The Virginia Real Estate Board is the state regulatory body responsible for licensing and overseeing real estate salespersons, brokers, and real estate firms that represent others in property transactions. The Board operates within Virginia’s Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR) and establishes the requirements that individuals and businesses must meet before conducting regulated real estate activity. If you’re preparing to become licensed in Virginia, explore LEAP’s real estate licensing courses to see current course availability and online education options.

For consumers, the Board provides a framework for professional accountability and license verification. For real estate professionals and applicants, it governs education, examinations, licensing, renewal, continuing education, and compliance with Virginia law.

What the Virginia Real Estate Board Does

The Virginia Real Estate Board administers the state’s real estate licensing system. Its responsibilities include:

• Licensing real estate salespersons, brokers, and firms
• Establishing education and examination standards
• Regulating professional conduct and brokerage activity
• Approving qualifying education courses and providers
• Processing applications, renewals, and certain license changes
• Maintaining standards for firm supervision and principal brokers
• Addressing alleged violations through the state’s regulatory and enforcement processes
• Protecting the public by requiring licensed professionals to meet minimum competency and conduct standards

A Virginia real estate firm must hold a separate firm license, and each firm must have a principal broker whose license is in good standing while the firm conducts real estate business. Individual brokers and salespersons must also hold the appropriate license for the services they provide.

Why the Board Matters to Virginia Consumers

Real estate transactions involve substantial financial and legal commitments. The Board helps protect consumers by requiring professionals who perform regulated brokerage services to satisfy state licensing requirements and remain subject to professional standards.

Consumers can use the Board’s regulatory resources to:

• Confirm whether an agent, broker, or firm is licensed
• Review available licensing information
• Identify the proper regulatory authority for a complaint
• Understand the difference between a salesperson, broker, and firm
• Verify that a professional is authorized to conduct business in Virginia

License verification should be part of the process when selecting a real estate professional. Consumers should also confirm the identity of the brokerage firm involved in a transaction, since the firm license is distinct from the individual license held by an agent or broker.

The Board does not replace the need for consumers to review contracts carefully or obtain independent legal, tax, inspection, or financial advice. Its role is to regulate the licensed profession and enforce applicable licensing standards.

Virginia Real Estate Salesperson Licensing

Applicants seeking a Virginia salesperson license must complete 60 hours of Board-approved pre-license education and pass both the state and national portions of the licensing examination.

The application process also includes other requirements, including:

• Meeting Virginia’s minimum age requirement
• Having a high school diploma or equivalent
• Completing the required application
• Providing fingerprints for the required background check
• Submitting the applicable fee and supporting documentation
• Satisfying the Board’s examination and application deadlines

The Board’s application instructions state that fingerprints and background-check materials are time-sensitive. Applicants should follow the current instructions carefully and submit a complete application within the required period.

A salesperson applicant does not need to satisfy the broker experience requirement. Once licensed, a salesperson generally practices under the supervision of a licensed broker or brokerage firm.

Virginia Real Estate Broker Licensing

Broker applicants must meet substantially higher education and experience standards than salesperson applicants. Virginia requires 180 hours of Board-approved broker pre-license education, passage of the state and national portions of the broker examination, and verification that the applicant has been actively engaged as a salesperson for 36 of the preceding 48 months.

Broker education must include a real estate brokerage course and additional broker-specific or broker-related coursework. The Board identifies subjects such as real estate appraisal, finance, law, contract law, property management, investments, and other qualifying areas within its current requirements.

Broker applicants should confirm the precise course combination and documentation requirements before enrolling. Coursework taken for continuing education generally cannot be substituted for required broker pre-license education, and a principles course used for salesperson licensure may not satisfy Virginia’s broker pre-license requirements.

Education After Initial Licensure

Virginia licensees have continuing education and post-license obligations that vary according to license type and renewal status.

New active salesperson licensees must complete a Board-approved 30-hour post-license education course within the required period to remain on active status. Licensees who have renewed at least once must complete Board-approved continuing education before renewing or activating their licenses.

