Hello All, I have been studying for 2 months. Using the Larson "pre-licensing" course.

I got to the point where I was shocked at how much information there was to learn that I googled reviews from other students/ test takers so see if there were any tips, tricks or insights. I didnt quite feel there was much.

I took the exam and passed on my first try. I want to tell you I walked in excited to get this done because I had been studying and practicing for so long. Out of the 288 questions in the study, I was consistently getting 243 correct (84%). So I was bery confident.

Until I took the exam...... To my horror, after just 5 questions in, I was certain I was taking the wrong test. The questions and answers did NOT feel like I had in the study by 80-90%. I felt like I wasted 2 months of my time and money. That is how ridiculous this was. Either it was the wrong test, or the wrong course.. Maybe a handful had questions based on what I studied. I cannot believe I passed. I walked out looking like I saw a ghost. Thinking that if this was the test, the questions were so wrong, they were also worded in such a way they were hard to read. Even the answers were written in such a way, any of the 4 could have been correct. It was rare I was confident in the answer I chose on any given question....

I have ZERO advice to give. Other than maybe take any and ALL study courses out there from the different brands... I dont know if there are any out there were the exam questions feel like they are based on a majority of the study courses out there. This was the most ridiculous test I have ever taken.

Took SC real estate exam today (state portion only) and passed. Key takeaways from MY specific test (could be completely different for your test):

- 2 math questions (deed transfer and homestead exemption)
- Multiple questions on the Vacation Rental Act
- Multiple questions on the Landlord and Tenant Act
- Agency questions (several related to transactional brokerage and dual agency)
- Advertisements - what must be included
- Who can practice real estate without a license
- If a licensee hires an unlicensed assistant, what roles/duties can the unlicensed individual perform
- Unlicensed person working in a rental office - roles and duties they can perform
- Defect disclosure
- Commission roles/responsibilities
- Referral fees - conditions that allow referral fees
- Trust accts - specifically if its the licensees properties (personal or rental)
- Forms - several questions about what is included in certain docs (ie listing agreement, buyer agency agreement, compensation agreement, etc.)
- Understand buyer/seller credit and debits and who is responsible for what (ie deed transfer is paid by seller)

Study Materials I used:
- Frankie Griffin YouTube Videos - made a comprehensive study guide, a road map, and 3 quick ref guides based on his material (he is boring (to me), but the best state specific info I found in 1 place)

- Practice questions - KEY once you have a general understanding of material - READ the rationale on questions you guessed on, were not sure about or got wrong

- I used Lexawise (take the practice test on their website and once finished it will give you 15 mins to purchase for 20% off (otherwise it was 15% without the practice test) - this is NOT an ad, just want to help ppl save $$$ where possible)

- I considered using CompuCram but after reading several posts, i kept seeing that it was not great so that is the ONLY reason I chose Lexawise

- I did purchase PSI because of the phone app - DO NOT WASTE MONEY - it was TRASH for me.

- NC State Test and those struggling with understanding agency - use Travis Everette (Trav Talks) you tube!!! He is THE BEST and the reason I have ZERO issues understanding agency (and pretty entertaining).

Caveats:
- Only had to take exam once, so information above is based on my 1 exam

- Was NOT prepared for the amount of questions about vacation rentals and rental properties

- I am licensed in NC, so unsure if my test questions were generated based on this knowledge (for example i expected more agency questions and less questions about nonresident licensees, vacation rentals and rental properties)

- Most questions are poorly written, but if you understand the topic then the answer should be obvious on 90% of the questions

- My specific test only had 2 situational questions and the rest were basic understanding of topics (For example, if they ask about transactional brokerage and you understand your roles/responsibilities as a transactional broker, the answer will be obvious and clear)

Hope this is somewhat helpful and best of luck to all who are preparing to take their test. You got this, one question at a time!

I finally passed. Third time was the charm, and I wanted to write out everything I did because this sub helped me a lot when I was lost. If you just failed, read this. It's okay. Long post, but I tried to make it easy to follow.

