MAMassachusetts

Real estate exam prep

At a glance

The exam, in numbers.

Questions: 120 multiple-choice (80 national + 40 state)
Time: 240 minutes (4 hours)
Passing score: 70% on EACH section (56/80 national AND 28/40 state), scored independently
Pre-license education: 40 hours, Board of Registration-approved (tied with Michigan as the lowest in the United States)
License type: Real Estate Salesperson (entry-level; brokers take a separate exam under different prerequisites)
Administered by: PSI Services LLC on behalf of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons
Format: computer-based testing at PSI centers across Massachusetts; online proctoring also available
Exam fee: $85 per attempt, paid to PSI at scheduling
Retake wait: none; reschedule with PSI as soon as a slot is available
Score validity: a passed section stays valid for 24 months while you retake the other
Result: issued at the testing center (or on-screen for online proctoring); pass/fail per section

Massachusetts real estate exam: format, score, what to expect in 2026

The agency that licenses real estate practice in Massachusetts is called the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons. It's a sub-board of the Division of Occupational Licensure within the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. The full chain of agency names is unusually long for a state real estate regulator. The pre-license requirement those agencies oversee is unusually short: 40 hours of approved coursework, tied with Michigan for the lowest in the United States. The asymmetry is roughly the texture of Massachusetts real estate licensure as a whole. The state takes credentialing seriously enough to spread it across multiple oversight tiers and seriously little enough to gate it with one work-week of seat time. Anyone moving from a heavier-pre-license state (California's 135 hours, Colorado's 168) finds the Massachusetts pathway short. Anyone treating it as easy because it's short usually fails the exam at least once.

The exam is administered by PSI Services LLC on behalf of the Board of Registration. The format is 120 multiple-choice questions over 240 minutes, scored as 80 national + 40 state. The passing standard is 70% on EACH section, scored independently (you need 56 correct of 80 national items AND 28 correct of 40 state items). The exam is closed-book, with online proctoring available as an alternative to in-person PSI centers.

This guide walks through the Board of Registration content outline, how to study for the dense exam under the short course, and what exam day looks like at a PSI center.

Written by

Chris Reese

May 8, 2026

§ 01 What's tested

Massachusetts runs the exam in two scored sections, with the national portion (80 items) covering general real estate principles and the state portion (40 items) covering Massachusetts-specific licensing law and regulations. The state portion is anchored on Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 112, Sections 87PP through 87DDD (the real estate licensing statute) and the Board's regulations at 254 CMR.

National portion (80 scored items)

The national portion follows PSI's standard national real estate outline. Topic areas: real property characteristics, ownership and title, value and appraisal, contracts and agency, real estate practice, disclosures and environmental issues, financing and settlement, and math. Massachusetts candidates should know the state operates under a title-theory model with mortgages as the standard lien instrument, and the Massachusetts mandatory licensee-buyer disclosure overlays national agency content in many scenario questions.

State portion (40 scored items)

The state portion is anchored on M.G.L. Chapter 112 §§ 87PP-87DDD and 254 CMR. The major topic areas:

License Law and the Board of Registration. M.G.L. Chapter 112, the Board of Registration's structure and powers, the broker-salesperson affiliation rules, license issuance and renewal cycles, continuing education requirements, and the standards for license suspension and revocation.
Agency in Massachusetts. Massachusetts requires the licensee to provide the Mandatory Real Estate Licensee-Consumer Relationship Disclosure form to a buyer or seller at the first personal meeting where a property is discussed. The state recognizes seller agency, buyer agency, dual agency (with informed written consent), designated agency, and non-agency representation. The exam tests the disclosure timing and the duties owed under each relationship.
Massachusetts contracts and disclosures. Massachusetts uses a distinctive offer-and-acceptance sequence with binders, offers to purchase, and the Standard Form Purchase and Sale Agreement (P&S). The exam tests the role of each instrument and the typical timeline. The Massachusetts Lead Paint Law (M.G.L. Chapter 111 § 197A) requires lead paint disclosure for pre-1978 housing, a state-specific layer beyond the federal Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule.
Trust accounts and brokerage operations. The Board's trust account compliance rules, escrow handling, advertising compliance, the broker's supervisory responsibilities for affiliated salespersons, and the recordkeeping standards.
Fair housing in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Anti-Discrimination Law (M.G.L. Chapter 151B) layered on top of the federal Fair Housing Act. Massachusetts adds protected classes including source of income, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, and others; the state list is among the broadest in the country.
Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act (M.G.L. Chapter 93A). Chapter 93A is the state's general consumer protection statute; it applies to real estate transactions and creates private causes of action with treble damages and attorney's fees. Licensees who engage in unfair or deceptive practices are exposed to 93A liability personally. The exam tests the basics of the Act's application to real estate.

Standout state-specific content

Two Massachusetts content areas almost always confuse candidates who studied from generic national materials:

The offer-binder-P&S three-step contract sequence. Massachusetts residential transactions typically follow a three-step contract process: a Binder (with deposit), then an Offer to Purchase (often with a small earnest deposit), then a Standard Form Purchase and Sale Agreement (with a larger deposit and the full negotiated terms). The roles, timing, and legal effects of each step are testable, and the sequence does not exist in most other states' transaction structures.
Chapter 93A liability for licensees. Massachusetts's general consumer protection statute applies directly to real estate transactions and creates personal liability for licensees who engage in unfair or deceptive acts. Few other states have an equivalent statute with treble damages and attorney's fees attached. The exam tests scenarios where licensee conduct triggers Chapter 93A exposure.

§ 03 How to study

Massachusetts's 40-hour pre-license course is short, which means it covers the content outline at a higher level of abstraction than longer-state pre-license courses. Candidates often arrive at the exam with vocabulary but not depth. The fix is volume on practice questions tied to both the national and state outlines, with extra reps on Massachusetts-specific content the short course can't drill thoroughly.

