How to Become a Real Estate Agent in New York

In order to be registered as a real estate agent in New York, you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age at the time of application
• Be a citizen or resident alien of the US
• Never been convicted of a felony
• Complete 75 hours of real estate course with state-approved school. (Fortunately, online course is accepted)
• Be sponsored by NYS-licensed real estate broker
• Pass an examination administered by the State of New York

Application process

To reduce confusion of application protocol, please follow these steps below

Step 1: Complete 75-hour required course

To become a real estate salesperson in NY, you need to complete 75 hours of real estate course and pass the agent test. For your convenience, you may choose local institutes near your home. You can click here to search for locally approved real estate schools or directly contact the Division of Licensing Service at (518) 474-4429.

Step 2: Take the exam and get passed!

To apply for the agent test, simply follow three steps below:

• Register your account at eAccessNY
• Schedule your examination in the Occupational Licensing Management System section
• Bring Summary of Your Submission on your exam date

To get passed, you need to correctly answer 70% of the questions.

Step 3: Complete and submit real estate salesperson application

After you already pass the licensing test, you must submit a completed real estate salesperson application with your pass exam notification as well as licensing application fee of $50.

Real estate salesperson application is downloadable

Submit your package of documents (pass exam notification, license application, and application fee) to the following address:

Department of State
Division of Licensing Services
Bureau of Educational Standards
P.O. Box 22001
Albany, NY 12201-2001

As an alternative, you may apply for a salesperson online by doing these steps:

• Creating an account via https://dos.ny.gov/
• Login to your account.
• Enter the required information.
• Enter the unique ID number of your sponsoring broker.
• Make payment and print confirmation page.

After you complete these steps, if everything goes right, you will receive your license within 7 days.

How much does it cost to become a real estate agent in New York?

First-time Cost:

• $249 – Online Real Estate Course – Apply Now
• $50 -Licensing application
• $15 – Written Exam fee

Other Cost:

• $50 – Renewal fee (you must renew your license with 2 years of holding the license)
• $10 – Change of Personal Name and/or Address fee
• $10 – Duplicate License/Registration Request fee

Read More: The Top 7 Real Estate Study Tips

Important facts about fees to become real estate agent in New York:

• All fees occurred for the examination and license are not refundable.
• Cash is not accepted, you may pay by credit card, check, or money order (made payable to the Department of State).

About The Real Estate Exam:

• The written exam is multiple choices and based on the 75-hour pre-licensing curriculum.
• 1.5 hours will be given to complete the test.
• You must correctly answer at least 70 percent of the questions to pass the exam.

Renewal Process:

Prior to getting your license renewed, you need to complete 22.5 hours of “continuing education requirement” with an NYC-approved school. The whole process must be completed within 2 years term of holding the licenses before they totally expired. Once the license expires, you are required to take the written examination again without having to take the 22.5 hours of continuing education course.

Contact Info:

References:

• New York State Department of Licensing Service
• Mortgage News Daily