Real Estate Brokerage Business
Area I is 43 of the 100 items on the Florida broker examination — by far the largest block, and larger than the next three areas combined. It covers licensure, brokerage entities and offices, advertising, ownership and supervision, escrow management, and Florida law and FREC rules. The sources are Chapter 475, Part I, Florida Statutes, and Rule Chapter 61J2, Florida Administrative Code.
Licensure requirements
Section 475.17(1)(a), F.S., requires an applicant to be at least 18, hold a high school diploma or its equivalent, and be honest, truthful, trustworthy, and of good character. The broker tier adds experience: s. 475.17(2)(b), F.S., requires 24 months during the preceding 5 years holding either an active sales associate license in Florida or another jurisdiction, a sales associate license while salaried by a governmental agency, or a broker license in another jurisdiction. Rule 61J2-3.008(2)(a), F.A.C., sets the broker prelicense Course II at 72 hours of 50 minutes each, inclusive of examination. Under s. 475.181(2), F.S., an application expires 2 years after receipt if the examination is not passed, and successful course completion becomes invalid if the examination is not passed within 2 years of it. Section 475.182(1)(a), F.S., requires 14 classroom hours of continuing education each biennium, and rule 61J2-3.009(2), F.A.C., fixes 3 hours of Core Law and 3 hours of Business Ethics within that 14, with specialty hours totaling at least 8. Address changes go to the commission within 10 days under s. 475.23, F.S.; a licensee who becomes a nonresident has 60 days under s. 475.180(2)(a), F.S. A license involuntarily inactive for more than 2 years expires and becomes null and void under s. 475.183(2)(b), F.S.
Brokerage entities, offices, and advertising
Section 475.15, F.S., requires each partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company, or corporation acting as a broker to register with the commission; entities are registered rather than licensed. For a limited partnership only the general partners must be licensed brokers or registered brokerage corporations, and if no active broker member's license is in force the entity's registration is canceled automatically for that period. Section 475.22(1), F.S., requires each active broker to maintain an office of at least one enclosed room in a building of stationary construction, together with an entrance sign at the principal office and each branch bearing at minimum the words "licensed real estate broker" or "lic. real estate broker." Note that rule 61J2-10.024, F.A.C., which formerly governed entrance signs, was repealed in 2006, so the statute is the operative source. Rule 61J2-10.022, F.A.C., permits the required office to sit in a residential location where local zoning allows. Rule 61J2-10.025, F.A.C., requires every advertisement to include the licensed name of the brokerage firm and, online, to place that name adjacent to or immediately above or below the point of contact information. Rule 61J2-10.026(4), F.A.C., bars team or group names from using words such as realty, real estate, properties, brokerage, or LLC that imply a separate firm.
Escrow management
Rule 61J2-14.008(3), F.A.C., defines "immediately" as placement in an escrow account no later than the end of the third business day following receipt, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays; rule 61J2-14.009, F.A.C., gives a sales associate until the end of the next business day to deliver a deposit to the broker, and provides that receipt by the associate counts as receipt by the broker for the three-day rule. Rule 61J2-14.010, F.A.C., requires the broker to be a signatory on all escrow accounts and permits up to $1,000 of personal or brokerage funds per sales escrow account and up to $5,000 per property management escrow account, never exceeding $5,000 per account. Rule 61J2-14.012(2), F.A.C., requires a monthly written statement reconciling total trust liability against reconciled bank balances, which the broker must review, sign, and date. Interest-bearing escrow accounts require the written permission of all parties under rule 61J2-14.014(1), F.A.C. On conflicting demands or good faith doubt, rule 61J2-10.032(1), F.A.C., requires written notice to the commission within 15 business days and institution of a settlement procedure within 30 business days; s. 475.25(1)(d)1., F.S., lists the four procedures: escrow disbursement order, arbitration, court adjudication by interpleader, and mediation.
Florida law, FREC rules, and the Recovery Fund
Section 475.25(1), F.S., lets the commission deny, reprimand, place on probation, suspend for up to 10 years, revoke, and impose an administrative fine of up to $5,000 for each count or separate offense, in any combination. Rule 61J2-24.001, F.A.C., publishes the disciplinary guidelines and orders penalties from letter of concern through revocation. Section 475.42(1)(a), F.S., makes unlicensed practice a third-degree felony, while s. 475.42(2), F.S., makes the other violations of that subsection second-degree misdemeanors. Section 475.25(1)(p), F.S., requires written notice to the commission within 30 days of pleading guilty or nolo contendere to, or being convicted of, any felony, and s. 475.25(5), F.S., requires an administrative complaint to be filed within 5 years of the act or its discovery. The Florida Real Estate Recovery Fund, created by s. 475.482, F.S., reimburses persons holding unsatisfied civil judgments against licensees: s. 475.484, F.S., caps recovery at $50,000 per claim, $50,000 per transaction in the aggregate, and $150,000 in the aggregate against any one licensee, and automatically suspends the licensee's license on the date of payment until the fund is repaid in full with interest. Section 475.483(1)(c), F.S., requires a claim within 2 years of the act or its discovery and never more than 4 years after the act.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- State regulator
- Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), DBPR
- Exam vendor
- Pearson VUE
- Prelicensing education
- 72-hour FREC-approved broker pre-license course
- Passing score
- 75%
- Scored questions
- 100
- Time limit
- 210 minutes
Who regulates real estate brokers in Florida?
The Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), housed within the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), licenses brokers and sales associates. DBPR uses Pearson VUE as the official testing provider.
What experience do I need before the Florida broker exam?
Section 475.17(2)(b), F.S., requires 24 months of licensure during the preceding five years, and it accepts any of three paths: an active sales associate license held in Florida or in another state, territory, or foreign jurisdiction; a sales associate license held while salaried by a governmental agency; or a broker license held in another jurisdiction. An out-of-state broker therefore qualifies without ever having held a Florida sales associate license. Applicants must also complete the 72-hour FREC-prescribed broker course (Course II).
How is the Florida broker exam structured?
Florida gives one integrated 100-question multiple-choice examination — there is no separate national portion and no state portion. Candidates get 3.5 hours (210 minutes), and the exam is graded on 100 points with 75 points or higher required to pass. The DBPR booklet publishes twelve content areas whose percentages sum to 100, led by Real Estate Brokerage Business at 43% and Closing Transactions at 12%. Pearson VUE schedules, administers, scores, and reports the exam for DBPR.
Sources: https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/servop/testing/documents/RE_broker_cib.pdf, https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/Chapter475/PART_I, https://www.flrules.org/gateway/Division.asp?DivID=241, https://www.pearsonvue.com/us/en/fl/dbpr.html
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