The Michigan Board of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons was created under Article 25 of Public Act 299 of 1980, as amended, to license and regulate the practice of real estate brokers and salespersons in Michigan. Article 25 defines a real estate broker as an individual or an entity, who with intent to collect or receive a fee, compensation, or valuable consideration, sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, provides or offers to provide market analyses, lists or offers or attempts to list, or negotiates the purchase or sale or exchange or mortgage of real estate, or negotiates for the construction of a building on real estate; who leases or offers or rents or offers for rent real estate or the improvements on the real estate for others, as a whole or partial vocation; who engages in property management as a whole or partial vocation; who sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, leases or offers to lease, or negotiates the purchase or sale or exchange of a business, business opportunity, or the goodwill of an existing business for others; or who, as owner or otherwise, engages in the sale of real estate as a principal vocation.

A real estate salesperson is defined as an individual who for compensation or valuable consideration is employed either directly or indirectly by a licensed real estate broker to sell or offer to sell, to buy or offer to buy, to provide or offer to provide market analyses, to list or offer or attempt to list, or to negotiate the purchase or sale or exchange or mortgage of real estate, or to negotiate for the construction of a building on real estate, or to lease or offer to lease, rent or offer for rent real estate, who is employed by a real estate broker to engage in property management, or who sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, leases or offers to lease, or negotiates the purchase or sale or exchange of a business, business opportunity, or the goodwill of an existing business for others, as a whole or partial vocation.

Property management is defined as the leasing or renting, or the offering to lease or rent, of real property of others for a fee, commission, compensation, or other valuable consideration pursuant to a property management employment contract.

The department currently oversees the practice of approximately 42,419 real estate salespersons, 9,942 associate real estate brokers, 11,348 real estate brokers, and 716 branch offices.