourself. (**)
(**) Affiliate Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you. Our company, JCHQ Publishing will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase after clicking on the link. Please understand that we include them based on our experience or the research on these companies or products, and we recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something through the links. Please do not spend any money on these products unless you feel you need them or that they will help you achieve your goals.
Disclaimer: The information in this post is for general information only, and not intend to provide any advice. They are subjected to change without any notice, and not guaranteed to be error-free. Some of the posts on this site may contain views and opinions from individual not related to JCHQ Publishing. They do not necessarily reflect our view or position.
Reference:
- Georgia Real Estate Commission (source)
- Georgia Real Estate Examination Program – Candidate Handbook (source)
- (*) Bureau of Labor Statistics
