Continuing Education FAQs
The Who, What and Where of Real Estate Continuing Education
Who decides continuing education requirements?
States determine licensing requirements and continuing education requirements. Every state has a specific department, usually called the real estate commission or professional licensing department which write and enforce the laws of real estate licensure.
Why are some courses approved for ce and others are not?
Every state determines what is approvable. Some states have specific requirements, for example, 3 hours of legal education, 4 hours of risk management, 4 hours of agency. Whereas, other states have much more lenient requirements. In order for a course to be approved for ce, the course provider, or school, must submit an application and a fee to the real estate commission for the review of the course. Some topics are rarely approved, for example, courses on sales, marketing, or general computer skills are usually not approved.
What about online courses?
Because online courses are relatively new to the marketplace, many states have yet to determine what standards to use when approving online education. Some of the issues states have to grapple with when dealing with online education include timing, security, delivery method, and instructor availability.
What role does my REALTOR®association play in ce?
REALTOR® associations, including NAR, do not determine what courses are approved for ce. However, some state associations have strong relationships with real estate commissions and can actually influence what topics and courses are approved in their state.
In addition, many REALTOR® associations provide education programs for their members. These associations might submit their programs to their state's real estate commission for ce so members can earn ce credit while taking the course.
NAR works with various real estate commissions to get sessions presented at the annual conference approved for ce and REALTOR® University, NAR's online education portal has courses approved for ce in various states. However, NAR does not determine states' continuing education requirements nor does NAR track which members have earned continuing education credit.
How do I find out about my state's ce requirements?
Attached is a document that lists ce requirements by state, however, to confirm the information is accurate, contact your state's real estate commission. Links to real estate commissions are provided in the attached document.
runivers__CE_Requirements_By_State.xls
One final word of advice.
Check with the school or your real estate commission about ce approval prior to registering for a course.
If you have general questions about continuing education, or would like information on ce courses available through NAR, contact Realtor University at realtoruniversity@realtors.org.
