NC Licensing FAQs

You are required by state law to attend and pass a state-approved 75-hour broker prelicensing course. After successfully completing the broker prelicensing course, you must pass the State Licensing Examination with a score of at least 75%. The North Carolina Real Estate Commission will then mail you a broker license, and you will be eligible to work for any real estate firm in North Carolina.

You must be at least 18 years of age to get a real estate license in North Carolina. You must be a United States citizen, a non-citizen national, or a qualified alien under federal law. You are not required to be a resident of North Carolina.

Applicants who hold a current real estate license in another state that has been on active status within the previous three (3) years may waive the 75-hour North Carolina Broker Prelicensing Course as well as the National section of the North Carolina real estate license examination and do ONE of the following: 

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• Pass the State section of the examination and be issued a NC real estate broker license in a status equivalent to the status in the other jurisdiction    OR

• Waive the State section of the examination, be issued a NC real estate broker license on provisional status, and take the 3 post-licensing classes within 18 months.

You have three years from the time you receive your completion certificate to apply for and pass the licensing exam. 

• Brokers must pay NCREC’s annual renewal fee, registration fees for CE courses per year, and NC’s Privilege License annual fee.

• Provisional Brokers must also pay registration and textbook fees for Post licensing courses. 

Assuming the Commission determines you meet the qualification requirements and have submitted a complete application, you will be sent a “Notice of Exam Eligibility” that will enable you to register for the license exam. The notice should be sent to you via email within 5-7 business days of receipt of your application 

The Exam Eligibility period is 180 days. If you do not take &/or pass the exam within that period, you must re-apply. 

Applicants are not allowed to retake the license exam for at least 10 calendar days following a failed or missed exam. Other than that waiting period, there is no limit to the number of attempts during the 180-day eligibility period. 

The exam is 4.5 hours & includes 140 questions, of which 80 are National and 60 are State-based questions. The remaining 10-15 questions are unscored, pretest questions. 

A candidate who receives a grade of 75 points or higher will have successfully passed the examination.

If you pass only one section and are applying to retest within the same 180-period, you need only take the portion that you did not pass. However, if you have exceeded 180 days, you must reapply and take the entire exam (both sections) again. You must pass both sections within the same 180-day period.