What the 75 Hours Are Spent On: NJ's Required Course Topics

The short answer: New Jersey's rules divide the 75-hour salesperson course into 12 topics. The biggest are contracts, mortgages and liens, and agency (12 hours each), followed by property rights and the License Act and regulations (9 hours each). Quizzes and the final exam take 3 hours, and since January 20, 2026 the list includes 1 hour on fair housing and housing discrimination (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(f), as amended effective Jan. 20, 2026). State law also requires at least 3 hours on ethics within the 75 (N.J.S.A. 45:15-10.1(a)).

For what the course is and how it works overall, start with our guide to the NJ 75-hour pre-licensing course. This page is the breakdown.

How does NJ divide the 75 hours?

Here is the list from the Commission's rule as amended effective January 20, 2026, in the rule's order (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(f)):

We checked this list against the Commission's adoption notice in the New Jersey Register (R.2026 d.020, effective January 20, 2026). That amendment cut item 9 from 5 hours to 4 and added the fair housing hour as item 11, so the total stays at 75 (adoption notice; rule proposal summary). Some online copies of the rule, such as Cornell LII, still show the older 11-topic list.

Where do ethics and fair housing fit?

Both start in the statute. In 2019 the Legislature amended the education law to say that at least three hours of the 75 must cover "ethics and ethical conduct in the profession of a real estate salesperson," and at least one hour must cover "fair housing and housing discrimination" (P.L.2019, c.177; N.J.S.A. 45:15-10.1(a)).

Since January 20, 2026, the Commission's rule names fair housing as its own one-hour topic: "Fair housing and housing discrimination, including Federal Fair Housing and New Jersey laws related to housing and housing discrimination" (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(f)11). Ethics still isn't a separate line in the rule's list, and the total is still 75. The rule doesn't say where in the course the ethics hours go. If you want to know how a particular school covers them, ask to see its syllabus.

The same 2019 law also made fair housing a required continuing education topic in every two-year license term (P.L.2019, c.177), so the subject comes back after you're licensed. Our NJ continuing education guide has the renewal details.

Are the hours fixed, or can a school change them?

They're a framework, not a stopwatch. The rule says "Course hours may be modified at the discretion of the director of the approved school, subject to written notice, and written approval by, the Commission" (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(i), as amended effective Jan. 20, 2026). So a school's schedule could differ a little from the table, but only with the Commission's written approval.

A few other rules shape how the 75 hours are used (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(d)):

• The final exam counts. Time for a final exam on real estate subjects counts toward the minimum hours.
• Breaks are capped. No more than five minutes of each course hour may be used for breaks.
• Exam and licensing procedures are taught too. During class time, instructors also explain the state exam and how licenses are issued, on top of the required material.

The full syllabus for the course is kept at the Commission's offices and is open to the public for inspection (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(h)).

To finish, you need a passing grade and at least 80% attendance (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.2). Our guide to missing classes and the attendance rule explains how that works, and the school final vs. state exam guide explains the two tests.

How do the course topics line up with the state exam?

Roughly, but not one-to-one. PSI's content outline weights the general section by topic, and the NJ section adds 30 state-law items (PSI candidate bulletin). Here's how the course topics compare (the pairing is ours):

Two things stand out. First, contracts get 12 course hours but are the largest exam area at 19%, so it's worth extra study time. Our contracts exam guide covers that section. Second, the rule's list has no separate line for math, while Real Estate Calculations make up 7% of the general section. Our real estate math guide covers the calculations.

What does "salesperson duties and pitfalls" mean?

The rule doesn't define it beyond the title. As the name suggests, it's a short, 3-hour block on the practical side of the job. If you want a preview, our guides to what a NJ agent does day to day and activities that require a license cover a lot of the same ground.

How many weeks does all this take?

That depends on the schedule, not the topics. Our guide to how many weeks the 75-hour course takes works through common formats.

To see one school's version of the 75 hours, Business Elementary's 75-hour pre-licensing course page lists what it covers.

Sources

• N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1 as amended, R.2026 d.020 (New Jersey Register adoption notice, 58 N.J.R. 804, effective Jan. 20, 2026; topic list at (f), course hours at (i)): https://www.nj.gov/dobi/proposed/aa260120njac11_5.pdf
• Notice of proposal PRN 2025-057, 57 N.J.R. 1075(a) (June 2, 2025; summary of the fair housing hour and the 5-to-4-hour change): https://www.nj.gov/dobi/proposed/prn25_057.pdf
• N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1, subsections (a)2, (d) and (h) (via Cornell LII; read Oct 30, 2026; LII still shows the pre-2026 topic list): https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/new-jersey/N-J-A-C-11-5-2-1
• N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.2 (school requirements, attendance; via Cornell LII): https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/new-jersey/N-J-A-C-11-5-2-2
• N.J.S.A. 45:15-10.1, educational requirements (via Justia): https://law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/title-45/section-45-15-10-1/
• P.L.2019, c.177 (approved July 19, 2019), ethics and fair housing hours; fair housing CE: https://pub.njleg.gov/bills/2018/PL19/177_.HTM
• PSI, New Jersey Candidate Information Bulletin (updated 2/1/2026), content outline: https://test-takers.psiexams.com/api/content/bulletin/1667

Last reviewed: October 30, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

Which topic gets the most hours in the NJ 75-hour course?

Three are tied at 12 hours each: contracts and other property instruments, mortgages and other liens, and the laws of agency (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(f)).

Is fair housing part of the 75-hour course?

Yes. Since January 20, 2026, the Commission's rule lists fair housing and housing discrimination as a one-hour topic (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(f)). State law also requires at least one hour on fair housing and at least three hours on ethics (N.J.S.A. 45:15-10.1(a)).

Does the final exam count toward the 75 hours?

Yes. The rule counts final exam time toward the minimum hours, and the topic list includes 3 hours for quizzes and the final (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(d), (f)).

Can a school spend more or less time on a topic?

Only with approval. The school director can modify course hours, subject to written notice to, and written approval from, the Real Estate Commission (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(i), as amended effective Jan. 20, 2026).

Do broker courses count toward the 75 hours?

No. The rule says attending a broker's pre-licensing course gives no credit toward the salesperson requirement (N.J.A.C. 11:5-2.1(a)2).