Real Estate Licensing in Lake Mack-Forest Hills CDP, Florida

Who Needs a License

Florida law defines a "broker" as any person who, for compensation, sells, purchases, exchanges, leases, or rents real property, or who negotiates, offers, attempts, or agrees to negotiate the sale, purchase, exchange, lease, or rental of real property. [Fla. Stat. § 489.105]

A "sales associate" is a natural person employed by a broker to perform licensed activities on behalf of that broker. [Fla. Stat. § 489.105]

If you engage in these activities for compensation in Lake Mack-Forest Hills, you must hold a current Florida real estate license.

How to Get Licensed

Real estate licensing in Florida is administered by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), Division of Real Estate—not by local authorities.

Step-by-step process:

  1. Complete pre-licensing education. Complete a 63-hour course for sales associates or 72-hour course for brokers from an approved Florida real estate school.

  2. Pass the state exam. Register with PSI/Pearson Vue and pass the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) licensing exam.

  3. Apply with DBPR. Submit your application to DBPR's Division of Real Estate with proof of education, passing exam scores, and fingerprints for background check.

  4. Receive your license. Upon approval, you receive a 2-year license valid statewide, including Lake Mack-Forest Hills.

Details and current fees are available through the Florida DBPR website and the Division of Real Estate.

Local Requirements

Lake Mack-Forest Hills is an unincorporated Census Designated Place (CDP) in Lake County, Florida. Real estate brokerage operations are regulated primarily by state law under [Fla. Stat. § 489.105] rather than by town-specific municipal ordinances.

Refer to the Lake Mack-Forest Hills Municipal Code and contact Lake County's Building Department to confirm any local zoning requirements or business licensing fees that may apply to real estate brokerage offices operated within the CDP.

Exemptions

Persons employed by a real estate broker and acting under the broker's supervision are exempt from holding an individual broker's license but must hold a sales associate license. [Fla. Stat. § 489.105]

Additionally, Florida law exempts certain transactions—such as those by property owners selling their own property without compensation, and transactions by attorneys licensed to practice law in Florida—from licensing requirements. [Fla. Stat. § 489.105]

State Licensing Board Contact

Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), Department of Business and Professional Regulation
- Phone: 850-487-1395
- Website: https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/real-estate-commission/

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)