Requirements Governing the Activities of Licensees
Area IV is worth 9 of the 60 state items. Its printed subtopics are advertising, the broker/salesperson relationship, handling of documents, handling of monies, and prohibited conduct.
Advertising and the broker/salesperson relationship
12 AAC 64.130(8) requires every advertisement to buy, sell, rent, lease or exchange real estate to carry the broker's business name as registered with the department, and says so expressly for property the licensee owns. 12 AAC 64.130(6) requires the owner's written authority before a property is advertised at all, and 12 AAC 64.128(c) bars a licensee working from a home office that is not a principal or branch office from displaying a business sign there or using that address in advertising, letterhead or business cards. On the relationship itself, AS 08.88.331 lets a salesperson or associate broker act only through the employing broker and requires all money collected in trust to be turned over to the broker immediately, and AS 08.88.401(b)(2) allows a salesperson or associate broker to be paid for licensed activity only by the employing broker, apart from a licensed assistant's wages.
Handling of documents
AS 08.88.341 requires every listing and management contract to be in writing and signed by the broker or an associated licensee and by the client, and requires every exclusive listing or management contract to carry a definite expiration date that may be renewed or extended only by a written agreement signed by the client. AS 08.88.405 lets a licensee prepare real property contracts, earnest money agreements, leases and related documents in the course of licensed work notwithstanding Alaska's law on the practice of law, and AS 08.88.403 lets a broker pay an attorney or associate broker to review a transaction before it closes. AS 08.88.321 requires license certificates to be displayed in the office where the licensee works, positioned so the public can verify current active status.
Handling of monies and prohibited conduct
12 AAC 64.200 requires money received in a transaction to be deposited in or mailed to the appropriate trust account within five days of receipt, relaxed only where geography, weather or transportation make it impossible or unreasonable. 12 AAC 64.130(12) allows non-cash earnest money only if the substitute is communicated to the owner before the offer is accepted and identified as a non-cash substitute on the receipt, and 12 AAC 64.271 requires control of the item to pass to the broker, who tells the parties how it is safeguarded. AS 08.88.401 forbids falsely claiming a degree, designation, professional membership or franchise affiliation; paying commissions to unlicensed persons outside the narrow exceptions; publishing false statements about property; and using an expired, suspended, revoked or nonexistent license. AS 08.88.401(g) grades a violation of that section or of AS 08.88.161 as a class A misdemeanor, and AS 08.88.485 makes a willful material misstatement in a commission filing a separate misdemeanor punishable by up to a year or $1,000.
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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.