What Continuing Education Do I Need Based on My Ohio Real Estate License Type?

As an Ohio real estate professional, you’re fairly well-positioned to keep your license active with minimal hassle. Other states require real estate licensees to go through an involved renewal process that might require steps like getting fingerprinted or paying a fee. In Ohio, though, you really only need to worry about keeping up with your continuing education hours.

Still, though, finding the exact details on the hours you need can be a challenge unless you want to delve Chapter 1301:5-7 of the Ohio Administrative Code. You can certainly do that, but we thought we’d make things a little easier for you. Here’s a quick and thorough guide to the continuing education you need — and how frequently you need it — based on your Ohio real estate license type.

How many continuing education hours do I need to maintain my license?

Continuing education requirements for Ohio salespeople

As a licensed real estate salesperson in Ohio, you need 30 hours of continuing education every three years. Nine of those 30 hours need to be on “core topics,” which we’ll define in a moment in the “What are core topics?” section.

Your remaining 21 hours can be on elective topics.

Continuing education requirements for Ohio brokers, brokers on deposit, or management-level licensees

If you’re a broker, broken on deposit, or you act as a management-level licensee, you still need 30 hours every three years. But in addition to the nine “core topic” hours (more on that in the next section), you also need to make sure three of your 30 hours focus on “the duties of a principal broker and other issues involved in operating a real estate brokerage.”

Many education providers offer three-hour courses specifically on this topic. Find one so you can easily comply with the state’s requirements.

Your remaining 18 hours can be on elective topics.

What are core topics?

Now, it gets a little complicated. The nine core hours you need to get broken into three categories. Specifically, you need:

3 hours on fair housing and civil rights, which can include “current municipal, state and federal civil rights laws; civil rights case law; desegregation issues; methods for eliminating the effects of prior discrimination; and strategies for affirmatively furthering fair housing.”
3 hours on state and/or federal legislation that impacts real estate
3 hours on ethics

To make sure you’re getting the hours you need on the required topics, you can use the state’s continuing education class search tool to find the Department of Commerce-approved courses.

Fortunately, you can take the hours you need — including your core topics hours — online. Choose a state-approved online continuing education provider. That way, you can work toward the 30 hours you need, hitting all the right topics, at your own convenience over the course of each renewal period.

How do I prove I’ve taken the continuing education I need?

You need to report your hours to the Ohio Department of Commerce using this form. This proof of continuing education is due on your birthday three years after you first got your license and every three years after.

Additionally, keep the certificates of completion you get each time you finish hours for at least six years. The Department of Commerce can audit you at any time for these records.