Part of the expanding PassProfessor catalog: This program is built — 18,799 questions, written to PSI’s current South Dakota broker associate content outlines and counted question by question from the delivered bank — and it opens for enrollment soon. Join the notify list and we will email you when enrollment opens.
This program is part of the expanding PassProfessor catalog — join the notify list and we’ll email you when enrollment opens.
South Dakota has no salesperson license: the entry-level license is the broker associate, and its exam — administered by PSI for the South Dakota Real Estate Commission — has two separately scored portions you must each pass at 75%: a 90-item national portion in 150 minutes and a 52-item South Dakota state portion in 120 minutes. PassProfessor’s South Dakota program will give you 18,799 original practice questions built on those outlines — 12,656 on the national topics and 6,143 on South Dakota law — with fresh blueprint-weighted practice exams, topic drills, and per-question analytics that show you exactly where your misses are coming from. A free sample exam comes with the program at launch.
What’s included
A South Dakota bank, built for the broker associate exam. South Dakota’s entry license is not called “salesperson,” and its exam is not a generic national test with a state supplement stapled on. The state portion is 52 of the 142 scored items — more than a third of the exam — and it tests South Dakota law only: the Commission’s duties and powers, licensing requirements, and the statutory rules governing what licensees may and may not do. Our bank holds 18,799 questions, and 6,143 of them test South Dakota topics specifically. That is the portion national courses cover most lightly, and it is where this program is deepest.
Practice exams at the real exam’s weights. Each full practice exam is generated fresh for that attempt — national and state questions in the same proportions PSI uses, with the national sections weighted the way the official outline weights them (Contracts alone carries 19% of the national portion, the largest single block). Questions you have not seen come first, and you never sit the same exam twice.
Drills that match how the exam is built. Drill a single outline area — South Dakota licensing requirements, agency, real estate calculations — or sit a full two-portion simulation against the real clocks: 150 minutes for the national portion, 120 for the state. Your results break down by outline area, so a weak area shows up in your practice data before it shows up on a score report.
Per-question analytics that keep the bank honest. Every item in the program is monitored from real student responses once the program opens. Questions students find suspiciously easy or suspiciously hard are pulled for review, and anything found wrong is fixed or retired — the bank you practice on is the bank as it should be, not as it shipped.
Two portions, two readiness checks. Because PSI scores the portions separately and a pass in one cannot rescue a fail in the other, the program tracks your national and state results separately. You will know — portion by portion, area by area — whether you are ready, instead of guessing from one blended score.
The real exam at a glance
Current as of October 2026, per the South Dakota Real Estate Commission and PSI’s South Dakota Real Estate Broker Associate Examination Candidate Information Bulletin (© 2025, dated 9/1/2025). Full detail — eligibility, registration, retakes, test day — is in our South Dakota real estate exam guide.
| National (general) portion | South Dakota state portion | |
|---|---|---|
| Administered by | PSI, for the South Dakota Real Estate Commission | PSI, for the South Dakota Real Estate Commission |
| Scored items | 90 items (100 points — some scenario-based items score up to 2 points each) | 52 items (52 points) |
| Unscored experimental items | A small number (5 to 10) may be mixed in across the examination; they count against your time, not your score | Same |
| Time limit | 150 minutes (2½ hours) | 120 minutes (2 hours) |
| Passing standard | 75%, as published in PSI’s examination summary table | 75%, as published in PSI’s examination summary table |
| Exam fee | $105 for one portion, or $105 for the combined state + national examination, paid to PSI when you register | (same combined fee) |
- South Dakota’s entry license is the broker associate. There is no salesperson license. Before the exam you complete 116 classroom hours of Commission-approved pre-licensing education; this program is exam preparation only and provides none of those hours.
- Each portion stands alone. PSI divides the combined examination into general and state portions, and a candidate who passes one portion and fails the other retakes only the portion failed.
- 75% on the national portion is a points standard, not a simple question count. National scenario-based items can be worth 0, 1, or 2 points toward the portion’s 100 points, so the passing line is 75% of the points — not a fixed number of questions right.
- The broker associate exam is computer-based. The Commission lists testing in Madison, Rapid City, and Sioux Falls, and PSI’s bulletin lists additional centers and notes the exam may be taken at PSI centers in other regions.
- The clock after passing is short. You must submit your completed license application to the Commission within 60 days of passing the last portion of the examination — miss that window and the passing score is forfeited.
How the practice maps to the real exam
Every question in the South Dakota bank is tagged to an area of PSI’s current broker associate content outlines — the same outlines the real exam is built from. Counts below are the bank itself, counted question by question from the delivered workbook.
| Official outline area (weight or scored items on the real exam) | Practice questions |
|---|---|
| National portion | |
| I. Property Ownership (10%) | 1,268 |
| II. Land Use Controls (5%) | 634 |
| III. Valuation (8%) | 1,014 |
| IV. Financing (9%) | 1,141 |
| V. Contracts (19%) | 2,409 |
| VI. Agency (13%) | 1,624 |
| VII. Property Disclosures (7%) | 888 |
| VIII. Property Management (5%) | 634 |
| IX. Transfer of Title (6%) | 761 |
| X. Practice of Real Estate (12%) | 1,522 |
| XI. Real Estate Calculations (6%) | 761 |
| National subtotal | 12,656 |
| South Dakota state portion | |
| Duties and Powers of the Real Estate Commission (4 items) | 561 |
| Licensing Requirements (6 items) | 845 |
| Statutory Requirements Governing the Activities of Licensees (42 items) | 4,737 |
| State subtotal | 6,143 |
| Total (142 scored items on the real exam) | 18,799 |
Every official outline area carries practice coverage, and the distribution follows the exam: the state portion’s largest area — statutory requirements governing licensees, 42 of its 52 items — is also the bank’s largest state block, and Contracts, the national portion’s heaviest area at 19%, is the bank’s largest national block.