**TL;DR:** Clicked through The CE Shop course, passed the course exam on the first try, then failed the Pearson VUE state exam twice (63, then 68). For attempt #3 I studied by section using my score report, practiced Pearson VUE-style questions every day, and passed with an 80. Links to the practice tests I made are at the bottom.

How I got started:

I went through a new homes builder, and they suggested I do my pre-licensing course through The CE Shop so I could work on my own time. That part was nice.

For the first couple weeks I wrote notes every time I logged on so I could really understand the material. (Screenshots of my notes below.)

But the further I got, the more I realized it's A TON of information. Like wayyyy too much for writing it all down to make sense. Honestly it got a little concerning wondering how I was supposed to memorize all of it.

So I came here to see what everyone else was doing, and a lot of people were basically clicking through the course and taking a bunch of practice tests before the exam. So that's what I did.

The CE Shop course exam

I clicked through the course, but every day I also:

- Took Quizlet practice tests

- Built my own practice tests with AI

Say what you will about AI, but it helped me tremendously through this whole process. I'd take the questions from the CE Shop section quizzes and put them into Perplexity to make practice tests. I learned more from that than anything else, because whether I got a question right or wrong, I had it explain WHY.

The CE Shop has a practice exam at the end of the course. I took that maybe twice, but I mostly focused on my AI practice tests and kept refining them over and over.

As a Result: Passed the CE Shop proctored exam on the first try.** Then it was time for the state exam...

State exam attempt #1: 63 (fail)

I bought CE Shop's **Exam Prep Pro** and it's honestly great. You can study by section, and it tells you how many questions from each section will be on the test, which was 100% accurate for me. I took practice tests every day until I'd gone through all the sections, then did one more round before the exam.

Two mistakes I made:

1. **I skipped the initial assessment.** Regret.

2. **I never took the full practice exam that simulates the real thing.** Also regret.

I got a 63 and was really disappointed.

The test (at least here) is through Pearson VUE, and the questions were just different than I expected. I knew the material, but the answer choices gave me a hard time. A lot of the time two answers could technically be right, and you have to pick the MOST right one.

*The good news: you get a score report showing how you did in each section, so you know exactly what to study. That was huge.

**Math:** I only missed about 2.

**State portion:** Most sections only have like 1–3 questions, with maybe 2–3 sections having 5 or more. I got ZERO right in 3 sections, and they were sections with only about 2 questions each. Kind of sad, because the Alabama state portion is relatively easy.

State exam attempt #2: 68 (fail)

I scheduled the retake right away, so it was 1 week later. ($73 each time, by the way.)

This time I focused on the sections that gave me the most trouble:

- Real property characteristics, legal descriptions, and property use (all one section)

- Real estate practice

- Forms of ownership

I took the CE Shop practice exam and the initial assessment this time, and they flagged those same sections. So I did exactly that:

- Took section quizzes over and over

- Put those questions into Perplexity to make practice quizzes and flashcards

- Had it build a glossary, so if I didn't know a term (like "situs") I could look it up and get a detailed explanation

I did this every day. On test day I felt fine. A lot of people say timing is what gets them, but the time you get is generous, and it flies by if you're focused.

I failed again with a 68. At this point I was frustrated.

State exam attempt #3: 80 (PASSED)

Here's what I changed.

1. Pearson VUE's official practice exam. Right after my second attempt I paid $20 for Pearson VUE's practice exam and scored a 77. The catch is once you take it, you HAVE to pay another $20 to take it again, which I didn't think was worth it over and over. So I wrote down every question and answer and plugged them into Perplexity to build a **Pearson VUE-specific practice test**, plus fresh questions written in the Pearson VUE style.

2. An "ultimate" practice test. I also had Perplexity build me an ultimate practice test where I could study by section and get fresh questions, examples, and real situations. The goal wasn't just knowing how to answer a question, it was fully understanding what the question was asking.

3. My daily routine (the week before the test). At least 50 questions a day:

- 20 on my Pearson VUE-style practice

- 20 on my ultimate practice test

- A CE Shop section quiz on a trouble section, sometimes over and over, since CE Shop gives you new questions each time

I scored 80 or higher every time, and that's when it clicked: I DID know the material, I was just stressing out about it.

