How Hard Is the Maine Real Estate Exam and How to Pass It the First Time?
To pass the sales agent licensing exam in Maine, you need to know what to anticipate and how to prepare. This article offers guidance on both.
It explores the exam’s format and features, gives you a clear idea of what content is covered, and provides pointers on how to craft an optimal study approach.
Additionally, you’ll get suggestions for things to do on exam day to help you get your best score.
Let’s begin.
Best Way to Pass the Maine Real Estate Exam
How to Study for the Maine Real Estate Exam
Your studies for the Maine sales agent exam begin with attending real estate school.
The required qualifying education is 55 hours of coursework taught by the Maine Real Estate Commission’s approved providers in various learning formats. So, you can decide how you will study.
You can take the course online or at home with a physical textbook. These independent efforts make your coursework available 24/7 and your learning space wherever you choose.
A scheduled livestream class is an option for those who want convenient instructor-led learning. There’s also a blended format that combines virtual classroom and self-paced instruction.
You may also attend classes in person and complete some of the classwork on your own online.
If you can’t decide which method is better, refer to our guide comparing online vs in-person real estate classes.
Joining a study group and taking an exam prep course are two effective ways to complement your pre-licensing education.
Study buddies can provide encouragement, enhance your study skills, and strengthen your commitment and accountability.
A prep course is an excellent way to hone your knowledge of the specific topics covered on the exam. You can also get timed practice by taking mock tests.
Those practice exams help you build confidence and familiarity with test wording and format and better understand how much material you have left to master.
Additionally, having a strategic study routine can help you better prepare. Here are five tips to consider in that regard.
- Stick to a study schedule.
- Set session goals and milestones.
- Study in small doses.
- Use study aids like flashcards.
- Take good notes in class.
What to Study for the Maine Real Estate Exam
Knowing where to get an idea of what is on the real estate exam will get you off to a running start as you prepare to study.
The good news is that the State of Maine makes it easy to come by that information.
You will find beneficial exam details in the Maine Real Estate Candidate Handbook, like the topics covered and the number of associated questions.
Pearson VUE, the company the state contracts to develop and conduct the sales agent exam, makes this handbook available to test-takers.
As you develop your study plan, reference the handbook’s two descriptive content outlines and plan your review sessions accordingly.
The first outline is for the national (general) portion of the exam, which tests your knowledge of the nature and scope of the daily work Maine real estate agents do.
It covers the content areas listed below. Questions on the first three topics contribute more than half your national score. The others contribute 8-10 percent each.
- Contracts and Agency
- Real Estate Practice
- Property Value and Appraisal
- Real Property Characteristics
- Forms of Ownership
- Property Disclosures
- Financing and Settlement
The state section of the test focuses on five areas related to the specific practices, laws, and regulations of real estate in Maine.
Most of this section’s questions (about 62 percent) cover the rules governing licensee activities and agency law. A third covers Maine-specific principles and practices and Maine land-use law.
The remaining items in this section address the Commission’s powers and duties.
7 Tips for Passing the Maine Real Estate Exam
When test day arrives, you’ve done all you can to prepare. Incorporate these tips into your test-taking strategy to further boost your chances of passing the real estate exam.
1. Treat test day like any other.
Sticking to your established routine the night before and the day of the exam is important. Doing so can help you overcome test anxiety, and with a sense of normalcy, you can perform better.
2. Ramp up your momentum.
Quickly answer questions you’re confident about. Then, do another run-through. This approach helps build momentum and reserves much of the time for items that require more thought.
3. Read the questions carefully and completely.
One word can affect the answer. So, avoid rushing through or simply scanning the questions. And don’t stop reading midway through because you think you know the answer.
4. Predict the answer.
Think of the answer before reading the choices. Then look for it. That can help keep you from being confused by distractors (the incorrect options).
5. Avoid overthinking.
Don’t read anything into the question. Focus only on the information provided, steering clear of wondering “what if.”
6. Know when to call it.
Don’t spend excessive time on a question when you have no clue what the answer is. Narrow the options by excluding incorrect answers, then make a choice and move on.
7. Maintain concentration from start to finish.
Give every question due consideration and stay focused throughout. When you let your guard down, you’ll likely start making mistakes.
What Is the Cost of Taking the Maine Real Estate Exam?
The exam fee is $85, which you pay directly to Pearson VUE when registering for the test.
Also, because the Maine real estate course is a prerequisite for taking the licensing test, that cost indirectly applies to the exam expense.
Anticipate paying $330 to $475 for the 55-hour course, depending on whether you study online or participate in a live or virtual classroom.
