Idaho Real Estate Commission
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Continuing Education
What is Idaho’s Continuing Education requirement?
What is the Commission Core course?
How can I get CE credit hours?
How can I tell if a course will count towards my CE?
How do I check my CE records?
How does education get on my record?
Does Idaho have a post license requirement?
Prelicense Courses
What courses do I need to take for a sales associate license?
What courses are required for a broker’s license?
I am licensed in another state. Do I have to take Idaho prelicense courses?
Are any prelicense courses automatically waived for other professions?
How do I request a waiver of prelicense education requirements?
Licensing Exams
How do I sign up for a licensing exam?
Where do I take my licensing exam?
How much does the licensing exam cost?
What happens if I fail the licensing exam?
Correspondence and Distance Learning Courses
Can I take courses by correspondence or distance learning?
How do I arrange to take a final exam for my correspondence course?
Certification of Courses, Instructors and Providers
How do I get a course approved for real estate continuing education?
Do I need to be a certified instructor to teach CE courses?
I want to teach a course that’s already certified in another state. Why do I have to also get it certified in Idaho?
Is there any money available to underwrite the development or offering of a course?
Commission Library
What does the Commission have in its library?
How do I check out books or tapes from the library?
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What is Idaho’s Continuing Education requirement?
Active Renewals: One (1) Commission Core course plus 16 hours of electives.
Inactive Renewals: No CE is required to renew on inactive status.
Reactivation: If within the same renewal period, no CE requirement. Otherwise, same as for an active renewal (a Core course plus 16 hours of electives).
What is the Commission Core course?
The Core course is a course developed by IREC each year effective July 1st covering changes in the law and other “hot topics” identified by the Commission. Licensees are required to take one Core course every renewal period. “Cracking the Code” is NOT the Core course.
How can I get CE credit hours?
Take one of Idaho’s many certified courses from your favorite provider
Attend a Commission meeting (4 hours of CE will be granted once per renewal period for attending an entire regularly-scheduled Commission meeting)
Take a broker prelicense course
Take a second (different) Commission Core course during the same renewal period
Take courses to earn a profession designation
Attend certain courses for attorney, appraiser, accountant, or other professional license renewal
How can I tell if a course will count towards my CE?
For courses offered by a certified Idaho provider, look for the IREC course approval number on course advertising. Check the IREC website for a current list of certified courses. See the list of professional designation courses that count toward your CE. When in doubt, contact the IREC Education Department! If you receive advertising for a course that purports to award Idaho real estate CE credit, and the course isn’t on IREC’s list of certified courses, there is a good chance the course will NOT count for your CE. The Commission is clamping down on providers who falsely advertise real estate CE credit. We would appreciate your forwarding any misleading or questionable advertising to the Education Department.
How do I check my CE records?
You can check your CE online here. A broker can also look up CE records online for agents in his or her office.
How does education get on my record?
Idaho certified course providers are required to send us lists of students who attend their classes within 5 business days after the course is completed, and IREC automatically imports your classes directly into your record. If you take a course in another state or at a conference, a professional designation course, or a course offered for another profession’s CE requirements, you can submit the course outline and your course completion certification to IREC for consideration of CE credit. Click here to download the Licensee Request for CE Credit Form.
Does Idaho have a post license requirement?
No. The only education requirement after licensure is the CE requirement every renewal period (16 hours of electives plus one (1) Core course).
What courses do I need to take for a sales associate license?
90 hours of prelicense education is required for a new sales associate license, which must be taken within the five (5) years preceding the application date. The prelicense coursework is divided into two 45-hour sections (Modules 1 and 2) and is offered by course providers throughout the state.
What courses are required for a broker’s license?
New broker license applicants must complete a minimum of 90 hours of prelicense education within the previous five (5) years, including the mandatory Brokerage Management and Real Estate Law courses, plus two broker electives. Current elective options include: Valuation & Analysis, Finance, Idaho GRI 101/102 (counts as one), Idaho GRI 201/202 (counts as one), and the CCIM designation courses CI 101, CI 102, CI 103, and CI 104.
Other courses, such as other states’ GRI courses, may be accepted through special consideration of the Education Council. Broker prelicense courses must be a minimum of 20 hours, include a final course exam, and be actually completed (not credited by “challenging” the final course exams).