What works in Massachusetts is treating the 40-hour course as the introduction and the practice question bank as the actual study. Most who pass have worked through somewhere in the low thousands of practice questions before sitting, with concentrated reps on the Mandatory Disclosure timing, the Binder/Offer/P&S sequence, and Chapter 93A applications.

Passd's Massachusetts question bank is organized by both national and state content areas, with per-area accuracy tracked so you know whether your weak spot is the agency disclosure, the contract sequence, Chapter 93A, or finance before booking the exam. Your Passd Score updates as you answer and gives a single read on whether the test is in reach yet. Tier details are on the pricing page.

A few specific things help in Massachusetts:

Read the Mandatory Real Estate Licensee-Consumer Relationship Disclosure form. The Board of Registration publishes it. The first-personal-meeting timing rule is testable in scenario form.
Trace a residential transaction through the Binder, Offer to Purchase, and Standard Form Purchase and Sale Agreement. The three-instrument sequence is unusual; understanding the legal effect of each step matters more than memorizing definitions in isolation.
Drill Chapter 93A scenarios. The personal-liability angle is a recurring exam topic and a recurring real-world risk for licensees. Knowing the Act exists isn't enough; the exam asks scenario questions about when it applies.

§ 04 What to expect on exam day

The Massachusetts salesperson exam is administered at PSI testing centers across Massachusetts and via PSI's online proctored option. You schedule directly through PSI after the Board of Registration has approved your pre-license course completion and authorized you to test.

On exam day:

Arrive at least 30 minutes before your scheduled in-person appointment, or log in to PSI's remote proctoring platform with the lead time PSI specifies.
Bring two forms of valid signature identification, one of them government-issued with photo (driver's license, state ID, passport, or military ID). Names must match the Board application.
Personal items go in a locker at PSI centers. Phones, smart watches, study materials, food, and bound notes stay outside the testing room. The remote proctoring rules cover the same items in the testing space.
Calculators are permitted with restrictions: silent, battery-operated, non-printing, and without an alphabetic keypad.
The exam is closed-book.

Results print at the testing center after the exam (or display on screen for online proctoring). The report shows pass or fail per section plus your numeric score on each. Candidates who pass move into the licensure phase: Board of Registration application, sponsoring broker arrangements, and the license fee. Candidates who fail one section can retake just that section, paying the per-section fee.

§ 05 Common mistakes

Massachusetts candidates who fail the exam tend to fail in a handful of specific ways:

Treating the 40-hour course as sufficient preparation. The pre-license course covers vocabulary; the exam tests applied judgment. Candidates who do not supplement with substantial practice question volume tend to underperform.
Skimming the Binder/Offer/P&S sequence. The three-instrument residential transaction sequence is unusual and heavily tested. Candidates who studied a generic two-step (offer-acceptance-then-contract) model from out-of-state materials miss the Massachusetts-specific timing.
Underestimating Chapter 93A. The Consumer Protection Act creates personal liability with treble damages. The exam tests scenarios that turn on whether a licensee's conduct meets the statute's "unfair or deceptive" standard.
Missing source of income and sexual orientation as protected classes. Massachusetts's Anti-Discrimination Law adds protected classes beyond the federal Fair Housing Act. Candidates who studied federal Fair Housing alone miss state-specific scenario questions.
Confusing dual agency consent mechanics. Massachusetts allows dual agency only with informed written consent from both parties. Candidates who imported either a "dual agency is forbidden" or a "dual agency is fine" mental model miss the specific consent rules.
Picking online proctoring without a quiet room. PSI's remote option works well in a dedicated quiet space, less well in a shared apartment or office. Failing the environment check at log-in costs an appointment.

§ 02 Frequently asked questions

How many questions are on the Massachusetts real estate salesperson exam?

120 multiple-choice questions: 80 on the national portion and 40 on the Massachusetts state portion.

How is the exam scored?

70% required on EACH section, scored independently. You need 56 correct of 80 national items AND 28 correct of 40 state items. Failing one section means failing the exam.

How long is the exam?

240 minutes (4 hours) total.

Is 40 hours of pre-license course really enough?

Forty hours is the statutory minimum. Whether it's enough depends on prior real estate exposure and supplementary practice. Most Massachusetts candidates supplement the course with substantial practice question volume.

Where do I take the exam?

At a PSI testing center in Massachusetts or via PSI's remote online proctored option. Both score identically.

What pre-license education do I need before the exam?

40 hours of Board of Registration-approved coursework, completed at an approved school before submitting the salesperson application.

Can I take the exam remotely?

Yes. Massachusetts allows PSI's online proctored exam in addition to the in-person centers.

What's Chapter 93A and why does it matter for licensees?

M.G.L. Chapter 93A is the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act. It applies to real estate transactions and allows consumers to sue for unfair or deceptive practices, with treble damages and attorney's fees available. Licensees can be personally liable. The exam tests the basics; in practice, every Massachusetts brokerage carries E&O insurance partly because of 93A exposure.

How much is the Massachusetts exam fee?

$85 per attempt, paid to PSI when you schedule. Each retake is the same amount.

How long must I wait between retakes?

There's no statutory waiting period in Massachusetts. You can reschedule with PSI as soon as a slot is available.

How long is my passing score valid?

A passed section stays valid for 24 months. If you pass national but fail state (or vice versa), you have 24 months to pass the failed section before you have to re-test everything.

Ready to see how prepared you are?

The Passd diagnostic is 20 questions across every major topic, and shows your Massachusetts-specific Passd Score plus which Board of Registration content areas need work. Free, no credit card.

Start the Massachusetts diagnostic