- The combined exam has 145 items: 80 scored national + 5 unscored, and 50 scored Texas-law + 10 unscored.
- You need 60 correct national answers and 38 correct state answers to pass both portions.
- Pearson VUE administers the test for a $39 fee under Texas Real Estate Commission oversight.
- Agency & Brokerage and Case Studies each carry 20% of the Texas-law portion - the two heaviest domains.
TXREB Format Snapshot
This is the one page you print, tape above your desk, and glance at every time you sit down to study. It condenses the mechanics of the Texas Real Estate Broker Exam into numbers you can memorize cold before test day. If you want the full narrative behind these numbers, the TXREB Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt walks through the reasoning step by step.
| Portion | Scored Items | Unscored Items | Time Allowed | Passing Threshold |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National | 80 | 5 | 150 minutes | 60 correct |
| Texas Law | 50 | 10 | 90 minutes | 38 correct |
Total item count across both portions is 145, and total seat time is 240 minutes. The unscored items are mixed in without being flagged, so treat every question - pretested or not - with the same seriousness. For a deeper breakdown of how these numbers translate into a real-world difficulty rating, see How Hard Is the TXREB Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026.
Registration & Fee Mechanics
The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) licenses brokers, but Pearson VUE is the testing vendor that actually delivers the computer-based exam. The examination fee is $39 - a number worth memorizing exactly, since it's frequently confused with unrelated licensing or membership costs. A full cost breakdown, including education and application expenses beyond the exam fee itself, is available in the TXREB Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown article.
National Portion: Domains 1-8
The national portion of the combined broker exam draws from eight content domains. These mirror general real estate practice concepts, not Texas-specific statute, so expect broader property, finance, and valuation questions here.
Domain 1: Real Property Characteristics, Legal Descriptions, and Property Use
Covers land description methods, fixtures versus personal property, and zoning/land-use classification.
- Know metes-and-bounds versus lot-and-block description formats
Domain 7: Financing and Settlement
Loan types, closing procedures, and settlement statement mechanics show up repeatedly in scenario-based questions.
- Be fluent in proration and closing-cost calculations
Domain 8: Real Estate Math Calculations
Amortization, commission splits, area computations, and loan-to-value ratios. Math items are unavoidable across both portions.
- Practice mental shortcuts for percentage and proration math under time pressure
Domains 2 through 6 (Forms of Ownership, Property Value and Appraisal, Real Estate Contracts and Agency, Real Estate Practice, and Property Disclosures and Environmental Issues) round out the remaining national coverage. For a full walkthrough of all 15 domains with weighting context, read the TXREB Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 15 Content Areas.
Texas Law Portion: Domains 9-15
The state-specific portion is where Texas statute, TREC rules, and promulgated contract forms take center stage. This is also where the two heaviest domains live.
Domain 9: Commission Duties & Powers
Understand what TREC can and cannot do, including disciplinary authority and rulemaking scope.
Domain 12: Agency & Brokerage
Broker-agent relationships, intermediary status, and fiduciary duty distinctions are tested heavily here.
- Master the differences between designated agency and dual agency scenarios
Domain 15: Case Studies
Ten items built around narrative fact patterns and TREC-promulgated contract forms. These require you to apply rules, not just recall them.
- Read the full narrative before jumping to answer choices - details in paragraph three often change the correct answer
Domains 10, 11, 13, and 14 - Licensing, Standards of Conduct, Contracts, and Special Topics - fill out the rest of the state outline. Underestimating any single domain is a common mistake covered further in the exam domains guide.
Passing Score Math
Passing isn't a single blended score - you must clear each portion independently. You need 60 of the national items correct out of the scored total, and 38 correct on the Texas-law scored items. Because unscored items are indistinguishable from scored ones, don't try to guess which questions "don't count." For the exact arithmetic and score-report interpretation, see TXREB Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Key Takeaway
Treat all 150 national items and all 60 state items as scored during the actual exam - you have no way to identify the unscored ones in the moment.
Requirements Recap
Before you're even eligible to sit for the exam, TREC requires a substantial education and experience foundation:
- 270 qualifying education hours plus 630 related education hours (900 total)
- The six-hour Broker Responsibility Course, included within that total
- Four years of active licensed experience within the preceding five years
- A minimum of 720 experience points
- Fingerprinting and background check clearance
Two substitutions can shorten the related-education load: a bachelor's degree can satisfy up to 300 related education hours, and qualifying experience beyond 720 points can substitute for up to 300 related hours as well. Full eligibility detail, including how these substitutions stack, is broken down in TXREB Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Retake Rules
If you fail one portion but pass the other, you only need to retake the portion you missed, as long as your application stays active. However, three failed attempts on a portion triggers a requirement for additional qualifying education before you're allowed to test again - so treat your second attempt with the same seriousness as your first. Active licenses later require renewal every two years with 18 hours of continuing education, a separate obligation from the initial exam.
One-Week Domain Cram Schedule
If your test date is close, prioritize by weight and difficulty rather than trying to cover all 15 domains evenly. This schedule assumes you've already completed your 270/630-hour education requirement and are in pure review mode.
Agency & Brokerage and Contracts
- Review Domain 12 (Agency & Brokerage) and Domain 13 (Contracts) - the highest-weighted state content
- Drill fiduciary duty and intermediary scenarios
Case Studies and Licensing
- Work through Domain 15 practice narratives tied to TREC-promulgated contract forms
- Review Domain 10 (Licensing) and Domain 9 (Commission Duties & Powers)
National Math and Finance
- Rebuild speed on Domain 8 math calculations and Domain 7 financing/settlement problems
- Time yourself against the 150-minute national clock
Full Simulation
- Run a full 145-item mock exam under real time limits
- Review missed items by domain, not just by question number
This isn't a generic study template - it's ordered specifically around the two 20%-weighted domains first, math-heavy content second, and a full timed simulation last. For a longer runway plan spanning multiple weeks, the TXREB Study Guide 2026 has a more gradual build-up.
Case Study Question Format
Domain 15's ten case-study items deserve special attention because their format differs from standard recall questions. Each presents a narrative - a buyer, seller, or brokerage scenario - often paired with excerpts from TREC-promulgated contracts. You're then asked to identify which clause applies, whether a disclosure obligation was met, or how an agency relationship should have been structured.
- Read the narrative twice before looking at answer choices
- Note dates, deadlines, and named parties - these details frequently determine the correct answer
- Cross-reference contract clause numbers if the narrative references a specific form
Because these items blend Domain 13 (Contracts), Domain 12 (Agency & Brokerage), and Domain 11 (Standards of Conduct) knowledge into single scenarios, weak spots in any of those three domains will surface immediately in case-study questions.
If you're still deciding whether pursuing the broker license is the right move at this stage of your career, Is the TXREB Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 lays out the tradeoffs against continuing as a sales agent. And once you're ready to test your recall against timed, exam-style questions, head to our practice test platform to run a full-length simulation.
FAQ
145 items total: 80 scored plus 5 unscored national questions, and 50 scored plus 10 unscored Texas-law questions.
You need 60 correct answers on the national portion and 38 correct answers on the Texas-law portion. Both must be passed independently.
The exam fee is $39, paid to Pearson VUE, the administering vendor, under Texas Real Estate Commission licensing authority.
You only need to retake the failed portion while your application remains active. Three failed attempts on a portion require additional qualifying education before retesting.
Agency & Brokerage and Case Studies are the largest Texas-law domains, each accounting for 20% of that portion's content.
Keep this page bookmarked as your quick-reference anchor, and pair it with the deeper dives linked throughout - starting with TXREB Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling if you haven't locked in a test date yet.