Becoming a Kentucky real estate broker is a strong step forward in your career. Not only does this advanced license look great on a resume, it also allows you to work independently, open real estate brokerage firms, and manage other agents within these firms.

Getting the Kentucky Real Estate Broker License is a fairly simple process, but it does require you to complete six steps, and have a few prerequisites before applying or taking the broker’s exam.

This guide covers all of these requirements in a simple, easy to understand way that will make it easier for you throughout this process.

Kentucky Real Estate Agent vs Real Estate Broker

Kentucky offers two different types of real estate license: Sales and Broker.

A sales agent’s license is the initial license that real estate agents get in order to sell real estate.

A broker’s license is an advanced license that allows the license holder to operate at a higher level within real estate businesses in Kentucky.

People often confuse sales agents and brokers. A simple way to look at the difference is that holders of the sales agent’s license are called real estate agents, while holders of the broker’s license are called real estate brokers.

Kentucky Real Estate Broker License Requirements

First, to be eligible for a real estate broker’s license, you must meet the prerequisites to become a real estate broker in Kentucky.

These prerequisites are:

• Must have worked an average of twenty (20) hours per week for twenty-four (24) months as a sales associate before applying for a broker license
• Must have 21 credit hours with 12 in real estate from an accredited college with 3 credit hours in Brokerage Management or 336 classroom hours in real estate from an approved proprietary school with 48 in Brokerage Management

How to Become a Real Estate Broker in Kentucky

Once you meet all the requirements listed above, you can follow these six steps to easily help you get your real estate broker license in Kentucky.

Step 1: Complete a Kentucky Broker Pre-Licensing Course

The first step to getting your real estate broker license in Kentucky is to take 336 classroom hours of qualifying real estate courses or 21 academic hours.

These real estate courses mostly cover the fundamentals of working in real estate and must be completed within two years of your broker’s license application. This requirement is divided into two sections:

The required 336 classroom hours of qualifying real estate courses, including the following mandatory courses are:

• Broker: Mastering Real Estate Principles
• Broker Appraisal and Finance
• Broker Kentucky Law and Investment
• Broker Law
• Commercial Real Estate
• Essentials of Finance
• Essentials of Real Estate Investment
• Property Management
• Real Estate Law

Your broker pre-license courses don’t end here. To fully satisfy your course requirements, you must take additional six credit hours in related qualifying education courses acceptable to the Kentucky Real Estate Commission (KREC) or approved continuing education (CE) courses every calendar year.

Approved courses that can go toward law credit include:

• Kentucky license laws, agency, contracts
• Fair housing
• Environmental law
• 1031 tax laws
• ANSI standards
• Antitrust
• Landlord-tenant law
• Planning and zoning issues
• Misrepresentation classes

Of the six approved hours of CE courses, three hours must be in courses approved for law credit. In addition, a Kentucky Core Course must be completed every four years. No other course will replace this Kentucky Core Course requirement.

After completing the courses, you must also pass the final broker course exam. The minimum passing grade is 75%. The final pre-license exam is to be supervised by a proctor, whether on-site or online. This is not the same as the state broker exam.

After passing your broker course exam, your pre-license education provider will provide you with your course completion documents. KREC recommends submitting your completion documents, along with a Broker Education Review Form, via KREC’s eServices or to documents@KREC.Kentucky.gov.

Step 2: Get a Fingerprint-Based Background Check

Once you meet the broker pre-licensing education requirements and pass the course exam, you must have a fingerprint-based background check. You must submit your fingerprints via IdentoGO by IDEMIA.

If you’re planning to obtain a Kentucky real estate license or activate an existing real estate license, you must request a copy of your national criminal history check before registering for the real estate exam or submitting your activation paperwork.

