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How do I get a real estate license in New Mexico?

New Mexico's Real Estate Commission issues an associate broker's license and a qualifying broker's license. If you aren't licensed to practice real estate in New Mexico, you must pass the broker's exam, unless you are a licensed applicant from Massachusetts, Louisiana or Georgia. The courses add up to 90 hours. A broker currently licensed elsewhere may qualify to apply for a waiver of some.

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The rule, fact by fact

Course hours
90 hours, in three 30-hour courses taken within three years before applying to testThey cover real estate principles and practice, real estate law, and broker basics.
Verified. New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, Real Estate Commission · Apply for a license (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Cost
A nonrefundable license application fee not to exceed $270You pay it along with the license application form.
Same source and date as above
Valid for
Apply within six months of passing, or retake the exam after 180 days of notificationThe retake rule has one exception: a reasonable explanation, in writing, of why you missed the deadline.
Same source and date as above
Who needs it
Not licensed in NM: pass the exam, unless licensed in Massachusetts, Louisiana or GeorgiaThose three states have a written license agreement with New Mexico.
Same source and date as above

How to get it done

  1. Step 1. Pick the license type. The Commission issues an associate broker's license and a qualifying broker's license, and both go only to individuals. You must be a legal resident of the United States and have reached the age of majority.

  2. Step 2. Check whether you must take the exam. A person not licensed to practice real estate in New Mexico must pass the broker's exam. Licensees with a current broker license in Georgia, Louisiana or Massachusetts don't have to take prelicensing education or either part of the exam. They send a certified copy of their license history from that state.

  3. Step 3. Take the three courses. The Commission asks for certificates that you finished approved 30-hour prelicensing courses in real estate principles and practice, real estate law, and broker basics. Together they equal 90 hours. You must finish them within the three years before you apply to take the broker's exam.

  4. Step 4. Apply for the exam and pass it. You send your exam form straight to the Commission's exam contractor. You must pass the state and national parts with a score of at least 75, no later than 90 calendar days after you first took the exam.

  5. Step 5. Gather what goes with the license form. You send the written score report from the exam contractor, proof that you were fingerprinted, a certificate for a current errors and omissions insurance policy, and the nonrefundable fee. Fingerprints are required for all new applications, license upgrades included.

  6. Step 6. Apply within six months of passing. If you don't, you retake both parts, or the parts that apply, after 180 days of notification of your passing score. The exception is a reasonable explanation, in writing to the Commission, of why you couldn't meet the six-month deadline.

Before you pay

We haven't confirmed the exam fee, the exact license fee or any course price from a source. The Commission's wording caps the license fee at $270.

Before you pay a school, ask whether the Commission has approved its courses and whether each is among the 30-hour courses listed above.

The Commission may update its page. Check it yourself on the day you apply.

Questions

I'm a broker licensed in another state. Can I skip some courses?

Maybe. A broker currently licensed in another state or jurisdiction can apply for a waiver of 60 of the 90 hours. You need a certified license history from that jurisdiction showing you finished Real Estate Principals and Practice and Real Estate Law, or their substantial equivalent. The waiver also exempts you from the national broker exam. You still take a 30-hour Broker Basics course and the state part.

I'm a licensed salesperson in another state. Does New Mexico recognize my license?

No. New Mexico does not have reciprocity for a real estate salesperson license. It also does not provide waivers to licensed real estate salespeople, only to brokers.

What does a qualifying broker license need?

Among other requirements, the Commission says an applicant must have been actively licensed for at least 2 years of the last 60 months for a non-supervisor license, or 4 years of the last 60 months for a supervisory one.

What if I don't pass both parts within 90 days?

You must retake and pass both parts of the exam before you can apply for a broker's license. The two parts are the state and national ones.

Do I need a license to sell my own house?

No. The Commission says you are not required to be a licensed real estate broker to sell, rent, buy or lease your own property.

What to do next

Start with the Commission's apply for a license page. Then read each item for the license type you want.

www.rld.nm.gov

Sources we read