Add at least another $100 to that if you enroll in an exam prep course.
Check out our post – How Much Does It Cost to Get a Real Estate License in Maine? – for more information on the fees you need to know when getting licensed in the state.
How Hard Is It to Pass the Maine Real Estate Exam?
What Is the Pass Rate for the Maine Real Estate Exam?
The Maine Real Estate Commission does not publicly report statistics on how many people pass the real estate exam the first time they take it.
However, some prep course providers describe the exam as “not easy.” Therefore, preparing for a challenging test of your knowledge is in your best interest.
Also, check with real estate schools before enrolling in pre-licensing class or an exam prep course on the pass rate for students taking the real estate salesperson exam.
When inquiring about the success rate, ask as well whether the school has a money-back guarantee for those who must repeat the test.
How Many Questions Are on the Maine Real Estate Exam?
Sales agent candidates taking the real estate exam should expect 140 multiple-choice questions that count toward their score and 10-20 that don’t.
Eighty of the scored questions are on the national portion of the exam. The other 40 assess your competency in Maine real estate law.
The unscored questions are newly written or revised questions that Pearson VUE includes for vetting before using them for scoring. They are distributed as follows:
- Five in the national portion
- Five to fifteen in the state section
How Many Math Questions Are on the Maine Real Estate Exam?
The national portion of the exam includes seven questions that are math-related. The following are the areas requiring real estate calculations:
- Property Area Calculations
- Commission/Compensation
- Investment
- Settlement and Closing Costs
- Property Valuation
- Property Management Calculations
- Loan Financing Costs
What Score Do You Need to Pass the Maine Real Estate Exam?
The passing score is 75 on a scale of 0-100, and that threshold applies to the national and state portions of the exam.
It’s a scaled score. In other words, it’s standardized across different versions of the exam. While there are multiple versions, known as forms, all are developed from the same content outlines.
The scaling process accounts for differences in the real estate exam difficulty level across forms. So, the results are fair and consistent regardless of the set of questions you get.
What Happens if You Fail the Real Estate Exam in Maine?
How Many Times Can You Fail and Retake the Maine Real Estate Exam?
Your course completion certificate is valid for one year. That’s your eligibility period for retaking and passing the exam.
During that time, you are allowed as many attempts as you need to get a passing score.
You have to schedule each retake. And Pearson VUE will automatically administer the portion you’re required to repeat.
If your score falls short of the passing mark on both portions, you must retake the entire exam. Otherwise, you only need to retest on the part that you failed.
You can avoid retakes by reading our tips on how to pass the real estate exam the first time.
How Long Do You Have to Wait to Retake the Maine Real Estate Exam?
Wait 24 hours as required after your testing attempt to schedule a reservation for reexamination. You can then book the first available test slot that fits your schedule.
However, since your real estate exam results include a diagnostic report on your performance, you can determine whether to book further out to dedicate more study time to your weak spots.
Do You Have to Pay to Retake the Maine Real Estate Exam?
You are required to pay the full exam fee of $85 each time you make a reservation for a retake.
Soon, you will be celebrating earning your license and starting your real estate career.
To ensure you’re fully ready to navigate the process, access our other posts on real estate licensing in Maine.
These include all the requirements for getting a Maine real estate license and how long it takes to get a real estate license in Maine.
You will also have to pass a background check for a Maine real estate license to ensure that you are eligible to be licensed in the state.
All license applicants are also required to be affiliated with a licensed real estate brokerage in Maine. Know what to look for by checking out our guide on choosing the right broker to work for.
We also help you lay the groundwork for and sustain success on your real estate career through resources that give you all the details on what it’s like being a real estate agent as a career.
Our articles on how to join a real estate team and what to do after passing the real estate exam can help you formulate a good plan for building a successful real estate business in the state.
To help you build and grow your real estate career quickly, we at Real Estate Bees created a directory for real estate professionals.
It’s designed to help you get more exposure for your business, including receiving leads. Create a free profile by signing up here.
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About the Author
Kristina Morales is both a licensed mortgage loan originator and real estate agent in the State of Ohio. Inspired by her years of working with buyers and sellers and seeing a need for more consumer education, Kristina created loanfully.com, an online educational resource for borrowers and industry professionals. In addition to real estate sales and mortgage lending, Kristina had an extensive corporate career in banking, treasury, and corporate finance. She ended her corporate career as an Assistant Treasurer at a publicly traded oil & gas company in Houston, TX. Kristina obtained her MBA from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University and her B.A in Business Management from Ursuline College.