North Dakota Real Estate Practice Test (Free)
The North Dakota real estate salesperson exam has 140 questions and a 4 hours limit. Below are the exact numbers the ND exam uses, and a free practice test to see where you stand.
The North Dakota exam at a glance
- License
- Real Estate Salesperson
- Administered by
- PSI Services LLC (PSI), under contract with the North Dakota Real Estate Commission
- Total questions
- 140 (100 national and 40 North Dakota-specific)
- Time limit
- 4 hours
- Passing score
- Two portions, each scored separately, and the candidate must pass both. National portion: 70 of 100 points (70 of 100 questions). North Dakota state portion: 30 of 40 points (30 of 40 questions). Passing one portion and failing the other means only the failed portion is retaken, and the passed portion stands if the remaining portion is passed within 12 months of the first examination.
- How it is taken
- In person at PSI test centers. North Dakota sites listed by PSI: Bismarck (PSI, 120 N. 3rd Street, Suite 75), Bismarck (North Dakota Safety Council, 1710 Canary Ave., Suite A), Minot (Minot State University, 500 University Ave. W), Grand Forks (University of North Dakota, 2891 2nd Ave. N), and Fargo (Fargo Training and Testing Center, 4575 23rd Ave. S, Suite 1100). PSI also has centers in other regions of the United States where a North Dakota candidate may test. Arrive 15 minutes before the appointment.
- If you fail
- A candidate cannot book a new appointment on the same day as a sitting. PSI's example: a candidate who tests unsuccessfully on a Wednesday may call the next day and retest as soon as Friday, subject to seat availability, so the effective wait is one day. There are no eligibility requirements for the examination and a failed candidate may test unlimited times within a 12 month period. Retake only the portion that was failed, and the passed portion remains valid only if the remaining portion is passed within 12 months of the first examination. The fee is $134 whether one portion or both are taken, and it is charged again on every attempt. If both portions are not passed within that 12 month window, a new application and fees are required.
What North Dakota requires before you can sit the exam
- Minimum age
- 18+
- Pre-license education
- 90 hours
- Salesperson Pre-licensure Course, 90 hours, from an NDREC-certified provider (classroom, online, or hybrid). A candidate may sit the licensing examination before finishing the course, but the license cannot be issued until the commission receives evidence of course completion. Apply for licensure within two years of completing the course.
- Exam / application fee
- $134
- License term
- 1 years
- Background check
- Fingerprints and a criminal history check are required.
Free North Dakota practice questions
10 questions written for the North Dakota exam, drawn from 12 in the ApexAgent bank. The correct answer and the reasoning are under each one.
1. How many members make up the North Dakota Real Estate Commission, and how many must be active real estate brokers?
- A. Five members, three of whom must be active real estate brokers ✓
- B. Seven members, four of whom must be active real estate brokers
- C. Five members, two of whom must be active real estate brokers
- D. Nine members, five of whom must be active real estate brokers
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-01 provides that the state real estate commission consists of five members, three of whom must be active real estate brokers, all appointed by the governor.
2. What is the minimum age for an applicant for a North Dakota real estate salesperson or broker license?
- A. Sixteen
- B. Eighteen ✓
- C. Twenty-one
- D. No age minimum is stated in the law
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-08(2) requires an applicant for a broker or salesperson license to be at least eighteen years of age, and North Dakota Administrative Code section 70-02-01-02(1) restates that no application will be accepted from a person under eighteen.
3. How many hours of approved pre-licensure education must a North Dakota salesperson applicant complete?
- A. Forty-five hours
- B. Sixty hours
- C. Ninety hours ✓
- D. One hundred twenty hours
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-08(4) provides that an applicant for a salesperson license must furnish evidence of successful completion of at least ninety hours in courses of study approved by the commission.
4. A North Dakota broker applicant must complete an additional pre-licensure course beyond the salesperson requirement. How many hours is that course?
- A. Thirty hours
- B. Forty-five hours
- C. Sixty hours ✓
- D. Ninety hours
Why: Under North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-08(4), a broker applicant must complete an additional sixty hours of commission-approved study on top of the ninety hours already required to become a salesperson.