There are two options for obtaining a national criminal history check:

• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) — The cost is $18 via the FBI’s Electronic Departmental Order System. The report is mailed to you and the average processing time is one week
• Kentucky State Police — The cost is $51.25. You must schedule an appointment to be fingerprinted through the Kentucky State Police using IdentoGO. Use the KREC Service Code: 27GJR5. The report is sent directly to KREC

All national criminal history checks expire 90 days after the report date of issuance. Remember that KREC cannot issue a license without a valid report.

Step 3: Pass the Kentucky Real Estate Broker Exam

After completing the steps above, you must take the real estate broker licensing exam via PSI.

The fee for the broker exam is $100.

In Kentucky, brokers take the national section which consists of 75 scored questions. The state-specific section of the broker’s exam consists of 50 scored questions. You must complete the Kentucky real estate broker exam within 240 minutes (four hours total).

The passing rate is 75% for the Kentucky Real Estate Broker Exam: 56/75 on the national section and 37/50 on the state-specific section.

If you pass one portion of the Kentucky Salesperson or Kentucky Broker exam (national or state law) and fail the other portion, then you may retake the failed portion within four months of passing the first portion. After four months of the initial testing date, you must retake both portions of the exam.

For more information on the exam, PSI provides a Candidate Handbook containing the Kentucky Real Estate Broker Exam content outline.

Taking an exam prep course provides you helpful tools and materials, such as quizzes and specific state-only practice exams, to increase your chances of passing your broker license exam the first time.

Step 4: Submit a Kentucky Broker License Application

Once you pass the state broker exam, you can now apply for your license.

The initial broker application fee is $60.

To mail your submission, you will receive a paper application at the testing site upon passing both portions of the exam. Complete the application and send it to KREC’s office with a check or money order for the appropriate payment.

Mail to:

Kentucky Real Estate Commission
500 Mero St.
Frankfort, KY 40601

To do an online submission, you will receive an email from ppc.krec@ky.gov within 36-48 hours of passing both portions of the exam. At the end of the application, you will be asked to pay the appropriate fees with a credit/debit card or electronic check (ACH.)

Along with your application and payment for the licensing fee, you must include the following:

• Certificate of Completion of the reciprocal license law course
• Proof of E&O insurance coverage
• License history certification from every state in which you are licensed as a real estate agent

Step 5. Obtain Errors & Omissions Insurance

Before KREC issues your license, you must obtain Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance to make sure your license is active.

The KREC partners with the Rice Insurance Services Company (RISC) to offer E&O insurance policy for real estate licensees. The insurance carrier is Continental Casualty Company, a CNA insurance company.

If you happen to have a private carrier policy, you must provide KREC with the Certification of Insurance Coverage (Form 203) as proof of your E&O coverage. This form outlines the minimum requirements and must be signed by an authorized insurance representative.

There is a $10 E&O processing fee per licensee collected by KREC when confirming your coverage in KREC’s Group Program.

Step 6: Application Review

After passing your broker exam, you will only need to wait for KREC to review and approve your application.

The process should take between 7-10 business days. If you still have questions regarding licensing or to check on the status of your application, you can contact KREC at (502) 564-7760 or PPC.KREC@ky.gov. 

Congratulations!

Now that you’ve successfully passed the broker licensing exam and obtained your license, there are a few things you need to do to keep your broker license active and updated.

Kentucky Real Estate Broker License Renewal and CE

In Kentucky, you must renew your real estate broker license every two years. The renewal process is not the same for the broker license and sales agent license.

To renew your license, you must submit the Renewal Form for Real Estate Sales Agents and Brokers. The renewal fee is $130.

As part of renewing your broker license, you must also complete the CE requirements that include six hours of KREC-approved courses and three hours of Broker Management Course as part of the CE requirement.

KYREC – Kentucky Real Estate Commission

Mailing Address:

Kentucky Real Estate Commission
500 Mero St.,
Frankfort, KY 40601

Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 am-4:30 pm

Phone: (502) 564-7760

Website: http://www.krec.ky.gov/