- The NHREB exam has 11 national domains plus 5 state domains - 16 content areas total.
- Contracts (19%) and Agency (13%) together make up nearly a third of the national portion.
- You need 56 of 80 national points and 28 of 40 state points, passed within six months of each other.
- The combined exam fee is $70: $36 national plus $34 state, administered by PSI.
Understanding the NHREB Exam Blueprint
Every candidate preparing for New Hampshire's broker licensing exam eventually asks the same question: what exactly is being tested, and how much of my study time should go to each topic? The New Hampshire Real Estate Broker Exam (NHREB) is built from two separate content outlines administered back-to-back on the same computer-based test through PSI, under the oversight of the New Hampshire Real Estate Commission. The first outline is the national broker content, split into 11 domains. The second is the state-specific outline, converted here into 5 additional domains covering New Hampshire law, licensure rules, and Commission procedure.
Together, these 16 domains define everything that can appear on your exam day. If you have not yet reviewed the baseline eligibility rules, it is worth reading NHREB Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify before you commit to a study schedule, since your education hours and transaction history determine when you can even sit for this test.
National Portion: Domains 1-11
The national outline forms the majority of your exam and reflects broker-level knowledge that applies across state lines, though it is still tested through the lens of New Hampshire practice. Here is how the weighting breaks down:
| Domain | Topic | Approx. Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Property Ownership | 10% |
| 2 | Land Use Controls | 5% |
| 3 | Valuation | 8% |
| 4 | Financing | 9% |
| 5 | Contracts | 19% |
| 6 | Agency | 13% |
| 7 | Property Disclosures | 7% |
| 8 | Property Management | 5% |
| 9 | Transfer of Title | 6% |
| 10 | Practice of Real Estate | 12% |
| 11 | Real Estate Calculations | 6% |
Notice that these 11 domains do not distribute evenly. Four of them account for more than half of the national scored content, which has direct implications for how you allocate study hours. If you are trying to gauge overall difficulty before you start, How Hard Is the NHREB Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 walks through what makes the national portion demanding beyond just memorization.
The Four Heaviest-Weighted Domains
Contracts, Agency, Practice of Real Estate, and Property Ownership together represent the backbone of the national exam. Master these four and you have addressed roughly 54% of the national scored items.
Domain 5: Contracts (19%)
The single largest domain on the entire exam. Expect scenario-based questions on offer and acceptance, contingencies, contract remedies, and the elements that make an agreement enforceable.
- Essential elements of a valid real estate contract
- Listing agreements versus buyer representation agreements
- Breach, remedies, and contract termination scenarios
Domain 6: Agency (13%)
Agency relationships, fiduciary duties, and disclosure obligations are tested heavily and often overlap with New Hampshire-specific agency rules found later in Domain 15.
- Fiduciary duties owed to clients versus customers
- Dual agency and designated agency distinctions
- Creation and termination of agency relationships
Domain 10: Practice of Real Estate (12%)
Covers day-to-day brokerage operations: advertising rules, license law fundamentals, fair housing, and professional conduct standards that a supervising broker is expected to enforce.
- Fair housing protected classes and violations
- Advertising and marketing compliance
- Broker supervisory responsibilities
Domain 1: Property Ownership (10%)
Tests forms of ownership, estates in land, and the legal descriptions used to define real property boundaries.
- Freehold and leasehold estates
- Forms of co-ownership (tenancy in common, joint tenancy)
- Legal description methods
Key Takeaway
If your practice test scores are weakest in Contracts or Agency, that gap has the largest downside because those two domains alone represent 32% of the national portion.
The Six Lighter-Weighted Domains
The remaining national domains carry less individual weight, but ignoring them is risky because they still contribute real points, and several are conceptually dense despite their smaller share.
- Financing (9%): Loan types, qualification ratios, and the mechanics of mortgage instruments.
- Valuation (8%): Appraisal approaches and the factors that influence market value.
- Property Disclosures (7%): Seller disclosure obligations and material fact requirements.
- Transfer of Title (6%): Deeds, title insurance, and closing procedures.
- Real Estate Calculations (6%): Commission splits, prorations, and area/measurement math - often the domain candidates most underestimate.
- Land Use Controls (5%): Zoning, easements, and government restrictions on land use.
- Property Management (5%): Landlord-tenant obligations and lease administration basics.
Real Estate Calculations deserves special attention even at just 6%, because math-based items tend to take longer per question and can eat into your 150-minute national testing window if you have not practiced the formulas until they are automatic. A cheat-sheet style reference of formulas, like the one in NHREB Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts, can help you keep prorations and commission math straight during timed practice sessions.