5. A North Dakota real estate salesperson wants to apply for a broker license. Under the experience standard, how long must the applicant generally have been actively engaged as a licensed salesperson?
- A. Six months
- B. One year
- C. Two years ✓
- D. Five years
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-08(3)(a) requires a broker applicant to have been actively engaged as a licensed real estate salesperson for at least two years before the application date, unless the commission finds substantially equivalent experience.
6. How long is a North Dakota Real Estate Commission member's term, and how many consecutive terms may a commissioner serve?
- A. Three-year terms, with no limit on consecutive terms
- B. Four-year terms, limited to three consecutive terms
- C. Five-year terms, limited to two consecutive terms ✓
- D. Six-year terms, limited to one term
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-02 provides that the governor appoints each member for a five-year term, with staggered terms, and that a commissioner may not serve more than two consecutive five-year terms.
7. When do North Dakota real estate licenses expire, and by what date must a licensee renew to avoid a late fee?
- A. They expire on December 31 each year, and renewal is due by November 15 ✓
- B. They expire on the licensee's birth date, and renewal is due 30 days before
- C. They expire on June 30 every two years, and renewal is due by June 1
- D. They expire on January 15 each year, and renewal is due by January 1
Why: North Dakota Administrative Code section 70-02-01-04 states that all licenses expire on December thirty-first of each year and that renewal applications must be made on or before November fifteenth for timely renewal.
8. How many hours of continuing education must a North Dakota broker or salesperson complete in each continuing education period?
- A. Six hours
- B. Twelve hours ✓
- C. Sixteen hours
- D. Twenty-four hours
Why: North Dakota Administrative Code section 70-02-04-02 requires each broker or salesperson to complete twelve hours of approved continuing education every continuing education period, which is the twelve months preceding the renewal application deadline.
9. Under North Dakota trust account rules, when must real estate trust money received by a salesperson be placed for deposit?
- A. Within five business days of receipt
- B. Within twenty-four hours of receipt ✓
- C. By the end of the calendar month
- D. Within seventy-two hours of receipt
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-11.1(1)(s) requires a salesperson to place with the employing broker, for deposit in the trust account, all trust money received within twenty-four hours of receipt, and the broker must deposit it within twenty-four hours, except that money received before a day the depository is closed is deposited the next business day.
10. Under North Dakota law, when does dual agency exist for a real estate brokerage firm?
- A. Whenever a single licensee shows the same property to more than one buyer
- B. Whenever two or more licensees in the same firm work on the same transaction
- C. Only when both the seller and the buyer in a transaction have written agency agreements with the same brokerage firm ✓
- D. Whenever a licensee refers a customer to another brokerage firm
Why: North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-06.1(6) defines dual agency as existing only when both the seller and the buyer have written agency agreements with the same real estate brokerage firm, and it provides that a subagency arrangement is not a written agency agreement for this purpose.
Want more North Dakota-specific questions? Practice the full North Dakota state-law set.
Frequently asked questions
- Does North Dakota split the real estate salesperson exam into separate national and state portions?
- Yes. The North Dakota salesperson exam has a 100-question national portion and a 40-question North Dakota state portion, and they are scored separately. You must pass both. The national portion requires 70 of 100 points and the state portion requires 30 of 40 points, so the state portion has the higher percentage cut. If you pass one portion and fail the other, you retake only the failed portion, provided you pass it within 12 months of your first examination.
- What score do you need to pass the North Dakota real estate exam?
- 70 points out of 100 on the national portion and 30 points out of 40 on the North Dakota state portion. Each scored question is worth one point. The exam may also contain a small number of experimental, unscored questions that are not counted toward your score but do count against your exam time.
- How many hours of education does North Dakota require to become a real estate salesperson?
- 90 hours of NDREC-certified pre-licensure education, a requirement set by North Dakota Century Code section 43-23-08(4). You may take the licensing exam before you finish the course, but the commission will not issue the license until it receives proof that the 90 hours are complete. You must apply for licensure within two years of finishing the course. To move from salesperson to broker later, the statute adds a further 60-hour broker pre-licensure course.
- How much does it cost to get a North Dakota real estate license?
