Photo above: Walkway and fall welcome banner on the Diablo Valley College campus in Pleasant Hill, August 2014. Annekingsley, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Earn a California salesperson license from the Department of Real Estate. That means three approved college-level courses, a 150-question state exam, a Live Scan fingerprint check, and a responsible broker to work under. The DRE charges $450 when you file the exam and license applications together, and California residents pay the Live Scan provider a separate $49 fingerprint fee (DRE, Fees page, checked September 24, 2026).
Pleasant Hill has one real advantage here: a community college with a real estate program sits right on Golf Club Road. Here’s the path, step by step.
Am I eligible?
If you’re at least 18 and can pass a background check, most likely. The DRE requires you to be 18 or older to be issued a license and to be honest and truthful on your application, and it warns that a criminal conviction can be grounds to deny one (DRE, Requirements to Apply for a Real Estate Salesperson License, checked September 24, 2026).
Answer every question on the application fully. Something left off tends to hurt more than the thing you were worried about.
What courses do I need?
Three: Real Estate Principles, Real Estate Practice, and one elective from the DRE’s list. Each has to be three semester units or four quarter units at the college level (DRE, Requirements page, checked September 24, 2026).
Since January 1, 2024, the Practice course has to include implicit bias and fair housing, and the fair housing part must be interactive and participatory (same page). Take it seriously. Fair housing is the rule you’ll apply on every listing description and every buyer conversation.
Can I take the classes in Pleasant Hill?
Yes. Diablo Valley College’s main campus is at 321 Golf Club Road (Diablo Valley College, dvc.edu, checked September 24, 2026). Its Business Real Estate program lists a Certificate of Accomplishment in Real Estate Salesperson and a Certificate of Achievement in Real Estate, with in-person, hybrid and online classes and 14-, 12- and 8-week sessions starting in September and October (Diablo Valley College, Business Real Estate page, checked September 24, 2026).
No car? County Connection Route 9 runs between DVC and Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre BART on weekdays, and Route 18 connects DVC with Gregory Lane and Martinez Amtrak (County Connection, Routes page, checked September 24, 2026).
Whatever school you pick, check each course against the DRE’s rules before you pay tuition.
What does the license cost?
These are the DRE’s salesperson fees (DRE, Fees page, checked September 24, 2026):
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Exam application | $100 |
| License application | $350 |
| Exam and license filed together | $450 |
| Live Scan fingerprinting, California residents (paid to the provider) | $49 |
| Rescheduling an exam | $40 |
| Retaking the exam | $100 |
| Renewing on time | $350 |
Tuition and books are extra, and set by the school.
What’s the exam like?
Three hours, 150 multiple-choice questions, and you need 70% to pass (DRE, Taking the Exam page, checked September 24, 2026). The DRE says to arrive 30 minutes early.
The content is split seven ways. The heaviest are Practice of Real Estate and Disclosures at about 25%, Laws of Agency and Fiduciary Duties at about 17%, Property Ownership and Land Use Controls at about 15%, and Property Valuation and Financial Analysis at about 14% (DRE, Salesperson Examination Content page, checked September 24, 2026). Contracts, Financing and Transfer of Property make up the rest.
Where do I take the exam?
The nearest DRE site is Oakland: the Elihu M. Harris State Office Building, 1515 Clay Street, Room 703, 7th floor (DRE, Exam Sites page, checked September 24, 2026).
You can get there by BART. A weekday morning train from Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre reaches 12th St. Oakland City Center in 26 or 27 minutes with no transfer, and the adult Clipper fare is $4.80 each way (BART official schedule and fare data for Thursday, October 1, 2026, checked September 24, 2026). One note: that station sits just outside Pleasant Hill city limits, off Treat Boulevard, so plan how you’ll get to it too.
What happens after I pass?
