Broker Only
Area VII is worth 15 of the 60 state items — a quarter of the Alaska state portion, and the block that has no counterpart on the salesperson exam. Its printed subtopics are trust accounts, supervision, place of business, and recordkeeping.
Trust accounts
AS 08.88.351(a)(3) requires the broker to keep a separate trust account into which all earnest money, purchase money, security deposits, contingency funds and collected rents are deposited until it is proper to pay them out. 12 AAC 64.180 requires the account to be in a federally insured bank authorized to do business in Alaska, its name to include "trust account" or "trustee account," its details to be filed with the commission, the opening broker to be trustee and responsible for all signatories, and all trust accounts to be demand accounts; up to $100 of the broker's own money may sit there to cover maintenance charges. 12 AAC 64.220 requires a transaction code and ledger for every written offer and every management contract, retention of deposit, disbursement, canceled-check, bank-statement and reconciliation records, and a monthly three-way reconciliation of bank statement to check register, deposits and expenditures to each ledger, and bank balance to the sum of the ledgers. 12 AAC 64.240(b) gives the broker 15 days after closing to withdraw the brokerage's commission; 12 AAC 64.250 forbids paying a salesperson's commission from the account, paying business or personal bills from it, using trust funds for the account's own maintenance charges, commingling, withdrawing without complying with the recordkeeping rules, refusing an accounting, and refusing to return a rejected buyer's deposit beyond one business day after the check clears. 12 AAC 64.210 requires any interest rate to be disclosed to the trustor and gives the interest to the trustor, not the broker. 12 AAC 64.260 makes non-compliance fraudulent and dishonest conduct.
Supervision
AS 08.88.685(a) requires the broker to adopt written policies and procedures, available to the commission and the public on request, on legal compliance, fair and honest dealing, reporting disputes and allegations, regular communication, and the relationships the firm offers; 12 AAC 64.117 adds required content on designated licensees, neutral licensees, single-licensee assistance to an unrepresented party, office-wide confidentiality, and teams. 12 AAC 64.125(b) defines adequate supervision as file review for completeness and accuracy before recording, communicating office policies, and supervising for compliance with the AS 08.88.685(a) policies; 12 AAC 64.125(e) permits electronic supervision but keeps the transaction records in the office where the licensee is registered. 12 AAC 64.078 lets a temporarily absent broker of record supervise remotely, or designate an available associate broker, or contract in writing with another broker, on notice to the commission signed by both. 12 AAC 64.080(b) automatically and simultaneously suspends every affiliated licensee's license when the broker's is suspended or revoked, and 12 AAC 64.090(c) treats a broker's failure to tell the commission why a licensee was discharged for a violation as ratification of the licensee's acts.
Place of business and recordkeeping
12 AAC 64.110(a) requires an actively licensed broker to establish and maintain a principal office in Alaska, and AS 08.88.291(a) makes failure to maintain a place of business, or to keep the commission informed of its location and the licensees at it, grounds for suspension or revocation. Offices and branches must be registered before operating, with the physical location, trust account numbers, licensees, branch supervisor and business activities listed (12 AAC 64.110(e)). AS 08.88.311 puts each branch under the direct supervision of an associate broker whose principal place of business is that office and who supervises only one office, and requires the branch to be advertised only in the principal office's name. AS 08.88.305 lets a broker run multiple registered business organizations only if their principal offices share one physical address. AS 08.88.381 and 12 AAC 64.127 require a sign showing the business name at the office entrance and a clearly identifiable physical address. On records, AS 08.88.351(a)(1) and (c) require three years of complete transaction records, measured from the end of the listing, sale, management contract or other obligation; AS 08.88.351(a)(6) requires a contract preserving records for three years where they pass to an entity that is not another licensed broker; and 12 AAC 64.111(a) requires the closing-office filing to include a zero-balance trust account statement and the custodian and location of the last three years of records.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- State regulator
- Alaska Real Estate Commission (Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing)
- Exam vendor
- Pearson VUE
- Prelicensing education
- 30 hours of Alaska broker training education
- Passing score
- Scaled score of 75
- Scored questions
- 140
- Time limit
- 240 minutes
Who regulates real estate brokers in Alaska?
The Alaska Real Estate Commission, within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, licenses real estate brokers, associate brokers, and salespersons. The Commission contracts with Pearson VUE to develop, administer, and score both the national and the Alaska state law portions of the licensing exam.
What experience do I need before the Alaska broker exam?
Alaska broker applicants must be at least 22 years old (12 AAC 64.059) and must have had at least 36 months of active and continuous experience as a real estate licensee within the 60 months immediately preceding application (AS 08.88.171(a)). "Active and continuous" is defined in 12 AAC 64.990(a) as holding a current active license with no single break of more than 30 days caused by failing to affiliate with an employing broker and file the application — so it is not quite the same as 36 unbroken months. Applicants must also complete 30 hours of commission-approved broker training education within the 18 months immediately preceding application, and file the license application within six months of passing the exam.
How is the Alaska broker exam structured?
The Alaska broker exam is one four-hour session covering two portions: a national/general portion of 80 scored items plus 5 pretest items, and an Alaska state law portion of 60 scored items plus 5 to 10 pretest items. Results are reported as a scaled score from 0 to 100 and a scaled score of 75 is required to pass, so the number reported is neither the count nor the percentage of questions answered correctly.
Sources: https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/professionallicensing/realestatecommission.aspx, https://www.pearsonvue.com/content/dam/VUE/vue/en/documents/publications/092200.pdf
In the Alaska Real Estate Broker guide: A 60-question national practice exam, with a key that explains all four options and not just the right one. Practice here stays free.