To open a new real estate school, the applicant must submit the  Application to Open a Real Estate School to the Commission. A cashiers check or money order for $175 payable to the Georgia Real Estate Commission must accompany the application. In addition to the name and address of the school or person offering real estate course(s), the application must include as detailed in section 520-2-.02 of the Rules & Regulations:

• a detailed proposal of records management for retaining at least 5 years records which will reflect the attendance and all scores earned by a student on all graded exercises & examinations, and any student certifications required
• if subject to the Nonpublic Post Secondary Educational Institutions Act of 1990, O.C.G.A. 20-3-250.1 et. seq., a copy of the current certificate issued by the Nonpublic Post Secondary Education Commission
• a list of all directors and owners of the school including their names and addresses. If the owner(s) are a partnership or corporation, then a list of all directors and owners of the parent entity;
• a statement of the school’s make-up policy regarding attendance, if any;
• a statement of the school’s entrance qualifications for students;
• a statement that if can make available to its students materials the Board may require for use in a particular course or courses and that it has video or audio equipment available to present Commission required material;
• a statement that it will conduct approved in-class courses in environments that are appropriate for learning;
• a statement that the school has the capability to follow Commission authorized procedures for 1) electronically registering its students for qualifying examinations with the Commission’s approved vendor, 2) to communicate electronically any required student course completion information to that vendor, and 3) to communicate electronically any required student course completion information to the Commission;
• a statement that the school will comply with all related provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and that the school will not discriminate in its fees, enrollment, or completion policies on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, familial status, or disability;
• a detailed outline of courses to be offered in the first year of the school’s approval with hours to be spend on each subject area to be covered in the course(s) and all planned classroom and homework exercises;
• a bibliography of all texts and reference materials for use in the course(s);
• a comprehensive description of the measures and standards it will employ to evaluate student performance in order to determine whether a student successfully completes a course;
• learning objectives for each instructional hour of the course(s);
• a list of proposed instructors;
• a schedule of planned offerings of the course(s) for the first calendar year for which the school seeks approval including the date, time and place of any offering;
• a copy of the Notice to Students required by  Rule 520-2-,02(5);
• independent-study, computer-based courses only – a description and documentation of the method by which each element of mastery is to be accomplished or a copy of the certificate from the Association of Real Estate License Law Officials (ARELLO)for each computer-based course; and
• Copy of the Georgia Crime Information Report (GCIC) on the director’s criminal history no more than 60 days old.

The Commission shall approve, disapprove or request further information on all applications for instructor approval within 60 days of the receipt of a completed application. Upon approval, the Commission will issue a number to the school which is designated as the school code. The school code must be on all records certifying students in approved courses. The Commission requires the code on renewal applications and other communications between the school and the Commission.

The Commission approves schools for a four-year renewal period. A school renews its approval by December 31st of the fourth year following the year of approval. For example, a school approved by the Commission on November 1, 2002, would renew its approval on December 31st, 2006. Prior to renewal, the Commission provides a renewal application for each school renewing in December. Each school may renew online through the online services section of this site or by returning the paper application with the appropriate fee. The renewal fee for a school is $100.00 for online renewals and $125.00 for paper renewals.

If your school approval has lapsed, you can apply for reinstatement with the  Real Estate School Approval Reinstatement Form.