Montana Real Estate Broker License requirements

Follow these steps in order. Deadlines and affiliation requirements can make a passed exam unusable if they are missed.

1. 1

   Confirm two years as a licensed salesperson and start tallying your 30 points on Board forms

   Closed residential = 1 point (max five leases); farm/ranch/ag/commercial = 3. Own-property and mortgage-broker work do not count. Teams receive one credit total per side. Have your supervising broker of record complete the transaction sheets; Board staff will not advise on how to allocate points (12/2025 checklist).

2. 2

   Complete the 60-hour broker prelicense course within 18 months of applying

   This is not the salesperson 70 hours and not the 8-hour supervising-broker pre-endorsement course. A course exam is required (MCA 37-51-302(2)(e)).

3. 3

   Pass the Pearson broker exam — $95 per portion

   National 80/150 min/75% and state 40/90 min/75%, including six broker-only items. Waiver candidates take the state portion only. Apply to the Board within 12 months of the exam.

4. 4

   File the $90 broker application with transaction sheets and E&O

   Use Accela/POL (aca-prod.accela.com/POL per the 12/2025 checklist). Attach the 60-hour certificate, both score reports, Board forms only, license verifications, and E&O proof. Nonroutine applications go to the Board (611(10)).

5. 5

   If you will supervise salespersons, take the 8-hour pre-endorsement course

   The broker license does not include the endorsement. Keep it with 4 hours of "Supervising Broker" CE each year within the 12. If you miss them, the endorsement terminates and cannot be reinstated.

Minimum age

18 years old

Identification

A Social Security number is required. An ITIN is not confirmed as a substitute.

Residency and identification

Montana residency is not required. Experience may be earned while licensed in Montana or in another jurisdiction (ARM 24.210.611(9)(c)), but it must be legally obtained as a real-estate licensee, not as an unlicensed assistant or a mortgage broker. Waiver applicants must hold a current active license in good standing (611(6)).

Qualifying education

ARM 24.210.611(9)(a) / MCA 37-51-302(2)(e): 60 classroom or equivalent hours in addition to the salesperson prelicense education, obtained within 18 months immediately preceding the application, in a Board-approved course covering real estate principles, law, finance, and related topics, with a passing course examination. The Board homepage currently lists 60-hour broker pre-licensing courses separately from the 70-hour salesperson courses and the 8-hour supervising-broker pre-endorsement course. The salesperson 70 hours do not count as this 60.

Education or filing deadline

Broker prelicense education must be no more than 18 months old when you apply (ARM 24.210.611(9)(a)). The exam must be no more than 12 months old when you apply (611(3)). Pearson broker authorization lasts ten years after the first course required to take the broker exams; that is Pearson eligibility, not a Board deadline.

Character review

Same good-repute standard (MCA 37-51-302(1)). The Board reviews nonroutine applications (611(10)). "Yes" answers to personal-history questions require source documents; the 12/2025 checklist calls for discipline documentation from the licensing board, federal agencies, or court.

Background process

12/2025 broker checklist: personal history and official license verification, with no fingerprint vendor. Same as the salesperson application. ARM 24.210.401 has no fingerprint fee.

Experience

MCA 37-51-302(2)(c): two years actively engaged as a licensed salesperson, or equivalent experience the Board accepts. ARM 24.210.611(9)(b) currently requires 30 points in the 36 months before application, in any mix of transaction, education, supervision, and educator points, documented on Board transaction sheets. The 12/2025 checklist lists both the two-year minimum and the 30-point test.

Broker affiliation

A Montana broker license authorizes independent practice. Supervising salespersons requires a separate supervising-broker endorsement: an 8-hour pre-endorsement course, then 4 hours of CE titled "Supervising Broker" each licensing year within the 12-hour CE total (Board endorsement page; ARM 24.210.604). There is no endorsement fee (MCA 37-51-302(6)(b)). The endorsement cannot be placed inactive; a terminated endorsement cannot be reinstated, and you must retake the current pre-endorsement course. ARM 24.210.605 sets the reasonable-supervision duties for brokers who hold the endorsement (written office policy, etc.).

Pearson VUE, handbook #092700 (January 2026). Same $95-per-portion pricing as the salesperson exam; the broker portions are separate exam types. · Fee: $95

$95 per portion; both portions $190. If you pass one, retake only the failed part. Changes and cancellations require 48 hours' notice. Pearson broker authorization lasts ten years after the first required broker-exam course. Under ARM 24.210.611(3), results not used in a license application within 12 months are still invalidated. Waiver applicants take the state portion only. Walk-ins are not available.

These are commission or testing-vendor amounts we can cite. School tuition and optional preparation products are private-market prices.

ARM 24.210.401 and the Board's broker page: original broker $90, active renewal $90, inactive renewal $45, activate from inactive $45. Pearson #092700: $95 per portion (national $95, state $95). The application and initialLicense amounts here are the same single $90 original fee, not two fees. The supervising-broker endorsement has no licensing fee (MCA 37-51-302(6)(b)). Examination fees are paid to Pearson (24.210.401(3)). All Board fees are nonrefundable. No fingerprint fee.

