What Happens If You Fail the Texas Real Estate Exam? Retake Rules

The short version

A failed score is a setback, not a ban. The Pearson VUE Texas candidate handbook (rev08/2026, checked October 15, 2026) lays out the retake rules. The TREC sales agent page (checked October 15, 2026) says the same limit in one line: "If you fail either exam three times, you will be required to complete additional education before you can test again."

This guide walks through what you get at the test center, how to book again, what it costs and what happens at the three-attempt limit.

What you get when you fail

The handbook says you finish the exam and get a score report marked pass or fail. If you fail, the report includes a numeric score and diagnostic information about the part you failed. It also has information about re-examination.

The handbook says the diagnostic information shows how many questions you answered correctly in each content area, and calls it only a general guide for study purposes. It also says to review all content areas before retaking the exam. Questions are not available for review, for security reasons.

The main retake rules

Here are the rules in one table. Each row comes from the Pearson VUE handbook unless noted.

The 24-hour wait and how to book

The handbook says you must wait twenty-four hours before scheduling a retest. After that you reserve again with Pearson VUE, the same way as your first try. Our guide on where to take the exam covers reservations, vouchers and the change and cancel policy.

The handbook also says one payment cannot cover more than one candidate. Each person pays for their own retake.

What a retake costs

The handbook lists a $58 fee for a sales exam, and that fee is paid at the time of reservation. Its table also lists $58 for the national part alone and $58 for the state part alone. So a retake of one part is $58, based on that table. Our exam cost guide shows the other fees around the exam.

The TREC fee schedule we read for that guide has no separate retake line for sales agents. Check your reservation screen for the final amount before you pay.

How the three-attempt limit works

The handbook says candidates have three attempts to pass both portions before the application expiration date. A reasonable reading is that the attempts count across the whole application. The handbook does not give a worked example, so ask TREC if your case is unclear.

If the exam is failed three times, the handbook says you cannot retest or submit a new application until you complete additional qualifying real estate education.

How much extra education is required

The handbook gives two amounts. The amount depends on which part or parts you failed.

What to send after the extra hours

The handbook says to send the course completion documents to TREC at documents@trec.texas.gov. You also send a copy of the third failed score report. It says to allow 5 to 7 business days for TREC to process the education and send authorization to Pearson VUE so you can reschedule.

Keep your score reports. You will need the third one. The handbook says that for tests taken after June 1, 2023, reports are in your candidate profile on the Pearson VUE website.

The one-year clock

TREC says your application expires one year from the date it is filed. You must complete all license requirements within that year. Both the state and national parts must be passed before the application expires.

The handbook adds that if the application expires, you may reapply and meet the current requirements. So the calendar matters as much as the attempt count. A failed try early in the year leaves room to study and retest. A failed try near the end may not.

If you passed one part and failed the other

TREC says exam results for each section are valid for one year from the passing date. It also says that if you reapply less than one year from passing one section, you do not need to retake that section.

That helps if you pass the national part and miss the state part. You keep the passed part and study for the other one. Our guide on the exam format and length shows how the two parts differ.

What the pass mark is

The handbook says a sales agent needs 56 correct answers on the national part and 28 on the state part. It reports the score as a raw score, a count of correct answers. Our guide on how hard the exam is explains pretest items and what the numbers mean.

We did not find a pass rate we could verify from a primary source today, so we do not quote one. The TREC page that lists school passage rates is the place to check.

What to do in the 24 hours after a fail

These are our planning ideas, not TREC rules.

• Save or screenshot the score report and the diagnostic page.
• Write down which content areas look weak.
• Rest for a day. The wait is built in anyway.
• Check your application date and count the days left in the one-year window.
• Count how many attempts you have used.
• Plan a short study block on the weak areas before you book.

A simple retake plan

This is our idea of a plan, not a TREC list. Adjust it to your schedule.

• Day 1: read the score report and list weak topics.
• Days 2 to 4: study only those topics with a book or course you trust.
• Days 5 to 6: take a practice test and compare the result.
• Day 7 or later: reserve the retest if your practice scores are steady.

Mistakes to avoid

These come from the rules above and our own sense of what trips people up. They are not a TREC list.

• Booking the retest the same day without a study plan.
• Forgetting the 24-hour wait and trying to book at the test center.
• Losing track of how many attempts you have used.
• Letting the one-year application window run out.
• Throwing away the third failed score report that TREC needs.
• Paying a third party for "guaranteed" results. The handbook sets the fee at $58.

Questions to ask the school or TREC

If you are close to your limit, a short call can save time. TREC lists 512.936.3000 on its pages.

• How many attempts have I used on this application?
• When does my application expire?
• Which part or parts count toward the extra hours?
• Which course types can I use for the extra hours?
• How do I send my documents, and who confirms they arrived?

Rules can change

The exam rules may change. Check the Pearson VUE handbook and the TREC page before you book.

Education only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm licensing rules with TREC.

Where this fits

After you pass, you still need a sponsoring broker to activate the license. See how to find a sponsoring broker in Texas and the 4-week study plan. If you are licensed in DFW and want to talk with The Bauer Group, you can start a conversation on our site.