Activities Requiring Licensure & Exemptions

ACTIVITIES REQUIRING LICENSURE & EXEMPTIONS 

Individuals required to be licensed 

Individuals exempt from licensure 

Individuals required 

to be licensed Individuals who perform real estate services for compensation or the expectation of compensation must be licensed as real estate sales associates or brokers. As noted earlier, real estate services that require licensure include the sale, exchange, purchase, rental, appraisal, auction, and advertising of real property, business enterprises, and business opportunities, and the offer to perform any of these services. Services include procuring sellers, buyers, lessors, and lessees. 

Individuals exempt 

from licensure The following individuals are not required to hold a Florida real estate license: 

 owners who sell, exchange, or lease their own properties 

 corporations, partnerships, trusts, joint ventures, or other entities or officers, partners, or directors of entities that sell, exchange, or lease their own properties, unless an agent, employee, or independent contractor is employed and paid by the entity on a transactional basis to sell, exchange, or lease property; however, partners must be licensed if their percent of sale profits are higher than their individual percent of ownership in the business 

 any person acting as an attorney in fact who is authorized to act in another person’s place to execute contracts or conveyances 

 any attorney at law performing his or her duties without being compensated for performing real estate services 

 any certified public accountant performing his or her duties 

 any personal representative, receiver, trustee, or general or special magistrate appointed by a will or court order 

 any trustee acting under a deed of trust or trust agreement 

 any salaried employee of an apartment community who works in an onsite rental office to lease apartments for any time period and who is not paid on a transactional basis 

 any apartment community tenant who receives a referral fee of $50 or less for referring a new tenant to the community 

 any salaried manager of a condominium or cooperative apartment complex who handles individual unit rentals for periods of 1 year or less, not paid per transaction 

 any owner occupant of a timeshare period selling the period 

 any licensed or certified appraiser performing appraisal duties 

 any person or entity who is paid to rent or advertise for rent transient lodgings, such as hotels or motels 

Section 2: Real Estate License Law / Qualifications for Licensure 41 

 any dealer registered under the securities and exchange act who sells, buys, exchanges, or rents business enterprises to accredited investors 

 any employee of a real estate developer who is paid a salary but not paid on a transactional basis 

 any individual who rents lots in mobile home parks or recreational travel parks 

 any individual who sells cemetery plots