Requirements Governing Licensees
Area III is the largest block on the Massachusetts state portion at 33-35% and 14 items, and it is where agency law lives: the bulletin has no standalone Agency heading, only sub-item E, 'Agency and Non-Agency Relationships'.
Advertising and solicitation
M.G.L. c.112 s.87AAA(k) forbids soliciting the sale or listing of residential property on the ground of an alleged change of value due to the entry into the neighborhood of persons of another race, economic level, religion, or ethnic origin, and forbids distributing material designed to induce an owner to sell for that reason. The penalty is a fine of $1,000 to $2,500, imprisonment for up to six months, or both, on top of license discipline.
Broker and salesperson
Under s.87RR a salesperson may not run his own real estate business and acts only as the representative of a broker, who must approve the negotiation and completion of transactions and is responsible with the salesperson for any s.87AAA violation the salesperson commits. A salesperson may be affiliated with only one broker at a time, may be an employee or an independent contractor, and may accept compensation for licensed acts from no one but his own broker. An unlicensed person cannot sue for compensation for brokerage services performed in the Commonwealth.
Agency and non-agency relationships
Section 87AAA3/4 governs residential property of one to four dwellings. Dual agency requires informed written consent from buyer and seller on the Board's prescribed form, signed and dated, plus notice of the dual agency after the listed property is first shown. Designated agency also requires informed written consent; once designated agents are appointed for both sides, the appointing broker is presumed a dual agent, information known to a designated agent is not imputed to the broker or other affiliated licensees, and the appointment does not limit the broker's own liability. Both the designated agent and the appointing broker must reveal known material defects. Consent to designated agency is conclusively presumed if the disclosure form is signed no later than the offer or the purchase and sale agreement, whichever comes first. Subagency requires that the seller be told about vicarious liability and consent in writing. A facilitator represents neither party and acts in no agency capacity.
Conflicts, documents, and money
Section 87AAA also makes it a ground for discipline to act as broker and undisclosed principal in the same transaction, to act for more than one party without the knowledge and consent of all, to take an undisclosed commission or rebate on a principal's expenditures, to fail to give both buyer and seller a copy of the purchase and sale agreement, to fail within a reasonable time to account for or remit money belonging to others, and to commingle a principal's money with the broker's own.
Rental fees
As amended by St.2025 c.9 s.43 effective 1 August 2025, s.87DDD1/2 lets a licensee contract solely with a prospective tenant or solely with a landlord, and provides that any fee shall be paid only by the party who originally engaged and contracted with the licensee. Read with the parallel amendment to M.G.L. c.186 s.15B, which now binds the lessor's agent as well as the lessor, a tenant who did not hire the broker cannot be charged the fee.
Home inspectors
Section 87YY1/2 requires the licensee, at the signing of the first written contract to purchase, to hand the buyer the home inspection brochure published by the office of consumer affairs and business regulation, and forbids recommending a specific inspection company or inspector. A complete Board-prepared list of licensed inspectors may be given on request. The prohibition lifts only where a written contract or written agency disclosure shows the broker acts exclusively as the buyer's broker.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- Exam vendor
- PSI
- Prelicensing education
- 40 additional broker education hours (beyond the 40-hour salesperson course)
- Passing score
- 70%
- Scored questions
- 120
Who regulates real estate brokers in Massachusetts?
The Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons, within the Division of Occupational Licensure, licenses brokers. The Board contracts with PSI to deliver the licensing exams.
What experience do I need before the Massachusetts broker exam?
Broker applicants generally must have worked as an affiliated salesperson under an active Massachusetts broker for at least three years (a minimum of about 25 hours per week) and complete an additional 40 hours of broker education. Confirm the current requirement with the Board.
How is the Massachusetts broker exam structured?
The Massachusetts broker exam has about 120 questions split into a general portion and a state portion, delivered by PSI, and a score of at least 70% is required to pass.
Sources: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/prepare-for-and-schedule-your-real-estate-license-exam, https://www.psiexams.com/test-takers/massachusetts-real-estate/
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