Thinking about a real-estate career in Ontario?
If you’re imagining lockboxes, open houses, and handing over keys, the actual path is more structured than it looks. In Ontario you don’t just “take a quick course.” You:
- Get a RECO ID
- Pick a RECO-approved education provider
- Work through pre-registration courses, simulations, and exams
- Register with the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) and join a brokerage
- Finish your post-registration electives in your first two years
Real estate stays popular because it’s flexible and earnings can be high. But most salespeople are self-employed and work on commission. Some earn six figures; others barely cover fees in their first year. It’s closer to building a small business than clocking into a regular job.
What “studying real estate” actually means in Ontario
Real-estate trading is a regulated profession. To legally help clients buy, sell, or lease property, you must be registered with RECO and keep up with its education and insurance rules.
Since 2025, RECO’s registration education is delivered by four approved partners:
- Humber Polytechnic
- Algonquin College
- Fleming College
- Career College Group (a consortium of private career colleges – check RECO’s current list for specific campus names)
RECO designs the curriculum. These providers deliver it. Starting in 2025, exams are handled by Meazure Learning, so the test you write is standard no matter where you study.
From first search to first day at a brokerage
1. Set up MyWeb and get your RECO ID
Before you even compare programs, create a MyWeb account with RECO and request your RECO ID. You’ll use this number when you:
- Register for courses
- Apply for your licence
- Renew and update your registration later
It takes a few minutes and saves you a headache later when providers ask for it.
2. Choose an approved provider and apply
Because RECO controls the curriculum, you’re not choosing “easy vs hard.” You’re choosing how the material is packaged.
Most providers expect:
- An Ontario secondary school diploma or equivalent
- Or an alternative admissions assessment if you don’t have a diploma
- English proficiency, especially if your schooling wasn’t in English
When you compare providers, look past the marketing slides and ask:
- How many live or recorded review sessions are there?
- Is there a real person I can email when I’m stuck?
- What happens if I fail an exam—do they give extra support?
Some charge a small, non-refundable application fee, so it’s worth deciding carefully.
3. Work through the pre-registration phase
This is the education you need before you can apply for registration.
Pre-registration usually includes:
- 5 courses
- 2 simulations (scenario-based)
- 6 exams
You follow these in a set order. RECO gives you up to 24 months to finish, but plenty of people aim for 6–12 months if they can treat it like a serious part-time commitment.
4. Register with RECO and join a brokerage
Once pre-registration is done:
- You have a limited window (typically 12 months) to apply for your salesperson registration with RECO
- You must be employed by a registered brokerage before you’re allowed to trade in real estate
- You enrol in RECO’s mandatory insurance program as part of registration
This is where school ends and the business side starts. Brokerages will want to know:
- Can you realistically handle commission-only income at the beginning?
- Are you willing to follow their training and systems?
- How do you see yourself finding clients (friends/family, open houses, online leads, farming a neighbourhood, etc.)?
5. Complete post-registration in your first two years
Once you’re licensed and working, you start your initial two-year registration cycle. During that time you must complete:
- 1 mandatory compliance course
- 2 electives of your choice
Skip post-registration and you’re not eligible to renew. Most people treat these as non-negotiable and block them into their calendar early.
6. Keep your RECO insurance active
Every registrant must take part in RECO’s professional liability insurance program. It typically covers:
- Errors and omissions
- Commission protection
- Consumer deposits
Premiums are paid yearly. No active insurance = no trading.
What it might cost (rough buckets)
Exact numbers change, but almost everyone pays in a few broad categories:
- Education: course fees, exams, simulations
- RECO costs: initial registration and renewal fees
- Insurance: annual premiums for the RECO insurance program
- Brokerage fees: desk/office fees, technology/CRM, transaction or percentage-based fees
When people add everything up over their first 2–3 years (education + licensing + brokerage fees), it often lands in the “several thousand dollars” range. That’s not a bill you pay in one day, but you do want a realistic budget instead of being surprised after you’ve already started.
The safest move is to build your budget from:
- Your chosen provider’s current fee page
- RECO’s current fee and insurance information
- A written fee sheet from any brokerage you’re seriously considering.
Two learner snapshots (composite examples)
These are composite stories based on common paths students describe. Names and details are changed.
