Recently, a reader asked a question about some of the different nomenclatures that we use in the real estate industry. With so many apparent real estate professionals for people to choose from, it can get very confusing. This is the case with one of our readers “Jeremy,” who asked the following question:

I am a relatively new reader of your blog, but if you haven’t covered it in a while, can you talk about the difference between a realtor and a broker?  Thanks, Jeremy

This is a great question because it covers an area that I often times take for granted. I try to train my agents  and myself to not use “industry speak” when talking to our customers because the terminology and phrases that we use daily are not used very often, if at all, by our customers. So, today’s blog post will be short and sweet, and just focus on a few key terms that we use in the real estate industry.

Difference Between Real Estate Agent And Real Estate Broker

When you speak with somebody who holds themselves to be a professional in the real estate industry, specifically with somebody who claims to have expertise in helping you buy or sell a home, this person will most likely be licensed in their local State. In Florida, this licensee would be either a licensed salesperson or a licensed broker.

When somebody first becomes licensed to list and sell real estate in Florida, they first earn their salespersons license.  To do so, they take a 60+ hour licensing course and then must pass the real estate salespersons exam. Upon doing so, they have earned the title of real estate salesperson or real estate agent.

After working for a minimum of two years for a real estate broker, the agent can take the licensing course in order to become a real estate broker. Again, the course is 60+ hours and there is another State exam that needs to be passed. Upon doing so, the agent becomes one of two things:

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