Section 535.56 - Education and Experience Requirements for a Broker License(a) Education requirements. (1) An applicant for a broker license must provide the Commission with satisfactory evidence of completion of: (A) 270 hours of qualifying real estate courses as required under § 535.55 of this subchapter (relating to Education and Sponsorship Requirements for a Sales Agent License), which must include the 30 hour qualifying real estate brokerage course completed not more than two years before the application date; and(B) an additional 630 classroom hours of related education from one or more of the following categories: (i) qualifying courses defined under § 535.64 of this chapter (relating to Content Requirements for Qualifying Real Estate Courses);(ii) Commission-approved continuing education courses; or(iii) courses taken for credit from an accredited college or university in any of the following areas: accounting, advertising, architecture, business or management, construction, finance, investments, law, marketing, or real estate.(2) An applicant who has earned a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university will be deemed to have satisfied the related education requirements for a broker license. A copy of the college transcript awarding the degree must be submitted as evidence of completion of the degree.(b) Experience Requirements. (1) An applicant for a broker license must have four years of experience actively practicing as a broker or sales agent in Texas during the five years preceding the date the application is filed. For purposes of this section:(A) Experience is measured from the date a license is issued, and inactive periods caused by lack of sponsorship, or any other reason, cannot be included as active experience.(B) A person licensed in another state may derive the required four years' experience from periods in which the person was licensed in one or more states. A person who is the designated broker of a business entity that is licensed as a real estate broker in another state is deemed to be a licensed real estate broker in another state.(C) An applicant must have performed at least one transaction per year as described in subsection (c) of this section for at least four of the five years preceding the date the application is filed.(2) An applicant for a broker license must demonstrate not less than 360 points of qualifying practical experience obtained during the period required by subsection (b)(1) of this section, using TREC No. BL-A, Supplement A-Qualifying Experience Report for a Broker License. An applicant must use TREC No. BL-B, Supplement B-Qualifying Experience Report for a Broker License After an Application Has Been Filed, to report qualifying experience after an application for a broker license is filed. (A) An applicant will receive credit for such experience according to the point system set forth in subsection (c) of this section.(B) Upon request by the Commission, either prior to or after licensure, an applicant shall provide documentation to substantiate any or all of the experience claimed by the applicant.(C) Failure to promptly provide the requested documentation or proof shall be grounds to deny the application. Any false claim of experience shall be grounds to deny the application, or shall be grounds to suspend or revoke the applicant's current license.(c) Credit for experience. Experience points shall be credited to an applicant in accordance with the following schedule for active licensed sales agent or broker activity only:(1) Residential transactions including single family, condo, co-op unit, multi-family (1 to 4-unit) and apartment unit leases:(A) Closed purchase or sale--30 points per transaction.(B) An executed lease for a landlord or tenant--5 points per transaction.(C) rental property management rent collection--2.5 points per property.(D) Closed purchase or sale of an unimproved residential lot--30 points per transaction.(2) Commercial transactions, including apartments (5 units or more), office, retail, industrial, mixed use, hotel/motel, parking facility/garage, and specialty: (A) Closed purchase or sale--50 points per transaction.(B) An executed lease, renewal or extension for a landlord or tenant--10 points per year of the lease, renewal or extension up to a five year maximum per transaction.(C) rental property management rent collection--15 points per property.(3) Farm and Ranch and unimproved land transactions:(A) Closed purchase or sale--30 points.(B) An executed lease for a landlord or tenant--5 points per transaction.(C) Rental property management rent collection--5 points per property.(4) Delegated supervision--12 points per month.(d) Documentation of applicable experience.(1) An applicant shall have the burden of establishing to the satisfaction of the Commission that the applicant actually performed the work associated with the real estate transaction claimed for experience credit.(2) If an applicant is unable to obtain documentation and/or the signature of a sponsoring broker to support their claim for experience, the applicant must use TREC No. AFF-A, Affidavit in Lieu of Documentation and/or Signature, to explain that the applicant made a good faith effort to obtain the documentation and/or signature, describing the effort to obtain the documentation and reasons why it is not available. In addition, the applicant must submit two TREC No. AFF-B, Affidavit in Support of Applicant's Claim of Experience, each signed by a different individual who knows the applicant or is familiar with the transaction(s) at issue attesting to the applicant's efforts to obtain the documentation and/or signature, and attesting to the fact that the applicant performed the work for which the applicant is requesting points.(3) The Commission may request additional documentation, rely on the documentation provided under this section, or utilize any other information provided by the applicant to determine whether the applicant has sufficient experience as required by §1101.356 of the Act and this section.(e) Experience forms. Forms and affidavits required to be used to report experience under this section are adopted by reference, published by and available from the Texas Real Estate Commission, P.O. Box 12188, Austin, Texas 78711-2188, www.trec.texas.gov.22 Tex. Admin. Code § 535.56
The provisions of this §535.56 adopted to be effective January 1, 2011, 35 TexReg 11677; amended to be effective November 1, 2011, 36 TexReg 7327; amended to be effective March 21, 2012, 37 TexReg 1905; amended by Texas Register, Volume 39, Number 50, December 12, 2014, TexReg 9675, eff. 1/1/2015; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 40, Number 47, November 20, 2015, TexReg 8222, eff. 1/1/2016; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 34, August 25, 2017, TexReg 4306, eff. 8/28/2017; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 47, Number 09, March 4, 2022, TexReg 1092, eff. 3/10/2022; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 48, Number 23, June 9, 2023, TexReg 2952, eff. 10/1/2023