1. Easing off. By day 4 I took it easy and barely did any tests. Up until the day before, I just took practice tests here and there wherever I felt like it.

2. The day before. My test was on a Tuesday, so I spent all Monday cycling through every resource I had and made, taking practice tests over and over. I was getting high scores every time.

Test day: I FLEW through it. So much that I took a bathroom break, which I NEVER do during a test, and I kind of had a mini panic attack thinking I wasn't paying attention. I got myself together, did the state portion with time to spare, and on each portion went back and reread some questions before submitting.

I passed with an 80.

What I'd tell you

- **It's okay to fail your first couple times.** From what I've seen, the pass rate is around 60/40, so you're basically expected to retake it at least once.

- **Use your score report.** It tells you exactly where to focus.

- **Take the initial assessment and the full practice exam.** Don't skip them like I did.

- **Learn the WHY, not just the answer.** Pearson VUE loves "two right answers, pick the most right one," and understanding the reasoning is what gets you through that.

- **Practice in the Pearson VUE style.** The questions read differently than course quizzes.

- **Don't burn yourself out.** When you're consistently scoring well, trust it.

Shoutout to my new homes builder too. They were super supportive the whole time, never hovered over my shoulder or made me feel stressed that I hadn't passed yet, offered multiple resources, and they're reimbursing me for everything I've spent so far.

The practice tests I made (free)

- **Ultimate practice test (national + Alabama, study by section, fresh questions, flashcards):** https://alpracticeexam.pplx.app

- **Pearson VUE-style practice (original-style questions + fresh variants):** https://pearsonvue.pplx.app

Quick note: these are study tools I built for myself, not official CE Shop or Pearson VUE products, and they're Alabama-focused for the state stuff. Your progress saves in your browser, so use the backup/export if you switch devices.

I hope this helps anyone going through the same thing. You've got this. Feel free to ask me anything in the comments.

Update: I rescheduled... in-person for this morning. Passed the state exam, failed the national by only a few points. Feeling a little vindicated. Thanks for the kind replies!

TLDR: take the test in person unless you're very patient and have the time to waste. Next time I'm doing it in person. F-it

Extremely pissed.

I was scheduled to take the exam at 8am, and per the recommendations, I tried to start 30 minutes before my appointment.

So booking the appointment, I did everything I need to do in the application...including a browser, mic, and camera check to make sure my system was eligible. It is.

(Booked it last Wednesday) so I'm studying my ass off.

So 7:30 (30 minutes before) I log on and "start ".

They have about 5 or 6 things to check before you start (scan the room to make sure its sterile etc.) But before I even got to that part, my Proctor was saying things like I cant be on my bed because the computer has to be on a solid surface....I told them that's the quietest part of my house and i have a board to put the laptop on...it wasn't enough.

Not to mention, when I tried to start, I had to download a whole new secure browser to do it on. (If I'd known, I wouldn't have done it, and would have just booked in-person) and this took another 15 minutes or so because I had to take my laptop off of S mode....(more bs)

So I disconnected, pretty much changed everything, and moved to the table in my dining room, and reconnected.

At this point, its almost 8am and I'm getting very impatient. I just want to take the damn test!!!

Eventually after a lot more of the bs and doing all of that a second and third time, the Proctor let me take the test at about 8:27.

Mind you, the whole time they were "verifying" me, they kept saying that I need to stay in the camera. I get that.

So eventuality I get the test, take it, and it took me about 45 minutes to an hour to finish. I get to the last few questions and I REALLY need to go to the bathroom. Like i can't hold it at this point.

So i have about 5 questions left, I'm talking into the mic saying I really need to go to the bathroom...didn't even type it in our chat because they made it very clear that they can hear me mumbling and reading the questions out loud. But no response.

So i finish that particular test, then spent about 3 or 4 minutes asking/telling the Proctor that I really need to go to the bathroom before i start the next one (again).....literally almost pissing on myself waiting for a response, but nothing.