If you filed the exam application by itself, you now send the Salesperson License Application (RE 202), a completed Live Scan Service Request (RE 237) and the $350 license fee. The DRE won’t issue the license until it has your fingerprint results (DRE, Once You Pass the Examination page, checked September 24, 2026).
Then choose a broker. You can hold a license without one, but the DRE says a salesperson without a responsible broker may not do anything that requires a license (DRE, Requirements page). That’s the moment to look hard at teams. Our answer on how to choose a real estate team to join in Contra Costa County has the questions to ask.
Where does a new Pleasant Hill agent start?
With the tools your clients will need on day one. Learn to pull these in minutes:
- The parcel’s jurisdiction. A Walnut Creek mailing address near Treat Boulevard can still be unincorporated county land. The Contra Costa County Assessor settles it.
- The zoning. The city’s approved 2025 zoning map is posted at phillca.gov/1666.
- The assigned schools. Mt. Diablo Unified’s School Site Locator, followed by a call to the district, because the district calls the locator a guideline.
Learning those on your own is slow. Learning them next to agents who pull them every week is how a team helps. It can’t promise you a result. It can cut down the guessing.
Questions people also ask
Does Diablo Valley College offer real estate classes?
Yes. DVC’s Business Real Estate program in Pleasant Hill lists a Certificate of Accomplishment in Real Estate Salesperson and a Certificate of Achievement in Real Estate, with in-person, hybrid and online sections, per its program page checked September 24, 2026. Confirm each course meets the DRE’s college-level unit rule before you count it toward your license.
How much does it cost to get a real estate license in California?
The DRE charges $450 to file the salesperson exam and license together, per its Fees page checked September 24, 2026. California residents also pay $49 to the Live Scan provider for fingerprints. A reschedule is $40 and a retake is $100. Course tuition is on top of that and depends on the school you choose.
How many questions are on the California real estate exam?
The salesperson exam has 150 multiple-choice questions, a three-hour limit and a 70% passing score, per the DRE’s Taking the Exam page, checked September 24, 2026. Practice of Real Estate and Disclosures is the largest section at about 25%, followed by Laws of Agency and Fiduciary Duties at about 17%.
Where is the closest real estate exam site to Pleasant Hill?
Oakland, at the Elihu M. Harris State Office Building, 1515 Clay Street, Room 703, per the DRE’s Exam Sites page checked September 24, 2026. From the Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre BART station, weekday morning trains reach 12th St. Oakland City Center in about 26 minutes, and the adult Clipper fare is $4.80 each way.
Your next step
Taking classes at DVC, or just passed? Sit down with us and talk through what your first Pleasant Hill files will look like. The Davis Team gives new agents leads, training, support, mentorship and systems. See what joining looks like at whythedavisteam.com or call (510) 949-5525.
More on Pleasant Hill: Is Pleasant Hill, CA a good place to live? · Pleasant Hill market update
By Bill Davis, DRE #01880656, The Davis Team at eXp Realty, Pleasant Hill, CA. Updated September 24, 2026.
Sources
- California Department of Real Estate, Fees page: dre.ca.gov/licensees/fees.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- California Department of Real Estate, Requirements to Apply for a Real Estate Salesperson License: dre.ca.gov/Examinees/RequirementsSales.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- California Department of Real Estate, Taking the Exam: dre.ca.gov/Examinees/TakingExam.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- California Department of Real Estate, Salesperson Examination Content: dre.ca.gov/Examinees/SalesExamContent.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- California Department of Real Estate, Exam Sites: dre.ca.gov/Examinees/ExamSites.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- California Department of Real Estate, Once You Pass the Examination: dre.ca.gov/Examinees/PassExam.html (checked September 24, 2026)
- Diablo Valley College, main site and Business Real Estate program page: dvc.edu (checked September 24, 2026)
- County Connection, Routes page: countyconnection.com/routes (checked September 24, 2026)
- BART, official schedule and fare data (api.bart.gov) for Thursday, October 1, 2026 (checked September 24, 2026)