Sam – finished pre-registration in 10 months while working retail
Sam worked 25–30 hours a week in retail and studied evenings. They:
- Took one course at a time
- Booked each exam before finishing the course to create a deadline
- Used one “deep study day” on their day off for 3–4 hours of focused work
Sam passed everything on the first try but had almost no savings. When Sam joined a brokerage, those first few months were tight: board fees, insurance, and gas for showings all hit at once. Year one ended with a small profit, not a huge payday—but a clear pipeline for year two.
Priya – slower path but smoother first year in practice
Priya saved for a year before starting, then spread pre-registration over 18 months while working full-time in an office. She:
- Took longer between components
- Used practice questions heavily and booked one rewrite when she wasn’t happy with a mark
- Interviewed three brokerages before choosing one with strong training and a slightly lower split
When Priya finally registered, she had savings to cover 6–9 months of basic expenses. She only closed a handful of deals in year one, but didn’t feel panicked about every quiet month.
Neither path is “right.” They just show how education and money planning connect.
A more real-estate-specific 12-week study rhythm
If you’re just starting and want structure, here’s a sample rhythm you can adapt. Think 10–15 focused hours a week.
Weeks 1–2 – Learn the language in context
- Read your first course outline and highlight every unfamiliar term
- Create a one-page cheat sheet for: client vs customer, representation agreements, multiple offers, irrevocable time, conditions
- Look at a few real listings online and try to spot how these terms show up in the real world
Weeks 3–5 – Map concepts to the deal timeline
- For each new idea, ask: Where does this happen in a real deal?
- Keep a notebook divided into stages: “First contact”, “Listing”, “Offers”, “Conditions”, “Closing”
- After each study session, drop 2–3 bullets under the stage where today’s topic belongs
- Do 20–30 practice questions 4–5 days a week, not just one giant cram
Week 6 – Build your first “full deal” walkthrough
- Take a simple scenario from your course (freehold listing, typical first-time buyer, etc.)
- Write a one-page timeline: what happens, who does what, what gets signed, and where a new salesperson might mess up
- Mark the spots where you’d double-check with your future broker
Weeks 7–8 – Work on the messy bits
- Focus on areas that cause trouble: condos (status certificates, reserve funds), rural properties (wells, septic), disclosures and stigmas
- If your provider offers simulation prep or Q&A sessions, use them and bring specific “I don’t get this” questions
Week 9 – Exam prep with intent
- Make one summary page per chapter or module: key definitions, important timelines, simple math formulas
- Do at least one full practice block in exam-style conditions: timed, no notes, then mark and review mistakes that same day
Week 10 – Write the next exam or simulation
- Schedule the exam when your practice scores are consistently solid, not on the first day you get a “pass” once
- After the exam, write down the topics that felt shaky so they don’t disappear from your radar
Weeks 11–12 – Adjust based on results
- If you passed, book the next component while your habits are strong
- If you didn’t, book the rewrite and spend two weeks focused on the sections you struggled with, not the whole course all over again
The goal here isn’t a “perfect” plan. It’s keeping real estate, not just generic study tips, at the centre of how you use your time.
What brokerages care about (beyond your licence)
When you sit down with a broker of record or manager, the conversation often goes beyond “Are you licensed yet?” Expect questions like:
- Do you understand you’re paid on commission only?
- How long can you survive if you don’t close a deal for a few months?
- Are you prepared to prospect (open houses, calls, messages, local events), not just wait for leads?
- How many hours a week can you realistically put into this?
Commission structures vary:
- Some offices offer more training and leads in exchange for a lower split
- Others offer a high split or “keep most of your commission” but expect you to generate almost everything yourself
You’re interviewing them as much as they’re interviewing you. Ask:
- What are all the monthly and per-deal fees?
- What does training look like in month one and month six?
- How many deals do most new agents close in their first year here?
First-year reality in one paragraph
Year one often looks like this: you’re still learning the law and forms, you’re trying to remember every step in a transaction, and you’re also figuring out social media, open houses, texts and calls, and how to stay positive when a deal dies at the last minute. If that mix excites you more than it scares you, the real-estate path in Ontario might be worth the time and money. If it sounds exhausting, there are plenty of related roles—real-estate law clerk, property management, mortgage assistant—where you work regular hours and still stay in the housing world.
