How to become a real estate agent in California
California Department of Real Estate licenses agents here. California uses no outside testing vendor; the Department of Real Estate administers the salesperson exam itself at its five state exam centers (Sacramento, Oakland, Fresno, La Palma, San Diego) and offers a combined examination and license application.
- Entry license
- salesperson
- Exam vendor
- See handbook
- Verified
- Official source
Start at the source
California Department of Real Estate is the authority. Its site, www.dre.ca.gov, carries the current candidate handbook, approved education list, and application. Hours, fees and requirements change; the commission's version is the one that counts.
The path in California
- Pull the candidate handbook from the commission above; it names the education hours, the application steps and the exam vendor.
- Complete pre-licensing education with an approved provider.
- Pass the exam: typically a national portion plus the state-law portion that catches candidates who studied only national material. The exam guide covers how to split your prep.
- Choose your sponsoring brokerage deliberately: the questions to ask matter more than the recruiting pitch.
- Before any of it, read the honest decision guide. The license is easy; the career is the decision.
Other states
| Colorado | Colorado Division of Real Estate (Department of Regulatory Agencies) |
| Connecticut | Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection (with the Connecticut Real Estate Commission) |
| Delaware | Delaware Real Estate Commission (Division of Professional Regulation) |
| Florida | Florida Real Estate Commission (Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Real Estate) |
| Georgia | Georgia Real Estate Commission & Appraisers Board |
| Hawaii | Hawaii Real Estate Commission (Real Estate Branch, Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs) |
| Idaho | Idaho Real Estate Commission (Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses) |
| Illinois | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Real Estate |
The licensing roadmap, free
The universal path from pre-licensing to activation, the exam's two portions, and the brokerage questions, on one printable page. Enter your email and we will send you straight to it.
No spam. One useful sheet and occasional notes.