How to become a real estate agent in Tennessee

This page is independent of any school or brokerage. Requirements change (the tn.gov pages are the versions read on the date shown, PSI's bulletin is its July 1, 2025 update, and TREC's own FAQ, updated August 2026, gives a shorter life for a partial pass than the bulletin does), so each section names the official page it was read from and the date. If a figure below disagrees with TREC's page today, the board is right and this page is stale: the date tells you how stale.

1Tennessee real estate license requirements

• Age: at least 18 years of age, one of the qualifying questions every candidate answers on exam day.
• Education: proof of high school graduation, filed with the application.
• Course: 60 hours of real estate education in principles and fundamentals before the exam, with the school reporting completion to PSI before you can register; then the 30-hour Course for New Affiliates, whose certificate goes in with the application.
• Exam: a pass on the national and state sections of the PSI affiliate broker exam, with the license application filed within one year of passing.
• Background: electronic fingerprints through IdentoGO, sent to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the FBI, with the receipt and ORI number filed with the application; under Rule 1260-01-.01(4) no one is eligible until two years have passed since the end of probation, parole, conviction or release for any felony or a theft-related misdemeanor.
• Insurance and sponsor: proof of an errors and omissions insurance policy, and a PSI examination application signed by your principal broker.

See how Tennessee compares with every other state on the requirements by state table.

Source: PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Affiliate Broker Licensure (how to get a license), read September 9, 2026.

2Steps to get your Tennessee real estate license, in order

1. Complete the 60-hour principles course

   The school reports completion to PSI electronically; you cannot register for the exam until it has, and the school also gives you the certificate you file with the application.

2. Pass both sections of the PSI exam for $63

   The national section is 80 questions in 160 minutes and the state section 40 questions in 80 minutes; 70% passes each, and a candidate who fails one section retakes only that section.

3. Complete the 30-hour Course for New Affiliates

   Required before a license will be issued for anyone licensed after December 31, 2004; the certificate goes in with the application.

4. Get fingerprinted and buy errors and omissions insurance

   Tennessee residents book IdentoGO, which sends the prints to the TBI and FBI; out-of-state applicants can use a card-scan service. Fingerprints are not needed for testing, only for the initial license.

5. Apply online at core.tn.gov with $91 within one year of passing

   The application carries the PSI examination application signed by your principal broker, proof of insurance, proof of high school graduation, the Eligibility for Entitlements Verification form and the fingerprint receipt; candidates have one year from the day they pass their first exam to apply.

Source: Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Affiliate Broker Licensure (how to get a license), read September 9, 2026; PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance customer service center, Pre-Licensing Requirements and Exam FAQs (updated August 14, 2026), read September 9, 2026.

3How much a Tennessee real estate license costs

TREC publishes every fee on one page and PSI's fee in its bulletin; fingerprinting is paid to IdentoGO, insurance to the carrier, and tuition to the schools.

Source: PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Fees, read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Affiliate Broker Licensure (how to get a license), read September 9, 2026.

4How long it takes to become a real estate agent in Tennessee

The fixed parts are 90 course hours in two courses, one PSI sitting per section, fingerprints and insurance, and an online application within a year of passing; TREC publishes no typical review time for affiliate broker applications on the pages read for this guide. Those parts come from TREC's own pages and the exam vendor's bulletin, not a school's marketing:

• Principles course: 60 hours at the school's pace, reported to PSI before you can book the exam.
• Exam: 160 minutes for the national section and 80 for the state section at a PSI center; a failed section can be rebooked from the next day.
• New affiliates course: 30 hours, completed before the license issues.
• Application: filed online within one year of passing the first exam, with fingerprints and insurance in place; no review time is published.

Source: Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Affiliate Broker Licensure (how to get a license), read September 9, 2026; PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance customer service center, Pre-Licensing Requirements and Exam FAQs (updated August 14, 2026), read September 9, 2026.

5The Tennessee real estate exam

The affiliate broker exam is 120 questions in 4 hours, two sections, national (160 minutes) and Tennessee state (80 minutes), multiple choice at a PSI test center. You need 70% on each section: 56 of 80 national and 28 of 40 state questions to pass. The score shows on screen at the end and a score report is emailed; a fail comes with a diagnostic report by topic. Retakes: only the failed section is retaken; PSI's bulletin keeps a passed section valid for two retakes of the other or one year, while TREC's FAQ gives six months, so plan on the shorter figure. A retake can be booked from the day after the exam, and after a second failure candidates wait 30 days between attempts.

Pass rate

Neither TREC nor PSI publishes a pass rate for the affiliate broker exam on the pages or bulletin read for this guide, so none is shown here.

Source: PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance customer service center, Pre-Licensing Requirements and Exam FAQs (updated August 14, 2026), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Real Estate Commission, PSI and Exam Information, read September 9, 2026.

