Licensing Information

Licensing Renewal Requirements for:

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

An applicant for renewal of any REAL ESTATE BROKER OR PROPERTY MANAGER license expiring on February 28, 2011 or REAL ESTATE SALESPERSONS license expiring on August 31, 2011, must submit proof of completing 15 hours of approved continuing education credit in the following subjects:

Fair Housing 3 hours
DC Legislative Update 3 hours
Financing Issues/Update 3 hours
General Electives 6 hours

For clarification, please note that under the DC real estate licensure law:

THESE GUIDELINES APPLY TO ACTIVELY LICENSED DC AGENTS.

  1. If you are a new salesperson licensee who received your DC real estate license between 9-1-09 and 8-31-11, then you are exempt from taking CE courses, if this is your first license renewal. This statement does not necessarily apply to licensees who are on Inactive or apply for Reinstatement, and who make their licenses Active.
  2. If you are exempt from taking CEs, you may take courses if you want, in order to benefit your education of the real estate field.
  3. If you take CE courses during this 2009-2011 licensing cycle, the courses will not carry over to the next cycle.
  4. The current license renewal cycle for DC Salespersons began on 9-1-09 and ends on 8-31-11. The current license renewal cycle for DC Brokers and Property Managers began on 3-01-09 and ends on 2-28-11.
  5. The CE requirements for the 2009-2011 license renewal cycle are—(9 hours mandated) Fair Housing; DC Legislative Update; and Financing Issues/Update; and 6 hours of approved general electives.
  6. The school and the courses must be first approved by the DC Real Estate Commission. GCAAR is DC-approved.

For more information, please contact the DC Real Estate Commission at 202.442.4320.

MARYLAND

Important Reinstate / Reactivate Laws from the 2011 Legislative Session

ATTENTION: EXPIRED RETURNING TO ACTIVE LICENSEES (17-314) 
Effective October 1, 2011, the term of an expired license will change from 4 years to 3 years.  The expired licensee must apply to the Commission for reinstatement within 3 years after the license expires.  The Commission sent letters to expired licensees to notify them of this change.  (updated: 9.14.2011) 
ATTENTION: INACTIVE RETURNING TO ACTIVE LICENSEES (17-316)
Effective October 1, 2011, the term of an inactive license will change from 4 years to 3 years AND also continuing education hours MUST BE COMPLETED BEFORE RENEWING A LICENSE even on Inactive Status.  However, the new law allows licensees currently on inactive status to continue under the 4-year term without completing the CE hours until ready to reactivate. (updated: 9.14.2011) 

 

Maryland CE Requirements as of 1/1/2012

During the 2010 Maryland legislative session House Bill 83 changed the continuing education requirements for real estate practitioners.

  • All real estate licensees are required to take a 3-hour continuing education course in agency principles and disclosure as part of the continuing education required for license renewal. The agency course requirement must be fulfilled once every 4 years for the license renewals that occur after January 1, 2012.
  • All brokers, branch office managers and team leaders are required to complete a 3-hour course on the requirements of broker supervision once every 4 years for the license renewals that occur after January 1, 2012.
  • Licensees who possess a graduate degree in law or real estate will be eligible for license renewal if they complete a total of 7.5 hours of continuing education, if they are not a broker, associate broker, or are designated a branch office manager or team leader. Those licensees eligible for the 7.5 hour requirement will substitute the agency class for the legislative update class in alternating licensing periods.

To renew a 2-year license, the schedule below shows the number of hours and course content required based on expiration date, type of services provided, team or office management role, and education.