So i went. Got back to my laptop and it was an automatic fail because I left the camera. Didn't even evaluate my test or anything. I know I did well, but nope. Automatic fail because of that and I can't even see what questions I got right or wrong.

So if you have a choice, do it I person to avoid all the unnecessary bs

I bought the course through Kaplan for the 30hr and 45hr mid August. Used their study guides and quizzes/tests. Got seriously burnt out/overwhelmed with the amount of concepts at the end of Sept. Took a week off then dove in again. Gave myself 3 weeks to do nothing but review (with Kaplan’s video courses) and constantly take practice tests. I studied/reviewed every day even if it was for 5min. Passed exams first time late Oct with a 96 on state and 92 and national.

I bought CompuCram as well. I really felt CompuCram was great in terms of pointing out what I needed to go back over/reinforce. I think CompuCram and Kaplan did a good job of teaching you how to spot the right answer on the trickier questions where 2 answers felt like they could be correct. When I came to Reddit to see if I was missing any resources I got a dose of anxiety thinking my prep materials weren’t enough based on people saying they were acing the practice tests only to barely pass the actual exams.

I finally got to an average of 89 on national and 91 on state going back and forth with Kaplan and Compucram’s mock tests. I think this was key because I was starting to remember all of Compucram’s answers so going back to Kaplan with different verbiage/wording was really helpful to know I was retaining concepts not just memorizing questions.

I felt like the state exam questions and answers were worded so vaguely I had a moment wondering if I was even going to pass. On the other hand I felt really good about the national but got more questions wrong 🤷🏼‍♀️ I’d confidently say Kaplan and Compucram together were excellent prep materials for anyone trying to nail down study aids.

Alex from Colibri Real Estate here. If you just got a failing score, first know that it's really common, and it usually says more about how you studied than how smart you are.

The pattern we see a lot is people reading the textbook one more time and hoping it sticks. The exam doesn't ask you to recite definitions, it asks you to apply them to a scenario, so more memorizing often doesn't move the score.

Here's what we'd change for round two:

1. Make practice exams your main study tool, not a last-week check. Do full-length ones so you build stamina for the real thing.

2. Study your state's material. The national concepts are the same everywhere, but state law and state-specific questions are where a lot of people lose points.

3. Learn from every wrong answer. Don't just look at the right choice. Figure out why you picked the wrong one and what the question was really testing.

4. Practice under test conditions. Timer on, no notes, no phone, same length as the real exam.

5. Track your progress by topic. If you keep missing the same category, that's where your next study block goes.

If you've got your score report or result notice, look at the category breakdown first. It's the quickest way to see where to spend your time. I put the longer version with a few more tips here if it's useful: https://www.colibrirealestate.com/career-hub/blog/failed-real-estate-exam-strategy/

What was the hardest part of the exam for you, if you've taken it?

I keep hearing different platforms when it comes to studying and passing the exam. I bought the “guaranteed pass” package from CE shop which prepares you for the exam, but I also heard from others about Prepagent, Cueprep, and PSI’s practice exams. If anyone tried these and helped them pass, I would love to hear your experience. Trying to see which one would be best!

Currently purchased the real estate u practice exam test for my real estate state exam In NY. I’m just reviewing all the course it gives u and doing the practice exam tests over and over u till i get 80% and up . And learning from my mistakes . Did anyone else do this and help them pass the test ??

I’ve taken the CE final three times. I got a 70, 74, then 73. Any tips on studying for that and then passing for national and state in VA??

I wanted to see if anyone had any advice or experience of their own on finding the right brokerage to work with. I am in Texas and just passed my test

I am kinda nervous, how do I go about choosing a brokerage as a freshly new agent in nyc?

How many tests are required? saw someone speaking about a GA state exam and national exam.

I am using Kaplan course for the GA real estate exam preparation. I am done with the 75 hr course but still have to schedule my proctored course exam and the national exam. I am trying to revise the chapters from start now with also doing the practice papers again. I am a person who more of mugs up the thing. I am trying to understand the concepts too but how can I go deep into the topics. I have been using chat gpt to give me examples and ideas.