6Reciprocity: already licensed in another state?

None. TREC states that it does not offer a reciprocal license. A licensee of another state may instead ask, by emailing Worksheet A and certified license histories from every state, to have their education, the national section of the exam, or their experience substitute for Tennessee's; PSI's bulletin adds that out-of-state licensees must meet the same education requirement as residents and be affiliated with a Tennessee-licensed firm under a Tennessee principal broker.

Source: Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Renewal, Reciprocity and Other Resources, read September 9, 2026; PSI, Tennessee Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated July 1, 2025), read September 9, 2026.

7Renewal and continuing education

The license runs two years. To renew you complete 16 clock hours of approved continuing education within the license period and pay $75 on time, or $75 plus a late fee of $50 a month for the first 120 days after expiry, rising to $100 a month from day 121 to 365; a license expired more than a year must be re-tested for, or reinstated with an approved 30-hour T.R.A.C.E. course late.

First renewal: no separate first-renewal course beyond the 30-hour Course for New Affiliates taken before the license issued; the same 16 hours are due at every renewal.

Later renewals: 16 hours of continuing education per two-year renewal, 10 hours of electives and the 6-hour TREC Core course, completed on or before the expiry date and uploaded by the sponsor to CE Broker; a licensee who misses it pays a CE penalty of $50 a month, and a lapse in errors and omissions cover costs at least $200.

Source: Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance customer service center, Continuing Education FAQs (updated August 31, 2026), read September 9, 2026; Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Fees, read September 9, 2026.

8How much real estate agents make in Tennessee

The only independent, dated wage figure for agents is the Bureau of Labor Statistics' occupational survey. For Tennessee, release May 2025:

BLS counts agents paid as employees and reports wages, not the commissions of self-employed agents, so these are a floor for the occupation rather than what a typical commissioned agent takes home.

Every state is ranked on the same survey on the salary by state page.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025, Real Estate Sales Agents (41-9022), Tennessee, read September 8, 2026.

9After the license: choosing a brokerage in Tennessee

A new affiliate broker license is only usable under a broker, so the next decision is which brokerage. On September 5, 2026, 7,914 Tennessee agents had a published brokerage profile; the largest single company was Keller Williams with 2,197 of them, and the largest brand was Keller Williams with 2,197. Ask each brokerage for its commission split and fees in writing before you sign.

Source: Realty Census, Tennessee count and brokerage ranking, September 5, 2026 (realtycensus.com/tennessee/), read September 9, 2026.

One thing worth knowing before your profile goes live: a brokerage profile page is public, and the contact details on it get collected and sold as marketing lists, such as the Tennessee list from US Realtor List, which is why vendor email tends to start the week an agent's profile first appears. Any list of this kind should tell you how to come off it, and a reputable one acts on that request.

10Pre-license schools in Tennessee

TREC approves the schools and the 60-hour, 30-hour and continuing education courses, charging course sponsors $10 to $50 per approval by length; the approved courses and the CE Broker tracking system are listed on its education pages. The list is at TREC's education courses page.

This page carries no affiliate links. If a schools page for Tennessee is added with affiliate links, it will say so at the top, and schools will be ordered by what the state publishes or alphabetically, never by commission.

Source: Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Fees, read September 9, 2026.

Questions people ask about becoming an agent in Tennessee

How long does it take to become a real estate agent in Tennessee?

The fixed parts are 90 course hours in two courses, one PSI sitting per section, fingerprints and insurance, and an online application within a year of passing; TREC publishes no typical review time for affiliate broker applications on the pages read for this guide. The principles course is 60 hours at the school's pace; the exam is one PSI sitting of 160 plus 80 minutes; the 30-hour new-affiliates course follows; and the application must be filed within one year of passing. TREC publishes no typical review time for affiliate applications.

How much does it cost to get a real estate license in Tennessee?

$154 to the state and its vendors ($63 exam, $91 application), plus tuition for the pre-license course, the IdentoGO fingerprint fee, the errors and omissions premium, and tuition for the 90 hours of courses, which the schools set.

What is the pass rate for the Tennessee real estate exam?

Neither TREC nor PSI publishes a pass rate for the affiliate broker exam on the pages or bulletin read for this guide, so none is shown here.

How much do real estate agents make in Tennessee?

The BLS May 2025 median for real estate sales agents in Tennessee is $46,250 a year, with the middle half earning between $36,210 and $77,400. BLS counts agents paid as employees and reports wages, not the commissions of self-employed agents, so these are a floor for the occupation rather than what a typical commissioned agent takes home.

Does Tennessee have real estate license reciprocity?

No. Tennessee offers no reciprocal license, but a licensee from another state can ask TREC, with Worksheet A and certified license histories, to substitute their education or the national exam section, and must still affiliate with a Tennessee principal broker.

Sources and dates