Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson Exam Exam Guide

The exam blends national real estate principles with Massachusetts-specific law across two portions. The general portion is weighted toward broad practice topics, while the state portion focuses entirely on Massachusetts requirements. By official weight, the content breaks down as:

• Requirements governing licensees — 33-35% (13 items for salespersons)
• Consumer protection laws — 10-12% (5 items)
• Environmental issues and hazardous materials — 10% (4 items)
• Landlord-tenant law — 10% (4 items)
• Licensing requirements — 10% (4 items)
• Massachusetts fair housing law — 10% (4 items)
• Contracts — 5% (2 items)
• Additional topics — 5% (2 items)
• Duties and powers of the Board of Registration — 5% (2 items)

A small number of unscored experimental items (5 to 10) may also appear on any given exam form.

Mass.gov lists an $85 salesperson candidate fee, while PSI's separate test bulletin lists a $56 fee per exam attempt and a $31 application fee — the two sources describe different steps in the process, so candidates should verify their exact charge against both the state fee schedule and the PSI bulletin before paying. A missed appointment carries a $54 retake fee per Mass.gov (PSI's bulletin lists $56 for retakes).

The exam totals between 100 and 120 questions across roughly 4 hours. It splits into an 80-question general portion (150 minutes) and a 40-question Massachusetts state-law portion (90 minutes), for a combined 120 points in 240 minutes when both are taken together. Candidates must score at least 70% correct on each portion separately to pass — a strong general-portion score cannot offset a weak state-portion score.