Affiliation, Supervision and License Maintenance
A South Dakota broker associate practices only through a responsible broker, and that relationship carries registration, supervision and renewal obligations on both sides. This chapter covers the statutory requirements that keep a license usable.
Supervision and the firm
SDCL 36-21A-79 makes a responsible broker responsible for the real estate activities of affiliated licensees, whether employees or independent contractors. SDCL 36-21A-124 sets out when a licensee counts as an independent contractor for employment purposes, but that classification does not shift supervisory responsibility. SDCL 36-21A-37 forbids a partnership, association, limited liability company or corporation from performing broker services, or a licensee from associating with one, until the entity is licensed. SDCL 36-21A-38 requires the entity to designate a responsible broker who signs the license application; a nonlicensed individual may hold an ownership interest but may not control or supervise the professional real estate activity of any licensee, and none may own any interest in a sole proprietorship engaged in that activity. SDCL 36-21A-39 requires notice of dissolution within ten days. SDCL 36-21A-46.1 lets a licensee form a business corporation or limited liability company on six conditions, one of which is that the responsible broker is not relieved of any obligation to supervise. ARSD 20:69:18:01 requires a team leader to give the responsible broker a current list of licensed team members and any change within 72 hours.
Registration, association and inactive status
SDCL 36-21A-52 requires each licensee to register a place of business: for a broker associate or salesperson, the responsible broker's place of business; for a responsible broker or restricted broker, the licensee's main place of business. On removal, written notice must reach the commission before the move or within ten days after it, and failure to register a new place of business means the commission must place the licensee on inactive status. SDCL 36-21A-53 requires a branch office to operate under the same name as the parent office. SDCL 36-21A-56 requires written notice of a change of association from the licensee and from both the old and new broker or firm. SDCL 36-21A-9 lists the eight ways a license goes inactive, including ceasing to be associated with a responsible broker, failing to notify the commission of a change of registered address, failing to provide proof of errors and omissions insurance on renewal, and failing to provide proof of continuing education; no licensee on inactive status may perform any act under the chapter.
Renewal and continuing education
SDCL 36-21A-61 requires biennial registration by every licensee, active or inactive, with the renewal application made by November 30 of the year the current license expires; failure to register expires the license on December 31. SDCL 36-21A-66 allows a late registration with a fee of up to $20 for each month or fraction of a month past November 30, provides that no late application may be accepted after June 30, and bars the licensee from acting under the chapter before the commission renews the license. SDCL 36-21A-62 requires a responsible broker, broker associate, salesperson, auctioneer or property manager to prove not less than 24 hours of approved continuing education for the preceding two years, and a residential rental agent 12; South Dakota attorneys and time-share agents are exempt. ARSD 20:69:11:02 requires at least 12 of the 24 hours to be in the required subject areas. SDCL 36-21A-64 makes the license inactive until proof is provided. SDCL 36-21A-119 requires errors and omissions insurance of all active licensees.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- Exam vendor
- PSI
- Prelicensing education
- 116 classroom hours
- Passing score
- 75%
- Scored questions
- 142
- Time limit
- 270 minutes
Who regulates real estate brokers in South Dakota?
The South Dakota Real Estate Commission licenses real estate professionals in the state. SDCL 36-21A-13 makes it five members appointed by the Governor — three active brokers and two members of the public, who may not all be of one political party — and SDCL 36-21A-16 continues it within the Department of Labor and Regulation. The Commission has contracted with PSI Services LLC to deliver the examination; the bulletin lists sites in Sioux Falls, Rapid City and Madison, plus Fargo, North Dakota, and you may test at any PSI center in the United States.
Is the broker associate license really South Dakota's entry-level license?
Yes. The Commission's license types table lists Broker Associate with no experience requirement, and there is no salesperson row: South Dakota issues no new salesperson licenses, which is why PSI's bulletin is titled the Real Estate Broker Associate Examination. The tier has not been abolished on paper — SDCL 36-21A-12 still defines a real estate salesperson and ARSD 20:69:03:14 still sets a salesperson renewal fee — but the only way in now is the broker associate license, and an existing salesperson upgrades to it under SDCL 36-21A-34.1 by taking 40 hours of prescribed education and filing a broker associate application.
What education and experience do I need before the South Dakota broker exam?
None by way of experience. SDCL 36-21A-30.1 requires 116 class hours in a Commission-approved course of study, and ARSD 20:69:03:04 bars you from sitting the exam until that education is complete and you have registered. SDCL 36-21A-30 adds that you must be at least eighteen and either a United States citizen or a South Dakota resident. Experience matters only at the next tier: SDCL 36-21A-31 requires a responsible broker applicant to have served actively for two years as a licensed salesperson or broker associate and to complete 24 additional class hours beyond the broker associate level, which ARSD 20:69:04:04 makes a 24-hour responsible broker course carrying its own final examination.
How is the South Dakota broker exam structured?
The broker associate examination has a national portion of 90 items worth 100 points with 150 minutes allowed, and a South Dakota state portion of 52 items worth 52 points with 120 minutes allowed — 142 scored items and 270 minutes in total. ARSD 20:69:03:07 sets the passing score at 75, and each portion is passed separately, so a candidate who fails one retakes only that portion. The national portion includes scenario-based questions with more than four options where you pick the single BEST answer, and those options are weighted zero, one or two points; the South Dakota portion is scored one point per item.
What has to happen after I pass the South Dakota exam?
Two things people miss. SDCL 36-21A-36.1 gives you sixty days from the date of the notice that you passed to file the license application with all required documents; miss it and your registration and all rights deriving from the passing score are canceled, so you would have to sit the exam again. SDCL 36-21A-151 also requires a state and federal criminal background investigation by fingerprint checks through the Division of Criminal Investigation and the FBI, obtained before licensure and paid for by you. SDCL 36-21A-33 lists the eight grounds on which the Commission may refuse the application, including an insufficient funds check, a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, and a current unpaid judgment.
Sources: https://dlr.sd.gov/realestate/license_types_requirements.aspx, https://dlr.sd.gov/realestate/exam_information.aspx, https://proctor2.psionline.com/programs/Instructions/SDRE.pdf, https://sdlegislature.gov/Statutes/36-21A, https://sdlegislature.gov/Rules/Administrative/20:69
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