State Portion: Domains 12-16
The second half of your test day shifts entirely to New Hampshire-specific content. This is the 40-item state outline, converted here into five domains so you can study it with the same structure as the national material. Unlike the national portion's published percentage weights, the state outline is organized by topic area rather than a fixed percentage breakdown, but every one of the 40 questions is scored and counts toward your 28-point passing threshold.
Domain 12: Real Estate Commission
Structure, authority, and function of the New Hampshire Real Estate Commission, which sits within the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification. Know how the Commission is organized and what powers it holds over licensees.
Domain 13: Licensure
Requirements for obtaining, activating, and maintaining a New Hampshire broker license, including education hours, experience documentation, and renewal cycles.
- 60 hours of approved broker education
- One year full-time (or 2,000 part-time hours) experience under an active principal broker
- Evidence of at least six separate compensated transactions
- Renewal every two years with 3 core hours and 12 elective hours
Domain 14: Regulation of Licensee Conduct
Disciplinary standards, prohibited acts, and the criminal-record check requirement that applies to every applicant. This domain tests your knowledge of what triggers Commission enforcement action.
Domain 15: Regulation of Agency Conduct
New Hampshire's specific rules governing how agency relationships must be disclosed and documented, which pairs closely with the national Agency domain covered earlier.
Domain 16: New Hampshire Principles and Practice
State-specific transaction practices, forms, and procedural rules unique to New Hampshire real estate that would not appear on a generic national exam.
Because the state portion is scored separately from the national portion, a strong national score cannot offset a weak state score. You must independently earn 28 of the 40 state points. For a full breakdown of exactly how the two scores combine (and don't combine), see NHREB Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Registration, Fees, and Scoring Mechanics
Understanding the domains only matters if you also understand how the exam is administered. The combined broker exam fee is $70, split into $36 for the national portion and $34 for the state portion. Both are delivered as computer-based multiple-choice tests through PSI on the same appointment.
- National portion: 75 scored items, up to 80 points, 150 minutes, 56 points needed to pass.
- State portion: 40 scored items, 90 minutes, 28 points needed to pass.
- Unscored items: 5-10 experimental questions may appear without reducing your allotted scored testing time.
- Retake window: Both portions must be passed within six months of each other.
If you fail one portion but pass the other, you generally only need to retest on the portion you failed, provided you do so within the six-month window. This timing detail matters when you are scheduling around work and your 60-hour education requirement - see NHREB Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling for how to plan your appointment relative to your eligibility approval. You can also run a full-length practice test to simulate the timed conditions of both portions before you pay the $70 fee.
Mapping a Study Timeline to the Domains
Rather than studying domains in numerical order, allocate time proportional to weight and personal weak points. A practical way to sequence six weeks of preparation looks like this:
Contracts and Agency
- Work through Domain 5 and Domain 6 first since they carry 32% combined
- Cross-reference with Domain 15 (Regulation of Agency Conduct) for the state-side overlap
Practice of Real Estate, Property Ownership, Financing
- Cover Domains 10, 1, and 4
- Drill calculation formulas from Domain 11 daily in short sessions
Remaining National Domains
- Valuation, Disclosures, Transfer of Title, Land Use Controls, Property Management
- Take a timed 150-minute national practice run
Full State Outline
- Domains 12-16: Commission structure, licensure rules, conduct regulation
- Take a timed 90-minute state practice run
This sequencing front-loads the highest-value national domains while dedicating a full week to the state outline, since it is scored and passed independently. For a more detailed week-by-week methodology, including how to interleave review sessions, see NHREB Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt.
Who This Exam Content Serves
The domains above are not abstract test-writer categories - they mirror the actual responsibilities of a licensed broker supervising a New Hampshire brokerage. Agency and Practice of Real Estate questions reflect the supervisory duties a broker takes on once licensed; Contracts and Transfer of Title reflect the documents a broker reviews on every transaction; and the entire state outline reflects the compliance obligations that come with holding a Commission-issued license. Reviewing how these domains translate into day-to-day work and compensation can help you decide whether the licensing path is worth the time investment - see NHREB Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis for that broader context.
Running through practice questions organized by domain before exam day is one of the most direct ways to confirm you have closed gaps in the heavier-weighted areas rather than just the topics you find personally interesting.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are 16 total: 11 national broker domains covering general real estate practice, and 5 state domains built from New Hampshire's 40-item state outline.
Contracts, at 19%, is the single heaviest-weighted domain, followed by Agency at 13% and Practice of Real Estate at 12%.
No. The state portion is drawn from a 40-item outline organized by topic area rather than published percentages, but all 40 items are scored toward the 28-point passing threshold.
Yes, and they are scored independently. You need 56 of 80 national points and 28 of 40 state points, and both must be passed within six months of each other.
Yes - while it's only 6% of the national portion, calculation questions typically take longer to solve, so under-practicing formulas can cost you time across the full 150-minute session.