All applicants, even those currently licensed as a broker in another state, who wish to be licensed as a “Designated Broker” in Idaho must also complete a Business Conduct and Office Operations course (may be taken by correspondence, also currently included as part of Brokerage Management).
I am licensed in another state. Do I have to take Idaho prelicense courses?
If you are actively licensed in another state, you are not required to take Idaho’s prelicense courses for the same type of license you currently hold.
Are any prelicense courses automatically waived for other professions?
Yes. Valuation & Analysis will be waived for currently licensed appraisers. Real Estate Finance will be waived for applicants with an accounting degree who are currently working in an accounting-related profession. Actively practicing attorneys may have Real Estate Law waived for a broker’s license, and for a sales associate license, Module 1 will be waived and Module 2 may be completed by successfully challenging the current final course exam.
How do I request a waiver of prelicense education requirements?
First, submit a certified education history to the Education Department for an evaluation of your prelicense education. For good cause shown, the Education Council occasionally waives certain prelicense requirements. The Education Department can provide further instructions on how to request special consideration.
How do I sign up for a licensing exam?
Contact our testing provider, Promissor/Pearson Vue, at 877-540-5833 or visiting their website at www.pearsonvue.com to schedule a date and time.
Where do I take my licensing exam?
Promissor/Pearson Vue has testing locations throughout the United States. There are 3 testing sites in Idaho: Boise, Coeur d’Alene and Pocatello. If you are outside of Idaho, contact Pearson Vue to find a testing center in your area.
How much does the licensing exam cost?
The cost is $60 for one or both parts (state and national) of the licensing exam.
What happens if I fail the licensing exam?
You may retake one or both portions of the licensing exam as many times as you like by registering with Promissor/Pearson Vue and paying the exam fee. If you fail one part but pass the other part, you have one year from the date you passed the first part to retake and pass the second part. Otherwise, you will have to retake both portions.
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Can I take courses by correspondence or distance learning?
Many CE courses are available as online courses through Idaho certified real estate providers. The Commission offers the BCOO course via correspondence. The Core course is also available for download from the Commission website. To receive credit for correspondence courses, you must pass a proctored final course exam.
How do I arrange to take a final exam for my correspondence course?
Find a proctor and arrange a time and date to take the exam. Please allow plenty of time for the Commission to send out your exam materials. A certified real estate provider or a public library or school can proctor your exam, or you can take the exam at the Commission office. Submit the request for exam proctor form with the $25 fee. When you have completed the exam, the proctor will return the materials to the Commission. Your exam will be scored, and we will notify you in writing of your exam results.
How do I get a course approved for real estate continuing education?
Pursuant to Idaho license law, all course content must be certified in order for the course to be credited toward continuing education requirements in Idaho. (There are exceptions for certain professional designation courses and courses offered for other professional licensees.) Complete the Course Approval (Certification) Application and submit it to the Commission at least two months prior to the first scheduled course offering. All course applications are reviewed and approved by the Education Council. Continuing education courses, once certified, must be offered through a certified Idaho real estate provider.
Do I need to be a certified instructor to teach CE courses?
No. However, CE courses must be taught through a certified Idaho real estate provider. It is the provider’s responsibility to make sure that instructors are qualified to teach the courses offered.
I want to teach a course that’s already certified in another state. Why do I have to also get it certified in Idaho? The Commission does not have any reciprocity agreements with other states for course certification. Different states accept different courses and have varying certification requirements. The license law requires Idaho certification to ensure courses offered for real estate CE meet Idaho requirements and fit within the approved topic areas established by the Commission.
Is there any money available to underwrite the development or offering of a course?
Yes! All civil penalty fine monies collected by the Commission go into a fund that may only be spent for the development and delivery of education to benefit Idaho real estate licensees. The Commission has authority to spend a portion of that fund each year, and Commissioners make awards of those funds to develop new courses or underwrite course offerings for licensees. Download the Education Fund Awards application from the website, and submit it to the Education Department with the required documentation. The Education Council and Commission review applications at their regular monthly meetings. The Commissioners decide whether or not to approve each application and the amount of each award.
What does the Commission have in its library?
We have a large selection of publications and DVD's pertaining to real estate issues in the library section of the Commission office. A list of available materials is available on our website.
How do I check out books or tapes from the library?
Come in to the office in person, or call or send a request to have library materials sent to you.