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Having a real estate broker license is a great way for sales agents to grow their business. This allows you to build a team of real estate sales associates, where your brokerage will be providing training, marketing, administrative support, office space, and a subscription to industry software. In return, you’ll get a share of the commission from the transactions that your team members handle.
To become a real estate broker in New Jersey, you must:
- Have at least 3 years of active real estate work experience;
- Complete 90 hours of pre-license courses from an approved education provider;
- Pass the New Jersey Real Estate Broker Exam;
- Submit a Broker Application and a $270 fee;
- Complete 12 hours of CE and license renewal requirement
Depending on your business model, there are different types of broker license you could apply for in New Jersey. Here’s another post I wrote which talks about the different types of real estate broker licenses.
In this guide, you’ll learn the steps to become a real estate broker in New Jersey, income updates, and FAQs on this profession.
(By the way, 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. I also 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.)
6 Steps to Become a Real Estate Broker in New Jersey
Step 1: Meet the eligibility requirement
You’ll need to be at least 18 years old, completed high school education, have a valid Social Security Number, Citizen of the United States or lawfully admitted alien.
Step 2: Fulfill the work experience requirement
You must be licensed and work as a full-time NJ real estate salesperson for the three years immediately before the application submission.
Step 3: Complete the pre-licensing education
You must complete 90 hours of qualifying courses from an approved education provider. Then you need to complete two 30 hours courses on Agency/Ethics and Office Management and related topics.
Don’t forget that once you complete the education requirements, you’ll need to pass the exam and apply for the broker license within one year.
Step 4: Pass the New Jersey Real Estate Broker Examination
Before you register for the exam, you should get approval from the Commission for your Education and Work Experience first. This is where you submit the completed course certificates and Experience Report.
Once you get their approval, you may register in writing the broker exam. The process is similar to the salesperson exam. You register with the PSI, fill out the application, and provide them with $45 exam fee.
More info about the exam content can be found later in this post.
Step 5: Submit application to the New Jersey Real Estate Commission
You may submit the online application through NJ Real Estate Licensing Services, provide them with the required documents and the $270 fee.
Step 6: Maintain the real estate license
You are required to renew the license every two years. In addition to the renewal application, all New Jersey real estate licensees need to complete 12 credit hours of CE courses. It must cover the following:
- 1 hour – Fair Housing & NJ Law Against Discrimination
- 2 hours – Ethics
- 3 hours – Core
- 6 hours – Electives: A combination, or all of the same of: ELECTIVES or ETHICS or CORE or FAIR HOUSING
Here is more info about the New Jersey Real Estate Broker Examination
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The real estate broker exam is to test your knowledge and understanding of real estate law, principle and practices, and mathematics.
Real Estate Broker Exam Summary
| # of Questions | Time Allowed | Required Passing Score |
|---|---|---|
| 115 (120 points) | 4 hours | 70% (84 correct) |
Exam Content
In most other states, the real estate exam is divided into the National and State Portion. I read through the NJ Exam Candidate Information Bulletin Booklet, and it didn’t specify it has two separate parts. However, the NJ exam topics are very similar to those in other states.
Below is part of the exam topics. I believe the questions could be more related to the National level.
| Exam Content | Weighting (Broker) |
|---|---|
| Property ownership | 10% |
| Land use controls and regulations | 5% |
| Valuation and market analysis | 7% |
| Financing | 8% |
| General principles of agency | 11% |
| Property disclosures | 7% |
| Contracts | 18% |
| Leasing and Property Management | 5% |
| Transfer of Title | 7% |
| Practice of real estate | 14% |
| Real estate calculations | 8% |
Here are the remaining exam topics. They should correspond more to questions on the State level.
| Broker (# of Items) | |
|---|---|
| Duties and Powers of the Department and the State Board of Real Estate | 3 |
| Licensing Requirements | 4 |
| Statutory Requirements Governing the Activities of Licenses | 30 |
| Additional Requirements | 3 |
Broker Exam Sample Questions
To give you a better idea about the real estate exam, below are two sample questions for your reference.
SAMPLE BROKER QUESTIONS (SCENARIO-BASED)
Scenario: You are hosting an open house. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Martin come into the house. You greet them and show them the house. The Martins tell you the house is exactly what they are looking for and they are very interested in purchasing it. You then give them information showing the various types of financing available with down payment options and projected payments. Mr. Martin tells you they have been working with Mary Hempstead of XX Realty, a competing real estate company. Before leaving, you thank them for coming and give them your business card.
A. The first thing on Monday morning, Mrs. Martin calls and indicates they have tried to reach Mary and cannot. They indicate they have a written buyer’s agent agreement with Mary’s broker. They are afraid someone else is going to buy the house. Which of the following should you do? Select the best answer.
1. Seek advice from your supervising broker.
2. Tell them to come to your office.
3. Ask them to bring the buyer’s agency agreement to you for your interpretation.
4. Tell them to be patient and continue trying to reach Mary.
5. Tell them to call Mary’s supervising broker or branch manager.
6. Tell them you are really sorry, but there is nothing you can do
B. The Martins come to your office and explain that neither Mary nor her supervising broker are available. They insist
you immediately write an offer for the house. How should you proceed? Select the best answer.1. Write the offer after entering into a buyer’s broker agreement with them.
2. Write the offer after explaining they may owe Mary’s broker a commission.
3. Write the offer after trying to contact Mary’s broker yourself.
4. Refuse to write an offer and explain that doing so would be unethical.
5. Refuse to write and offer since it would be illegal.
6. Refuse to write the offer and tell the Martins to
Sample Questions Quoted from New Jersey Real Estate Salesperson and Broker Candidate Information Bulletin
contact another Salesperson in Mary’s office.
How long does it take to become a real estate broker in New Jersey?
It takes at least 3 years to get a real estate broker license in New Jersey. 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 NJ 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 New Jersey?
Real estate broker in New Jersey earn an average annual income of $105,294 typically range between $57,282 to $97,857. Some top earning brokers are making over $143,205/year.(*)
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.
Here’s another post you could be interested. “Do Brokers Make More than Real Estate Agents? (Facts Revealed)”
(*) Source: ZipRecruiter (May 23, 2021)
I have more questions about the real estate broker license, whom should I contact?
For licensing inquiry, you could contact:
- Licensing Bureau, Real Estate. NJ Dept. of Banking and Insurance
- PO Box 474, Trenton, NJ 08625-0474
- Phone: 609-292-7272
- FAX: 609-292-0944
- E-mail: relic@dobi.nj.gov
If you are reading up to this point, I bet you must be interested in becoming a real estate broker. Go through practice questions indeed can help you better prepare for the exam. PrepAgent is the exam prep that I highly recommend. You may click here to check out their package options. (**)
(**) 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 any notice, and not guaranteed to be error-free.
Reference:
- New Jersey Real Estate Commission (Source)
- New Jersey Real Estate Licensing Salesperson and Broker Examinations Candidate Information Bulletin (Source)
- Bureau of Labor Statistics – Real Estate Agents (May 2018) (Source)
- Real Trends: 2018 Real Trends 500 by Volume (Source)
- Zillow.com – New Jersey Home Prices & Values (Source)
- World Population Review- Population of Cities in New Jersey (Source)
- ZipRecruiter – Real Estate Broker Salary in New Jersey (source)