• !

  Treating the broker license as the supervising-broker endorsement

  Salespersons cannot affiliate with a broker who lacks the endorsement. The endorsement requires an 8-hour pre-endorsement course plus 4 hours of CE with that title each year. Passing the broker exam does not grant it. Missing the 4 hours terminates it, with no way to reinstate (ARM 24.210.604).

• !

  Submitting MLS printouts instead of Board transaction sheets

  ARM 24.210.611(5): all experience, including transactions, must be presented on Board forms. 12/2025 checklist: "No other form or computer printout will be accepted." If your point calculations are incomplete, the application is deemed incomplete, and staff will not advise on how to allocate points.

• !

  Counting own-property deals, unsold listings, or mortgage-broker work

  ARM 24.210.611(9)(d)–(f) and (h) exclude them. Teams share one credit per side. Leases are capped at five residential and five commercial. Two years of licensure with the wrong kind of production still fails the 30-point test.

• !

  Letting the 60-hour broker course age past 18 months

  Salesperson education must be within 24 months; broker education within 18 (ARM 24.210.611(9)(a)). The 12-month exam-to-application deadline also applies. Pearson's 10-year broker authorization does not extend either Board deadline.

• !

  Paying $80 because that is the salesperson original fee

  The broker original fee is $90 (ARM 24.210.401(4); Board broker page). Pearson is still $95 per portion. Waiver applicants who take only the state portion still pay $95 + $90; the Board fee is not discounted.

• !

  Assuming new brokers get a first-year CE exemption

  ARM 24.210.667 as amended 9/7/2024 does not include a first-renewal exemption. Association pages that still mention a waiver for salespersons licensed <12 months are out of date, and that waiver never applied to brokers. Plan for 12 hours by October 31, including 4 supervising-broker hours if you hold the endorsement.

Montana has no list of reciprocal states. ARM 24.210.611(6)–(7): a waiver applicant must hold a current active license in good standing and must pass the Montana state examination. The 12/2025 out-of-state broker checklist requires state-portion results, Board transaction sheets, official license verification from every jurisdiction of any professional license, discipline documents if any, and $90. Experience earned in another jurisdiction counts if legally obtained while licensed (611(9)(c)), but it still has to be documented on the 30-point form. Idaho's Brokerage Management 28 + Law 30 hours do not count as Montana's 60 unless you qualify through the waiver process.

Montana vs neighboring states

Hours are the pre-license total printed in each guide; states that count credits or named courses show “See guide.” Published state fees add the application, exam, initial-license, and fingerprint amounts the guide can cite — tuition is not included.

Does the salesperson 70 count as broker education?

No. ARM 24.210.611(9)(a) requires 60 hours of broker prelicense education within 18 months of application, in addition to the salesperson hours (MCA 37-51-302(2)(e)). The 8-hour supervising-broker pre-endorsement course is a third, separate course.

Is two years as a salesperson enough?

It is the statutory minimum (MCA 37-51-302(2)(c)). ARM 24.210.611(9)(b) also requires 30 points in the last 36 months, documented on Board transaction sheets. The 12/2025 checklist lists both. Two years with no closed deals will not produce 30 transaction points; you can combine transaction, education, supervision, and educator points, subject to the caps in 611(9).

What is the broker exam format?

Same Pearson format as the salesperson exam, at $95 per portion: national 80 scored / 150 min / 75% (+5 pretest); state 40 scored / 90 min / 75% (+10 pretest). The state outline includes six broker-only items on trust accounts, supervision, place of business, recordkeeping, and closing. Waiver applicants take the state portion only.

Does passing the broker exam let me supervise salespersons?

No. The Supervising Broker Endorsement is a separate Board credential: an 8-hour pre-endorsement course, then 4 hours of CE titled "Supervising Broker" per licensing year within the 12. There is no endorsement fee. A terminated endorsement cannot be reinstated (ARM 24.210.604).

Can I use out-of-state broker experience?

ARM 24.210.611(9)(c) allows experience legally obtained while licensed in another jurisdiction, scored on the same 30-point form. Waiver applicants with a current active license take only the Montana state exam (611(6)–(7)) and still file Board transaction sheets and license verifications (12/2025 out-of-state checklist). Montana has no list of reciprocal states.

What deals do not count toward the 30 points?

Deals on your own property, or by an entity you have an interest in or that employed you as an employee (611(9)(d)). Mortgage-broker-only work (611(9)(e)). Listings that did not sell (611(9)(f)). More than five residential leases or five commercial leases. Team members share one credit total per side (611(9)(h)). Computer printouts submitted instead of Board forms are not accepted (12/2025 checklist).

Is E&O required of brokers too?

Yes, under MCA 37-51-325 and qualification 7 on the 12/2025 broker checklist. The Board homepage offers enrollment in the group policy. ARM 24.210.401 has no recovery-fund fee.