- The NDREC salesperson application is filed online only. You pay a nonrefundable $150 application fee plus a credit history fee (listed as $11.25 in the online payment paragraph and $13 on the cost summary), a $40 fingerprint analysis fee made payable to the North Dakota Attorney General, and a one-time $20 contribution to the Real Estate Education, Research and Recovery Fund when the license is issued. The PSI exam fee is separate at $134 per attempt. Active licensees also carry errors and omissions insurance.
- Can an out-of-state real estate licensee get a North Dakota license without taking the whole exam?
- It depends. North Dakota has reciprocity with only three states: Minnesota, Iowa, and Georgia, and only if you are licensed and live primarily in that state. A licensee from a nonreciprocal state must still take the North Dakota state portion of the exam, though the pre-licensure course is not required if you already hold a license in another nonreciprocal state. All out-of-state applicants file a certificate of licensure and a consent to service.
See where you stand in 10 minutes
Free exam-style questions, your score, and your weakest topics.
Start the free practice testSources
- PSI Services LLC, North Dakota Real Estate Salesperson and Broker Examination Candidate Information Bulletin, dated 10/1/2025 (official vendor handbook: Examination Summary Table showing salesperson national 100 questions / 100 points / pass 70 / 150 minutes and state 40 questions / 40 points / pass 30 / 90 minutes; $134 exam fee whether one or both portions; 5 to 10 unscored experimental questions that count against time; no same-day retake with the Wednesday-to-Friday example; unlimited testing for a 12 month period; PSI test center list; arrive 15 minutes early) (verified 2026-10-03)
- PSI, North Dakota Real Estate Examination Program scheduling page (the vendor's own page for the North Dakota program; salesperson examinees schedule directly with PSI; broker examinees must be pre-approved by NDREC) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Real Estate Commission, Exam Information (PSI conducts the testing; salesperson applicants no longer need a test code from the commission; links to the PSI candidate bulletin) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Real Estate Commission, How To Apply (applications are online only at services.realestatend.org; $150 nonrefundable application fee plus $11.25 credit history in the payment paragraph and $13 on the cost summary; $40 fingerprint analysis payable to the ND Attorney General; $20 one-time Real Estate Education, Research and Recovery Fund; apply within two years of the pre-licensure course; reciprocity limited to Minnesota, Iowa, and Georgia; residents must pass both the state and national examinations while nonresident nonreciprocal applicants take only the state examination) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Real Estate Commission, Real Estate Education, Research and Recovery Fund, form SFN 12165 (NDCC 43-23.2-02: a person licensed as a broker or salesperson for the first time pays a one-time $20 fee into the fund at the time of obtaining the license) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Real Estate Commission, 2025 Renewal Information and Instructions (renewal fees: salesperson $125 per year, broker/broker associate $150, firm $200; all active and inactive licensees renew by November 15, late fees begin November 16, and licenses not renewed by January 15 are cancelled) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Century Code chapter 43-23, State Real Estate Commission (43-23-01 five members, three active brokers; 43-23-02 five-year staggered terms, maximum two consecutive terms; 43-23-05 license required; 43-23-06.1 definitions including dual agency and appointed agent; 43-23-08 age 18 and 90 hours salesperson plus 60 additional hours for broker and two years salesperson experience; 43-23-08.2 and 43-23-08.4 continuing education and criminal history checks; 43-23-11.1 grounds for discipline; 43-23-12 salesperson license designates the broker; 43-23-13 fees; 43-23-14.1 noninterest-bearing trust accounts; 43-23-19 errors and omissions insurance) (verified 2026-10-03)
- North Dakota Administrative Code article 70-02, Real Estate Licensure (chapter 70-02-01 Licensing, Trust Accounts, and Complaints: 70-02-01-02 no application from a person under 18 and a passed portion stands for 12 months from the first examination; 70-02-01-04 all licenses expire December 31 and renew by November 15; chapter 70-02-02 Education and Experience Standards including a 50-minute course hour; chapter 70-02-03 Licensee Responsibilities including agency disclosure and designated broker appointed agent; chapter 70-02-04 Continuing Education including 12 hours per period) (verified 2026-10-03)
- Exam details are checked against the North Dakota Real Estate Commission (NDREC) and its testing vendor. Always confirm current requirements with the board before your exam.