The TREC real estate license application is submitted online through the Texas Real Estate Commission’s REALM Portal, and the steps are the same in order for every applicant: finish your pre-licensing education, create a REALM account, choose the correct application form for your license type, fill it out, pay the fees, submit your fingerprints for a background check, and sit for the state exam. The details below walk through each step so you can file it correctly the first time.
Pick the Right Application Form
TREC uses a separate form for each credential, and submitting the wrong one restarts your file. Match the form to the license you actually need:
- Sales agent — the standard entry point for someone new to real estate. The license stays inactive until a broker sponsors you.
- Individual broker — for agents who have met the added education and experience requirements and want to operate independently or supervise others.
- Business entity broker — used when a corporation, LLC, or partnership will hold the broker license instead of a person.
- Apprentice inspector, real estate inspector, and professional inspector — three separate tiers, each with its own form and education requirements.
Current forms live on the TREC website under the “Become Licensed” section for each license type.
Finish Your Education First
A sales agent applicant needs 180 classroom hours of qualifying courses from a TREC-approved provider before applying:
- Principles of Real Estate — 60 hours
- Law of Agency — 30 hours
- Law of Contracts — 30 hours
- Promulgated Contract Forms — 30 hours
- Real Estate Finance — 30 hours
You’ll list each course by its exact title and completion date on the application. TREC checks what you enter against what your education provider has posted electronically, so log into the REALM Portal and confirm your hours are on file before you submit. If they aren’t posted, your application will stall.
Broker applicants have a much heavier lift: 900 total qualifying hours (including the 180 sales agent hours), the 30-hour Real Estate Brokerage course, and at least four years of active experience as a licensed sales agent during the five years right before applying.
What the Application Asks For
The form collects four categories of information. Accuracy in each one is what keeps your file moving.
Personal Identification
Your full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth, and current mailing address. The name on the application must match your government-issued photo ID exactly. If they don’t match because of a marriage, divorce, or legal name change, file a name change request with supporting documents before you submit the application.
Education History
List each qualifying course with title, provider name, and completion date. Discrepancies between what you type and what the provider has reported to TREC trigger a review delay, so cross-check both sides before you submit.
Background History
You must disclose any criminal history, including misdemeanors and felonies, and any disciplinary action taken by another licensing board. A record doesn’t automatically disqualify you. Under Chapter 53 of the Texas Occupations Code, TREC weighs the nature and severity of the offense, your age at the time, how much time has passed, your conduct and work history before and after, rehabilitation efforts, and compliance with any community supervision or parole.
Do not omit anything. Fingerprint-based checks through the Texas Department of Public Safety and the FBI surface undisclosed convictions, and failing to disclose can produce a denial on its own even when the underlying offense would have been survivable. Already-licensed agents who pick up a conviction later must notify TREC within 30 days; the penalty for not reporting runs from $500 to $3,000 per violation.
If you’re uncertain how TREC will view your record, use the Fitness Determination process before spending money on courses and exam fees. You submit the Fitness Determination form with supporting documentation, and TREC gives you a preliminary ruling on where you stand.
What You’ll Pay
TREC’s fee schedule, effective December 15, 2025, bundles the base application fee with mandatory surcharges. All fees are non-refundable, and you pay through the REALM Portal by credit card or electronic check.
- Sales agent — $206 total ($150 application + $6 Texas Online + $40 Texas A&M Research Center + $10 Real Estate Recovery)
- Individual broker — $308 total ($150 application + $8 Texas Online + $140 Texas A&M Research Center + $10 Real Estate Recovery)
- Professional inspector — $124 total ($120 application + $4 Texas Online)
- Real estate inspector — $104 total ($100 application + $4 Texas Online)
- Apprentice inspector — $64 total ($60 application + $4 Texas Online)
Fingerprints and the Background Check
Section 1101.3521 of the Texas Occupations Code requires every applicant to submit a full set of fingerprints. No license issues, and no active-status renewal goes through, without a completed check.
IdentoGO by IDEMIA is the authorized fingerprint vendor for the Department of Public Safety. Schedule an appointment through the IdentoGO website or by phone and bring a valid government-issued photo ID. Results move from IdentoGO to DPS and then to the FBI; the data doesn’t pass through your hands. If something on the report triggers an investigation, TREC will email you with a request for more information, and processing time stretches out until you respond.
Submit Through the REALM Portal
Every applicant creates an account in the Real Estate and Appraiser License Management (REALM) Portal, which replaced the older My License Services system. The portal handles the whole workflow: you complete the application online, attach required documents, pay, and receive email notifications as your file moves through review.
TREC communicates almost entirely by email, so watch the address linked to your REALM account. A missed request for clarification can hold your application indefinitely.
The State Exam
Passing the state licensing exam is a separate requirement, but you cannot get licensed without it. TREC contracts with Pearson VUE. Once TREC processes your application and confirms your education, you’ll receive instructions for scheduling.
The sales agent exam runs in a single four-hour sitting with two portions:
- National portion — 85 questions (80 scored, 5 unscored pretest), 150 minutes; 56 correct to pass.
- State portion — 40 scored questions plus 10 unscored pretest items, 90 minutes; 28 correct to pass.
Pass one and fail the other, and most candidates only retake the failed section. Check the current Pearson VUE Candidate Handbook for retake rules and fees before you sit. The state portion leans heavily on the Texas Real Estate License Act, TREC rules, and the promulgated contract forms, so use exam prep aimed at Texas rather than a generic national course.
Broker Sponsorship for Sales Agents
A Texas sales agent license is inactive until a licensed broker sponsors you. Sponsorship runs on the Sales Agent Sponsorship Form-1, which the broker submits through the REALM Portal. Until the system shows the sponsorship as accepted, you cannot show properties, negotiate contracts, or collect commissions.
Line up a sponsoring broker before or shortly after your exam. The paperwork is simple once both parties have REALM accounts, but finding a brokerage willing to take on a new agent takes longer than most applicants expect, and many firms run their own interviews and onboarding on top of TREC’s process.
If You’re Licensed in Another State
Texas does not offer reciprocity with any state. Holding an active license elsewhere does not reduce or waive any Texas requirement: you still complete the full Texas pre-licensing education, pass the Texas exam, submit a complete application, clear the fingerprint check, and pay the standard fees.
TREC will accept qualifying coursework from out-of-state providers if the courses meet Texas content and hour requirements. Confirm with your provider or with TREC that your existing hours count toward the 180-hour sales agent or 900-hour broker requirement before you pay to retake courses you’ve already completed.