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How to Get a Nevada Real Estate License: Career Guide

How to Get a Nevada Real Estate License: Career Guide

If you’re wondering how to get a real estate license in Nevada, you came to the right place.

Read on to learn about pre-license requirements, finding a sponsor broker, and taking the exam.

How to Get a Nevada Real Estate License

Las Vegas was the nation’s hottest housing market in 2018 by price appreciation. The state of Nevada continues to have rapid job growth, suggesting the housing boom has legs.

However, before you can roll the dice on your big commission checks, you must meet a few requirements. To become a salesperson, you must:

Nevada Real Estate License Requirements
  • Be 18 years of age or older
  • Be a United Citizen or have the right to work in the U.S.
  • Take 90 hours of pre-licensing education
  • Pass the state examination
  • Find a sponsoring broker
  • Complete the application
  • Pay the fees
  • Pass a criminal background check

Those two facts make getting a real estate license in Nevada look like a winner. Read on to learn how you can jump-start your career.

Nevada’s Regulatory Authority

Prior to starting the application, it’s good to know who to contact if questions arise. In Nevada, real estate licensing and regulation are overseen by the Nevada Real Estate Division.

Here is the contact information:

Department Of Business and Industry
Real Estate Division
3300 W. Sahara Ave., Suite 350
Las Vegas, Nevada, 89102
(702) 486-4033
[email protected]
http://red.nv.gov/

Carson City is the capital, although Las Vegas is the largest city. Las Vegas is also the location of many state offices.

Nevada Pre-License Education

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To get a Nevada real estate license, you have to take 90 hours of real estate education, which includes focusing on:

  • 45 hours of real estate principles and practice
  • 45 hours of real estate law, including 18 hours on Nevada law

90 Credit Hours

Although the course is considered a 90-hour course, you don’t have to spend 90 hours taking it. By combining classroom instruction and home study, you may be able to finish in as little as a week.

You can also take courses in a classroom, as home study, combining classroom and home study, or online-only. Home study and online-only students must have the material for at least 11 days before taking the exam.

The required education costs between $150 and $300. Classroom courses are more expensive. Online-only is the least expensive.

Accredited School

You have to get your training at a state-approved school located in Nevada. There are about a dozen of these. The Real Estate Division website keeps a list of approved schools.

After you complete your course, you’ll get a completion certificate. You’ll need this to perform other steps in getting your license.

You can also substitute college courses for the required pre-licensing education. You’ll need three college credits in real estate principles. Three college credits are also needed in real estate law, which must include 18 hours of Nevada law.

Our favorite pre-license course is Real Estate Express. Not only does it allow you to take classes at your own pace, but it’s also affordable. Click the button below to learn more.

Criminal Background Check

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Nevada, like many states, requires real estate agent applicants to get a criminal background check. The Federal Bureau of Investigation does the background checks using your fingerprints.

You have to use an approved fingerprint company to get your fingerprints taken. The Real Estate Division website has a list of approved companies. It costs about $80 to get fingerprinted, depending on the company.

In addition to passing a criminal background check, you’ll be asked on the application whether you:

  • Have been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor
  • Have been convicted of forgery, embezzlement, larceny, extortion, fraud or any crime involving moral turpitude
  • Are you on parole, probation, or paying any restitution?
  • Have you ever filed for bankruptcy?
  • Had any license issued by a public authority been suspended or revoked?
  • Been involved in an administrative proceeding for any professional or occupational license
  • Had a surety company decline to provide you with a bond?

If you have any of these in your past, you’ll need to provide a written explanation. The real estate regulators may decide to issue a license anyway.

You will also be asked if you are currently behind on any child support obligations. If you are behind on child support, you can’t get a Nevada real estate agent license.

The Nevada Real Estate Exam

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The examination required to get a Nevada real estate agent license covers four main areas:

  1. Realty
  2. Agency
  3. Finance
  4. Nevada Law

Scheduling the Exam

In order to schedule the exam, you have to create an account on the website of the exam administrator, Pearson VUE. You can call Pearson VUE at 888-248-8055.

Applicants must pass the exam within 12 months of submitting their application. You can generally schedule the test within the next day or so after contacting Pearson VUE.

