Most people Jamaicans call “realtors” or “agents” are, in law, salesmen. A licensed real estate salesman is an individual registered and licensed by the Real Estate Board under the Real Estate (Dealers and Developers) Act to carry out real estate work for clients, but only while employed by or attached to a registered dealer. The title is gender-neutral in the Act; it applies equally to women, who make up a large share of the profession.
Becoming licensed
Applicants must complete the Board’s approved salesman course and examinations and satisfy the Board on character. The Board can also attach reasonable conditions to registration, such as further courses, and the courts have upheld its power to do so. A salesman applying to renew must show that they are in good standing, have completed any required training, and remain affiliated with a dealer, usually through a letter from that dealer. Licences are renewed each year on the government’s financial-year cycle.
Advertising your services before the licence is actually issued can bring the Board’s attention, as can social media posts that blur the line between an applicant and a practitioner.
What a salesman can and cannot do
A licensed salesman may list properties, show them, advise on price, negotiate offers and help steer the deal to completion. What they may not do is set up an independent practice, hold client deposits in a personal account or collect commission in their own right. Money belongs in the dealer’s trust account and commission is paid to the dealer, who then pays the salesman under their agreement, often called a broker-salesman agreement.
A salesman cannot give legal advice on title or draft the agreement for sale in place of an attorney, although many work closely with conveyancing attorneys to keep a sale moving.
Practical checks
Ask any agent for their licence number and confirm it, and the dealer they work for, on the Real Estate Board’s online register. If a person cannot name the dealer they are attached to, treat that as a warning sign. In the US the equivalent role is the licensed salesperson working under a broker; in Canada, a registered salesperson or broker under provincial regulators.
Related terms: Salesman, Registered Real Estate Dealer, Real Estate Board, Broker-salesman agreement, Pre-Licensing Course, Agent License.
Accurate as at October 2026.
