Article Summary: This article will help anyone looking for information pertaining to a real estate license in the state of Kentucky or anyone looking to become a real estate agent or realtor in Kentucky. Contents of this article may include information on real estate education, schools, training courses, continuing education, tests and exams, laws, license requirements, renewal information, forms and more..
The Kentucky Real Estate Commission (KREC), with offices in Louisville, is responsible for
protecting the public interest regarding all real estate transactions. The Kentucky
Statutes updated the real estate regulations effective April 22, 2005.
The requirements for a real estate salesperson license in Kentucky include being at
least 18 years of age and having a high school diploma or GED. An exception to the diploma
requirement is made for applicants with at least 28 credit hours from a post-secondary
institution. The salesperson applicant needs to have completed 96 approved classroom hours
or have completed six semester credit hours in real estate courses from an accredited
college or university.
In order to take the examination, the applicant must submit to a criminal
background check. Those who currently or have ever held a license in another state must
also include a License Certification from that state. All applicants for the Kentucky
salesperson license must pass the real estate examinations. Once passed, the applicant
must apply for the license within 60 days or forfeit the examination results. Real estate
salespersons are exempt from the continuing education requirements during the first
calendar year in which they are licensed.
The requirements for a
real estate broker license in Kentucky include being at least 18
years of age and actively engaged as a licensed sales associate for at least 20 hours per
week for a two year period prior to applying for the broker license. Broker applicants
need to have completed 336 classroom hours from an approved real estate school, or 21
credit hours, with at least 12 of them in real estate courses, from an accredited college
or university. All broker applicants must complete a 3 credit hour/48 classroom hour
approved course in brokerage management.
Applicants for the broker license in Kentucky must also submit to a criminal background
check in order to take the real estate exams. Once the exams are passed, the applicant has
60 days to apply for the license. If not applied for within that time, the examination
results are forfeited.
The criminal background process can take 10-12 weeks, and the Real Estate Commission
requires that it not show any felony convictions at any time, misdemeanor convictions
within the past five-year period, or evidence of dishonesty, untruthfulness or bad
reputation. The FBI cost for the investigation is $18.
Approved Real
Estate Schools for Prelicensure are located throughout the Commonwealth of
Kentucky.
Six hours of approved continuing education courses are required every calendar year
for all Kentucky agents. The Kentucky Core Course, a 6-hour class designed to keep
licensees updated on all aspects of real estate law, is required to be taken once every
four years. The Core Course can replace the other 6-hours required, but the other 6-hours
cannot replace the Core Course requirement.
Some approved courses from some other states are accepted for continuing education.
Courses from certain other states are not accepted. Classes less than 3-hour duration are
not accepted, nor are foreign language courses or computer courses. Failure to meet the
Kentucky continuing education requirement can result in a $200 penalty and losing your
license. Additional penalties may also be imposed, including appearing before the
Commission and an additional penalty of $500.
License Recognition requires active out-of-state licensees to pass the state law
portion of our exam and submit all required application materials in order to be licensed.
Some applicants are required to take a 48-hour Kentucky real estate law class prior to
applying for their license.Kentucky no longer has reciprocity agreements though with other
states.
The examination fees are $75 for either a broker or salesperson. Effective July 5,
2005, the real estate license exams are administered electronically by Applied Measurement
Professionals (AMP) in
Kansas.
All licenses expire on March 31st of each year. The late renewal penalty is $100 if
paid between April 1 and May 15. If paid after May 15, the late renewal penalty is $200.
All active Kentucky real estate licensees are required to carry errors and
omissions insurance as a condition of licensure.
Real estate careers are enhanced by membership in the many organizations that provide
services for the professional agent. Those holding a real estate license usually join
organizations like the Kentucky
Association of Realtors and the National
Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) assist many in locating real
estate jobs within the industry. The Association
of Real Estate License Law Officials (ARELLO) and The National Association of Realtors (NAR),
the world's largest professional association, are excellent resources for real estate
education and professional enrichment.