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How do I get a real estate license in Minnesota?

If you've never held a Minnesota license, you take 30 hours of courses and pass the exam. Then you take 60 more hours before you file. Brokers have other rules.

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The rule, fact by fact

Course hours
30 hours of real estate courses before the examThis is the first course. A second course comes before you file.
Verified. Minnesota Statutes · Section 82.59, examinations and prelicense education (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Course hours
60 more hours of instruction before filing the applicationThis is the second course. Three of its hours cover fair housing law and two cover agency representation and disclosure.
Same source and date as above
Agency
The commissioner conducts the examThe statute calls this office the commissioner. It also names the commissioner as the one who approves the courses.
Same source and date as above
Valid for
Renewal isn't effective past two years without evidence of compliance with section 82.61The clock starts the day the license is granted. The commissioner cancels the license of a salesperson who does not follow section 82.61.
Verified. Minnesota Statutes · Section 82.62, license renewal (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026

How to get it done

  1. Step 1. Check whether you can sit the exam. If your real estate license was revoked in any state within two years of the day you apply, you can't take it.

  2. Step 2. Take the first course. Complete 30 hours of real estate courses the commissioner approves before you take the exam.

  3. Step 3. Pass the exam. The commissioner conducts it.

  4. Step 4. Take the second course. Complete 60 more hours before you file. Three of them cover state and federal fair housing law, and two cover agency representation and disclosure.

  5. Step 5. Plan for renewal. A salesperson's renewal isn't effective past two years after the license was granted unless you show you met section 82.61. Among its rules: 30 hours of continuing education in the initial license period and in each 24-month period after it, at least 15 of them in the first 12 months. Each license period also needs at least one hour on agency representation and disclosure and one on fair housing. Module training of 3.75 or 7.5 hours each license year falls within the 30 hours. Salespersons engaged solely in commercial real estate who file a verification are exempt from the agency and fair housing hours. The commissioner cancels the license of a salesperson who doesn't comply.

Before you pay

We couldn't read the state's own licensing pages, so this page rests on the Minnesota statute alone. The statute leaves approving courses to the commissioner.

Before you pay a school, ask its price, whether the course is online and how long your access lasts. Ask whether the course counts with the commissioner, and check that and the fees on the state's own pages.

Questions

Do I need work history for a Minnesota license?

None of the salesperson steps above asks for work history. A broker candidate must show at least three years as a licensed salesperson within the previous five. The commissioner may also accept other education or practical experience.

What score do I need to pass the exam?

You need 75 percent or higher on the uniform portion and 75 percent or higher on the state portion. The statute sets the same passing grade for salesperson and broker exams.

How often is the exam given?

The commissioner decides the times and places. The statute says the exam will be held at least every 45 days. Check the commissioner's own pages for the next date.

I held a Minnesota license and let it lapse. Do I start over?

Not always. Short of two years, the statute asks for no exam to renew, except in the cases it names, such as a suspended or revoked license, where an exam may be required. A former Minnesota licensee who fails to renew for two years must take the exam again. The rules on retaking it exempt qualifying military service and a license left unrenewed under the tax clearance rule in 82.82, subdivision 9.

What to do next

Start with the Minnesota statute on real estate examinations and education. Then look for the state's own pages on courses and fees.

www.revisor.mn.gov

Sources we read