Virginia’s continuing education requirements have also changed. For licenses expiring on or after June 30, 2026, the required continuing education total is 11 hours, including required subject areas such as legal updates and emerging trends, real estate agency, and real estate contracts.

Because education rules and deadlines can change, licensees should consult the Board’s current instructions rather than rely on older course materials or informal summaries.

How the Board Regulates Licensees

The Board’s rules affect many routine aspects of real estate practice, including:

• Advertising and the use of business names
• Disclosure and agency relationships
• Handling of client and transaction records
• Supervision by principal and supervising brokers
• Brokerage firm operations
• License renewal and continuing education
• Conduct involving honesty, truthfulness, and fair dealing
• Activities performed on behalf of buyers, sellers, landlords, tenants, and other clients

Virginia regulations require applicants to demonstrate a reputation for honesty, truthfulness, and fair dealing, as well as competence to conduct real estate business in a way that safeguards the public’s interests.

Violations can result in regulatory consequences, including application problems, delays, monetary penalties, or disciplinary action affecting a license. Licensees should review current Board regulations whenever they change firms, alter license status, expand services, advertise under a new name, or face a complaint.

Renewals, Records, and Compliance

Virginia licenses for salespersons, brokers, and firms generally expire two years from issuance. Renewal is not automatic simply because a licensee continues working in the industry. Licensees must satisfy the applicable education requirements, submit the renewal materials, and pay the required fee by the deadline.

Good compliance practices include:

• Tracking the license expiration date
• Completing education through approved providers
• Retaining certificates and course records
• Using the most current Board forms
• Keeping applications accurate and complete
• Updating the Board when required
• Confirming that a sponsoring or principal broker remains properly licensed
• Reviewing current regulations before making significant business changes

Applicants and licensees should contact the Board directly when a situation does not fit the standard instructions. The Board identifies its licensing office as the appropriate source for questions about applications, examinations, and license requirements.

Complaints and Consumer Concerns

Consumers who believe a licensed real estate professional violated Virginia law or Board regulations may need to pursue the state’s complaint or enforcement process. A complaint should generally identify the professional or firm involved, describe the conduct at issue, and include relevant supporting records such as agreements, advertisements, correspondence, disclosures, and transaction documents.

The Board’s regulatory role is focused on licensing and professional conduct. It is not a substitute for a private lawsuit, contract dispute process, legal representation, or other remedies that may be available under Virginia law. Consumers should consider obtaining independent legal advice when a dispute involves ownership, contract rights, damages, or deadlines.

Working With the Virginia Real Estate Board

The most reliable way to interact with the Board is to use current information from DPOR and the Virginia Real Estate Board. Requirements may be revised, forms may be replaced, and education or renewal rules may change over time.

Applicants should:

• Confirm the current salesperson or broker requirements
• Verify that education is Board-approved before enrolling
• Follow the current examination instructions
• Submit fingerprints and applications within the stated deadlines
• Use the latest application forms
• Provide complete and accurate documentation
• Retain proof of education and application materials

Consumers should:

• Verify the license status of agents, brokers, and firms
• Ask which broker or firm will supervise the transaction
• Review agency disclosures and agreements
• Keep copies of transaction documents
• Contact the Board when a licensing or professional-conduct concern arises

Final Takeaway

The Virginia Real Estate Board is the central licensing and regulatory authority for real estate salespersons, brokers, and firms in Virginia. It determines the education, examination, application, renewal, and continuing education standards required to practice legally.

For consumers, the Board offers a way to verify credentials and raise concerns about regulated professional conduct. For applicants, it defines the path to licensure. For active licensees, it provides the rules that govern brokerage operations, supervision, advertising, education, and continuing compliance.

Anyone entering or using Virginia’s real estate market should treat the Board’s current guidance as the starting point for understanding the state’s licensing system.

Authoritative Sources

• Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Real Estate Board.
• Virginia Real Estate Board, Salesperson/Broker Application Process.
• Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Real Estate Board Pre-License Education.
• Virginia Real Estate Board, Real Estate Regulations.
• Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Continuing Education Requirements.