If your license expires on or before 12/31/11, hours needed are:
Residential - (ALL LICENSEES) 15 hours which must include 3.0 legislative, 1.5 fair housing, 3.0 ethics
Commercial - (SOLELY - NO Residential Business) 15 hours which must include 3.0 legislative & 3.0 ethics
Licensees with a graduate degree in law or real estate from an accredited college or university (must supply documentation at audit) 7.5 hours (3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics and 1.5 fair housing; if solely commercial 7.5 hours must include 3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics and 1.5 elective)
If your license expires between 1/1/2012 and 12/31/2013 and you are NOT a broker, branch office manager or team leader, hours needed are:
Residential 15 hours which must include 3.0 agency-residential, 3.0 legislative, 1.5 fair housing, 3.0 ethics, 4.5 electives (no duplicates)
Commercial - (SOLELY - NO Residential Business) 15 hours which must include 3.0 agency-commercial, 3.0 legislative, 3.0 ethics, 6.0 electives (no duplicates)
Licensees with a graduate degree in law or real estate from an accredited college or university (must supply documentation at audit) For Residential practitioners:
7.5 hours (3.0 MREC-residential, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 fair housing in 2012 and 2013; 3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 fair housing in 2014 or 2015)
For solely Commercial practitioners:
7.5 hours (3.0 MREC-commercial, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 elective in 2012 and 2013; 3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 elective in 2014 or 2015)
If your license expires between 1/1/2012 and 12/31/2013 and you ARE a broker, branch office manager or team leader, hours needed are:
Residential 15 hours which must include 3.0 MREC agency-residential, 3.0 MREC supervision, 3.0 legislative, 1.5 fair housing, 3.0 ethics, 1.5 electives
Commercial - (SOLELY - NO Residential Business) 15 hours which must include 3.0 MREC agency-commercial, 3.0 MREC supervision, 3.0 legislative, 3.0 ethics, 3.0 electives (no duplicates)
Licensees with a graduate degree in law or real estate from an accredited college or university (must supply documentation at audit) For Residential practitioners:
13.5 hours (3.0 MREC agency-residential, 3.0 MREC supervision, 3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 fair housing)
For solely Commercial practitioners:
13.5 hours (3.0 agency-commercial, 3.0 MREC supervision, 3.0 legislative, 3.0 Maryland ethics, 1.5 elective)

If licensed in another state, Maryland may recognize continuing education hours completed in that state if the course and provider are approved by that state's real estate commission; however, they must also meet Maryland's regulations. Maryland mandated course are applicable ONLY to Maryland state, Maryland local, or federal laws; not other state's laws.

A licensee holding a license from another state must complete at least 15-clock hours of continuing education instruction during each 2-year license term and may substitute clock hours of continuing education instruction earned in another state, if those clock hours:

  1. are approved as real estate continuing education in that state; and
  2. meet the distribution requirements of Maryland law
  3. the commission shall grant the substitution of clock hours only if the other state permits the substitution of clock hours of continuing education instruction approved by the commission for a licensee of this state.

For more information, please visit the Maryland Real Estate Commission website.

VIRGINIA

NOTE:

Virginia Licensing Revision:

Effective July 1, 2009, a two-hour course in Limited Service Agency is no longer a requirement to renew or activate any real estate broker or salesperson license in Virginia.  The Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation's  “Licenses Look-Up” website has been updated to reflect this.

For new Virginia licensees who have earned their license since January 1, 2004: New legislation from the Virginia General Assembly's 2003 Session created a 30-hour education requirement for new licensees to complete within their first two years after receiving a license. To see a complete list of what coursework you must complete, please click here.

License renewal: An applicant for renewal of license expiring on or after July 1, 2004, must complete a total of 16 hours (increased from the previous 8 hour requirement) per two-year licensing cycle as follows:

Eight (8) hours must be in the areas of:

  • Ethics and standards of conduct
  • Legal updates and emerging trends
  • Real estate agency
  • Real estate contracts
  • Fair housing [must have a minimum of two (2) hours of fair housing that include an update on current cases and administrative decisions under fair housing laws]

The remaining eight (8) hours are elective.

The Board will accept up to 8 hours of continuing education completed out-of-state as long as the certificate states that the course has been approved for continuing education by that state’s real estate board/commission and the agent/broker has a current license in that state. The 8 hours will be applied to the real estate related category only.