New Jersey Real Estate Exam with PSI: 2026 Format, Fees and Passing Score

New Jersey's salesperson exam is shorter and cheaper than many states', and it's scored as one combined test. What catches people out is the deadline. From the day your school confirms your eligibility, you have one year to pass the exam and get your license paperwork to the state. Here is how the PSI exam works in 2026 and how to stay ahead of that clock.

New Jersey PSI exam at a glance

Information current as of October 2026. These details come from PSI's New Jersey Candidate Information Bulletin (updated February 1, 2026). Confirm fees and rules in the current bulletin before you book.

Eligibility and the one-year clock

You must finish 75 hours of prelicensure education before you can reserve an exam. You don't send paperwork to PSI. Your school sends your eligibility to PSI electronically once you complete the course.

That eligibility expires one year to the day after it's issued. Within that year you need to pass the exam and submit your full license application. If you're finishing your course while working full-time, plan your exam date early so you have time for a retake and the paperwork.

Exam format and New Jersey content

New Jersey uses PSI's national outline for 80 questions. Contracts carry the most weight at 19%, followed by agency (13%), practice of real estate (12%), property ownership (10%) and financing (10%). Valuation (8%), property disclosures (7%), real estate calculations (7%), transfer of title (6%), land use controls (5%) and property management (3%) make up the rest. On 80 questions, that works out to about 15 contracts questions and 10 on agency.

The other 30 questions come from the New Jersey outline:

• Duties and Powers of the Real Estate Commission (2 items): record keeping and sanctions, including fines, suspension and revocation.
• Licensing Requirements (3 items): activities that require a license and license types.
• Statutes and Rules Governing Licensee Activities (22 items): advertising, broker-salesperson relationships, commissions, agency and disclosure, trust funds, listings, escrow record keeping, inducements and buyer rebates.
• Additional Requirements (3 items).

The 22-item statutes section also covers laws you may not have heard of before your course, including the Farmland Reassessment Act, the Pinelands Protection Act of 1979, the Realty Transfer Fee, Mount Laurel requirements, the Municipal Land Use Law, the Truth in Renting Act and the Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act of 1987. Expect at least a question or two on these.

Scoring and passing

Many PSI states score the national and state portions separately. New Jersey's bulletin lists a single standard: you need 70% correct (77 of 110) to pass. Your score appears on screen when you finish, and a report is emailed to you. If you fail, the report shows how you did in each area.

The 5 to 10 experimental questions aren't scored but do count against your 4 hours. You can't tell which ones they are, so give every question your full attention.

Fees and scheduling

• Exam fee: $38, paid to PSI when you register.
• Book at test-takers.psiexams.com/njre or call (855) 579-4634. Choose either a test center or a remote proctored exam.
• For a remote exam, you can launch up to 30 minutes before your booked time. If you don't start within 15 minutes after it, you forfeit the fee.
• Cancel or reschedule at least 2 days ahead, or you lose the fee.

Test day

At a test center, arrive 30 minutes early. Bring one valid primary ID that has your photo and signature and matches your registration name. New Jersey's bulletin says no temporary ID is accepted, so if your license is being renewed, bring your passport instead.

Remote exams have their own rules, including no breaks and a clear workspace. Read our PSI exam day guide for both formats.

Retakes

You can't schedule a retake on the same day you test. If you fail on a Wednesday, you can call on Thursday and test again as soon as Friday, if seats are available. Each retake uses up part of your one-year eligibility, so act on your diagnostic report quickly.

After you pass

New Jersey requires you to submit everything at once. The bulletin says the Licensing Services Bureau won't accept partial submissions. After you pass:

1. Complete the state fingerprint process and keep your receipt.
2. Meet your employing broker, who completes, signs and dates your original PSI passing score report. Copies aren't accepted. The employment date can't be earlier than your exam date or later than your eligibility expiration.
3. Send the score report, the fingerprint form and receipt, and $160 payable to the State Treasurer of New Jersey. Use a certified or cashier's check, money order or broker's business check. Personal checks are returned.

Study tips for the New Jersey exam

• Spend the most time on national content. With one combined score, 80 national questions carry most of the weight, and a strong national score can offset a weak state topic.
• Know the 22-item statutes section well. It's about a fifth of the exam, and its rules on trust funds, rebates and inducements are tested directly.
• Make a sheet for the named acts. List each one (Pinelands, Mount Laurel, Truth in Renting) with one sentence on what it does.
• Practice the full 4 hours. Do at least one long timed session so your concentration holds through the last question.

PSI Exams Prep has 400 real estate practice questions across 6 topics, plus timed Exam Mode, a daily challenge and topic mastery tracking. Our State Laws topic is general, not New Jersey-specific, so use your prelicensure course materials for the NJ statutes. The National Portion topic is free, with up to 15 questions per test. For a full study plan, see how to pass the PSI real estate exam.

Sources

• PSI: New Jersey Real Estate Candidate Information Bulletin (updated February 1, 2026)
• PSI: New Jersey real estate exam scheduling

Frequently asked questions

PSI Exams Prep is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by PSI Services LLC. Exam details change and vary by state. Always confirm requirements in the official Candidate Information Bulletin for your exam.