Passing the Puerto Rico real estate salesperson exam (the reválida de bienes raíces vendedor) starts before the exam window opens: a 72-hour pre-licensing course is mandatory, and the exam itself draws from two specific public-domain laws. The exam has 60 scored questions out of 75 total, with a pass mark of 70 percent (42 correct). One content area, legal and juridical foundations, accounts for 53 percent of those scored questions. A study plan that reflects those weights and ends with full practice mocks is the most direct route to a passing score.
What must you do before you can sit the exam?
You must complete a 72-hour pre-licensing course approved by the Junta de Corredores, Vendedores y Empresas de Bienes Raíces before you are eligible to apply. The Junta also requires a high school diploma and that you are at least 18 years old. When your licence is eventually issued, a $10,000 bond is required.
The exam draws from exactly two public laws: Ley Núm. 10 de 1994 and the Código Civil de Puerto Rico de 2020. Both are government publications available at no cost.
What does the exam test and how are questions distributed?
The exam has 75 questions: 60 scored and 15 unscored pilot items mixed throughout. You will not be told which 15 are pilot, so treat every question as if it counts.
The 60 scored questions fall across five areas:
| Topic area | Scored questions | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Legal and juridical aspects | 32 | 53% |
| Professional ethics | 11 | 18% |
| Financing | 8 | 13% |
| Zoning and permits | 7 | 12% |
| Property Registry | 2 | 4% |
| Total | 60 | 100% |
The legal and juridical domain alone determines more than half your score. No other topic comes close.
Which topics deserve the most study time?
The legal and juridical area is the priority. At 32 scored questions, a weak showing here is nearly impossible to overcome with strong scores in the smaller topics.
Within this domain, focus on:
- Roles and definitions: the distinction between a vendedor and a corredor under Ley 10, what counts as a real estate transaction, what a real estate company (empresa) is
- The Junta: its five members (three licensed brokers, one consumer representative, one public-interest attorney), four-year appointment terms, two-term limit, quorum of three, and the requirement to hold exams at least twice per year
- Licensing: how licences are obtained, renewed, and displayed; what the Junta can do when a licensee violates the law
- Contracts: the brokerage contract (contrato de corretaje), the promise-of-sale contract, the option, and what each one obliges the parties to do
- Escrow (cuenta en plica): the obligation to hold client advances in a separate bank account and to account for those funds when the transaction concludes
Professional ethics (11 questions) covers the prohibited practices listed in Ley 10: acting for more than one party in a transaction without their express consent, retaining client documents or funds without authorisation, and misrepresentation.
Financing (8 questions) covers mortgages under the Civil Code: how a mortgaged property responds to unpaid debt, and the federal disclosure rules (RESPA and TRID) that apply in Puerto Rico transactions.
Zoning and permits (7 questions) covers when a permit is required before construction or a change of use, what a buyer should verify about a property’s existing use permit, and lot subdivision (segregación).
Property Registry (2 questions) focuses on the principles of inscription: priority (the first to inscribe has preference), legality, legitimacy, and public faith. Two questions is a small target but the principles are precise enough to study directly.
How should you practise?
Start with category drills to find gaps, then move to full 60-question sessions. Because the Junta does not publish a time limit for the salesperson exam, pace yourself during practice by reading at a comfortable speed rather than targeting a fixed minutes-per-question rate.
Use 80 percent as your personal mock target. Consistently scoring above 80 percent in practice gives you a real margin when your nerves and the unfamiliar pilot questions are added to the equation. After every session, read the explanation for every item you missed and trace it to the specific article of Ley 10 or the Civil Code. That habit turns errors into lasting knowledge rather than repeated mistakes.
How do you know when you are ready?
You are ready when you can score 80 percent or better on three consecutive full mocks and can state the legal basis for each answer in the legal and juridical domain without guessing. At that point your preparation is deep, not just familiar, and your first sitting is your strongest sitting.