The test costs $125. You have to pay when you make your test reservation. You can use a credit card, debit card, or electronic check.

Practicing for the Test

Pearson VUE will sell you a practice test for $19.95. The practice test is not state-specific, however.

Tip: Real Estate Express also sells practice tests that are state-specific. I used these to pass my own real estate licensing test and would recommend them to anyone getting a license.

Required Identification

Bring two forms of identification when you show up for the test. You have to bring at least one primary identification from this list:

  • Government-issued driver’s license or learner’s permit
  • National or state ID card
  • Passport
  • Military ID
  • Alien registration card, such as green card or permanent resident visa

If you only have one form of ID from the first list, you can use one of the following as long as it has a visible signature:

  • Social Security card
  • Debit or credit card

What to Bring

You will have to leave any other personal items behind before entering the testing room. You can’t bring a calculator, either. But the testing computer has a built-in calculator you can use.

Test Structure

The test has 120 questions in two parts. There are 80 questions on the national part and 40 on the state part. You’ll get four hours to complete the whole thing.

To pass, you need to get 75 percent of the questions on each part correct. That is, 60 correct on the national part and 30 correct on the state part.

You’ll get a pass or fail notice as soon as you complete the test. If you fail, you’ll get information on where you need to do better.

If you pass either the state or national part while failing the other, you only need to retake the part you failed. You have to do this within 12 months.

Getting a Nevada Broker Sponsor

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After passing the test, you still need to get a broker with a Nevada license to sponsor you. This basically amounts to the broker agreeing to take you on as an agent.

If you don’t already have a broker in mind, the real estate school may be able to help. These schools often work with brokers who are looking for new agents to sponsor.

The sponsoring broker has to be located in Nevada. And the broker must provide a notarized statement that you will be employed there after licensing.

You may want to consider one of the real estate companies listed as tops in Las Vegas:

  • Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Nevada Properties
  • Simply Vegas
  • Keller Williams Realty Las Vegas
  • ERA Brokers
  • Windermere Prestige Properties
  • Luxury Homes of Las Vegas
  • Huntington & Ellis
  • General Realty Group
  • Couture Realty

In addition to having a supportive sponsoring broker, it helps to start a real estate career in a healthy market. Las Vegas is the largest but not the only sizable city. Here are other Nevada cities ranked by population:

Table on the best cities in Nevada as an image for a piece on how to get a real estate license in Nevada

Las Vegas is also not the state’s only hot real estate market. Others include:

  • Incline Village
  • Gardnerville
  • Boulder City
  • Arden
  • Henderson
  • Mesquite
  • Elko

Overall, Nevada benefits from a strong influx of Californians seeking lower costs and plentiful jobs.

The state’s housing market rose higher and fell further than most in the last recession. However, home values are still significantly below the last peak.

Completing Your License Application

Filling out the Nevada state real estate agent application is the next step. You can find a copy of the application on the Real Estate Division’s website.

Print out and complete the application. You’ll also need copies of your:

  • Original fingerprint verification form from the fingerprint company
  • Certificate for completing real estate pre-licensing education
  • Exam passing score confirmation from Pearson VUE dated within 12 months

The application requires a nonrefundable $125 fee. You can pay by:

  • Check, cashier’s check, or money order payable to Nevada Real Estate Commission
  • Cash, if paid in the exact amount
  • Credit cards if paying in person. (It costs an extra 2 percent to pay by credit card.)

The application requires information about all occupations and employers for the last two years. You also have to give information about where you lived for the last three years.

If you’ve had a real estate license in another state within the last 10 years, you’ll give information about that. Now is also when you’ll have to answer questions about criminal offenses, occupational license suspensions, and child support.

To get a real estate agent license, you must also apply for a Nevada business license. You can apply at the Secretary of State’s website.

Nevada has reciprocity agreements with 16 other states. You may qualify for a reciprocal license if you have a valid real estate license in:

  • Arizona
  • Colorado
  • Delaware
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Minnesota
  • Oklahoma
  • South Carolina
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • West Virginia

How to Get a Real Estate License in Nevada

It can take a few weeks to get your license after you have completed all the requirements and submitted your application.

But given the healthy market and strong growth prospects, a Nevada real estate agent license is likely to be well worth the wait.