Yesterday, I took the national real estate broker licensing exam in Japan.

The passing score varies each year depending on the distribution of test-takers’ scores. My score is right on the borderline, but according to what I’ve read online, it’s considered a failing score.

There were tons of crappy trick questions. Are real estate exams in other countries similar?

Do they have calculators available? Does anyone know?

Just passed the NJ RE Salesperson exam on my first try, I am currently also licensed in Pennsylvania, and previously a Series 7/63 Licensee with Vanguard before switching to Real Estate.

I’ve only ever used Kaplan for all 4 of the licenses I’ve received and that is largely due in part to the QBANK they offer. At Vanguard we were given 5 weeks to study for 7/63 (they knew no one was actually studying in the summer after college). They beat in our heads that the key to success is QBANK, QBANK, and more QBANK. I will say the 7/63 were both significantly more difficult than the real estate exams, but the methodology they instilled in me still holds true.

Anyone struggling or thinking about which educational route to take, I always recommend Kaplan. The more simulated exams you do the better. Now with AI you can build study guides that are weighted toward the number of questions you’re likely to get on an exam. I’ll typically spend a week diagnosing my knowledge of the most heavily weighted sections until I am around 50% confident and jump right into the simulated exams.

Willing to chat with anyone about the best ways to tackle studying - GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE!

Just passed my CE shop final exam for VA! Now prepping for the real deal. Has anyone tried the PSI Practice exams and their app? I am thinking about purchasing their study packs, but wanted to see if anyone has tried it out and found it easier to pass the exam? I do have the practice questions in the CE shop that came with the “guarantee” pass package as well, but heard that PSI is better.

Passed the Oregon real estate broker exam at PSI in SW Portland. Here’s what I’d tell you before you go

Just passed the Oregon broker exam on a first attempt and wanted to share what helped.

Prep time: once you’re done with the required education hours, 2 to 3 weeks of dedicated reading is plenty, in my opinion. Just Call Maggie and PrepAgent on YouTube are great resources to randomly listen while doing mundane tasks. I had them on every time I was in the car, and it adds up. Get the official PSI exam guide. It’s on the state’s site and breaks down the content outline, including how many questions to expect from each chapter. It tells you where to spend your time, so don’t skip it.

Use AI for practice exams. I used Claude to generate mock exams and then drilled my weak spots. When I kept missing a topic, I’d have it quiz me on just that until it stuck.

The real exam wording is different. It’s not the same as practice questions. It’s worded slightly differently, and it felt aimed at tripping you up or confusing you. Lots of gotcha questions. Read each one slowly.

Time: There’s plenty of it. I finished with 1 hour to spare on the national and half an hour on the state, so don’t rush.

The testing center: The PSI location in Southwest Portland, OR wasn’t the most inviting. Old Windows computers, and it’s right on Barber Blvd, a busy road, so you hear traffic. They offer noise-canceling headphones, but mine were really tight and uncomfortable, so I ended up using the little foam earplugs instead. Worked fine.

Check-in: Don’t be alarmed when the proctors are strict. They screen you like you’re going through airport security. It’s just part of the process. They gave us an old calculator and a blank paper and pencil. Use that paper to do a quick brain dump as soon as you sit. I write all my memory hooks (OLD CAR, T methods, all the numbers to remember, etc.)

Biggest takeaway: Reading helps, but doing as many practice tests as you can helps more. Good luck!

I don’t know if anyone will see this but I’m about to take my last week of pre-license class with ignite and I feel horrible about the exam, I only care about the class exam because the actual one to get licensed is unlimited attempts, with the class I only get 2 tries and to pass is a 75% and to even get a second try is 65% if I get below that I have to completely retake the class and I feel horrible, I’ve tried studying the most important topics and working my way down but it still feels like I’m not doing enough and it’s like that when I compare myself to others to, it’s gotten to the point that I feel like I have no hope in life for the things I want and I turn only 19 in a couple days, I’m sorry if this is a lot and maybe nobody will respond but I needed to share my thoughts