How to use it
- Join the notify list today. When enrollment opens, start with the free sample exam — a fixed set of South Dakota questions across both portions, enough to see how the program works and where you stand.
- Drill the South Dakota-law areas early. They are 52 of 142 scored items and the most concrete material on the exam — Commission powers, licensing rules, trust-account and agency requirements set by South Dakota statute. Most candidates leave state law for last; the score report is where that shows.
- Drill by outline area. Work your weakest national areas (Contracts and Agency together carry 32% of the national portion) until the misses stop repeating, and keep the state areas in the rotation the whole time.
- Sit full generated exams against both clocks. 90 items in 150 minutes and 52 items in 120 minutes are two different pacing problems, and experimental items you cannot identify count against your time. Practice the pace of each portion, not just the material.
- Book the real exam through PSI when your practice results sit comfortably above the 75% line on both portions separately — then, after you pass, file your license application with the Commission inside the 60-day window.
Pricing
Pricing for the South Dakota program will be announced when enrollment opens. Join the notify list and you will get the launch price — and the launch date — by email the day enrollment opens. If the program is not for you once you enroll, our standard refund terms give you 14 days provided you have attempted less than 20% of the program (see the site Terms for the full policy).
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on the South Dakota real estate exam? The broker associate examination has 142 scored items across two portions: 90 items on the national (general) portion and 52 items on the South Dakota state portion. A small number of unscored experimental items (5 to 10, per PSI’s candidate bulletin) may also be administered; they count against your time but not your score, and you cannot tell which items they are.
What score do I need to pass the South Dakota exam? 75% on each portion, separately, as published in PSI’s examination summary table. The national portion is scored on 100 points — some scenario-based items are worth up to 2 points — so its 75% is a share of points, not a fixed count of correct answers. Passing one portion does not offset failing the other.
Does South Dakota have a salesperson license? No. South Dakota’s entry-level real estate license is the broker associate. The path runs through 116 hours of approved pre-licensing education, the two-portion PSI examination, and a license application filed with the South Dakota Real Estate Commission within 60 days of passing.
How much does the South Dakota real estate exam cost? PSI’s current candidate bulletin and the Commission’s exam page both list $105 — that fee covers one portion taken alone or the combined state and national examination. Exam fees are not refundable or transferable, and a fee is forfeited if you do not test within one year of PSI receiving it. The license application fee after you pass is separate: the Commission’s fee schedule lists a $225 application fee for the broker associate license.
Who administers the South Dakota real estate exam? PSI Services LLC administers the examination under contract with the South Dakota Real Estate Commission. You schedule directly with PSI — online at test-takers.psiexams.com/sdre or by calling 855-557-0623 — and test by computer. The Commission lists Madison, Rapid City, and Sioux Falls as its in-state locations.
What do I need before I can take the exam? Per PSI’s candidate bulletin, you must be at least 18, be a United States citizen or a resident of South Dakota, be competent to transact business in a manner that safeguards the public, and have completed at least 116 classroom hours in a Commission-approved course of study. Candidates already licensed in another state are not required to provide proof of education, per the bulletin.
If I fail one portion, do I retake the whole exam? No. PSI scores the portions separately, and a candidate who passes one portion and fails the other retakes only the portion failed. You cannot make a new appointment on the same day you tested; PSI’s bulletin gives the example that a candidate who tests unsuccessfully on a Wednesday can call Thursday and retest as early as Friday, depending on space.
How long is my passing score good for? The application deadline is the operative clock: the Commission requires your completed license application within 60 days of passing the last portion of the examination, and states that rights to a passing score are forfeited if the application is not filed in that window. Separately, broker associate applications must be made within two years of completing the pre-licensing courses.
Are these the actual exam questions? No. Every PassProfessor question is written by us, from scratch, to PSI’s published South Dakota content outlines and South Dakota law. We never use real exam questions, recalled questions, or another provider’s bank — and using actual exam content would violate the candidate rules you agree to when you test.
Does this program count toward my 116 hours of pre-licensing education? No. This program is exam preparation only. It provides no pre-licensing education credit and is not a substitute for the Commission-approved 116-hour course you must complete before licensing.
Why does the South Dakota-law part get its own drills? Because it is 52 of the 142 scored items — over a third of the exam — and 42 of those 52 items sit in one area: the statutory requirements governing the activities of licensees. That is pure South Dakota statute and rule, the material national study products cover thinnest. Our bank holds 6,143 South Dakota questions so that portion can be drilled on its own until it is the most predictable part of your exam.
When can I enroll in the South Dakota program? Soon — the question bank is complete and the program is in final preparation. Join the notify list on this page and we will email you the day enrollment opens.
Disclaimer
PassProfessor is an independent exam-preparation provider. This program is exam preparation only: it is not pre-licensing education, provides no education credit, and is not a substitute for the 116 hours of Commission-approved pre-licensing education South Dakota requires. It is not affiliated with the South Dakota Real Estate Commission, PSI Services LLC, or any state agency or exam vendor. All practice questions are original, written to the published exam outlines; they are not actual exam questions.