How to Become a Real Estate Agent in New Brunswick
Become a real estate agent in New Brunswick: the NBREA introduction course, the salesperson pre-licensing course and practicum, the exam, and the FCNB licence.
How to Become a Mortgage Broker in New Brunswick
New Brunswick mortgage broker licensing: start as an associate with FCNB, then broker after 24 of 36 months, with the fees and the two approved courses.
Applies in: New Brunswick
New Brunswick licenses mortgage associates and mortgage brokers as individuals, and the ladder runs in one direction: associate first, broker second. The Financial and Consumer Services Commission of New Brunswick (FCNB) administers the Mortgage Brokers Act and its rules, including Rule MB-001 on licensing and ongoing obligations. This guide covers the individual path from associate to broker. A mortgage brokerage and a mortgage administrator are separate licences, and this guide does not cover them.
Step 1: Meet the associate requirements
To become licensed as a mortgage associate, you must be at least 19 years of age, be a resident of Canada, be authorized by a mortgage brokerage to deal in mortgages, work for only one mortgage brokerage, and have a valid email address. You must also provide a completed criminal record check issued within the previous six months by the RCMP or a municipal or provincial police force, or by an approved background check vendor, and any other supporting information the Commission requires about your suitability. A past bankruptcy does not automatically block a licence, but the Commission reviews the application for suitability and may ask for more documents.
Your brokerage submits your licensing application to the Commission. The application must be authorized by the brokerage's principal broker, or by a person the brokerage has designated to approve applications, before the Commission will process it. That authorization confirms the brokerage knows your qualifications and history and recommends you as a trustworthy and competent person for a licence.
Step 2: Complete the approved associate course and examination
The approved education for the associate licence is the New Brunswick Mortgage Associate Course from Mortgage Professionals Canada. It is the approved New Brunswick-specific course for associate licensing under the Mortgage Brokers Act, and completing it and passing the required examination satisfies the education part of licensing. The course runs online for about 40 hours, covers New Brunswick regulations, legislation, business practices, and the mortgage process from application to closing, and ends in a final examination with a 60% pass mark. You must complete the online modules and the final examination within six months of the original registration date. The course lists at $375 with an electronic textbook or $425 with a printed textbook, and the provider sets the price, so confirm it when you register.
Step 3: Apply through your brokerage and pay the fees
Once you have completed the course and examination and joined a mortgage brokerage, your brokerage submits your licensing application to the Commission, with the principal broker's authorization attached. The Commission charges a $300 application fee and a $300 annual fee for the associate licence, with the annual fee due March 31. The same $300 and $300 fees apply to the broker licence. The Commission's fee table also lists a $600 application fee and $600 annual fee for a mortgage brokerage licence, a $600 application fee and $600 annual fee for a mortgage administrator licence, a $400 endorsement fee, a $300 exemption application fee, and a $300 fee for an expedited review request.
Step 4: Work 24 of 36 months as an associate
To qualify for a mortgage broker licence, you must have been licensed as a mortgage associate for at least 24 of the 36 months preceding the date you apply for the broker licence. Use those years to learn the supervision and compliance work a broker carries: brokers supervise associates, and the principal broker is the brokerage's main contact with the Commission and the person who authorizes licence applications. The Commission's guidelines treat relevant experience in the mortgage brokerage industry during the three years before the application as the measure, including work at a mortgage brokerage or administrator in New Brunswick or at a licensed mortgage brokerage elsewhere in Canada.
Step 5: Complete the broker education program
Before applying as a broker, complete the New Brunswick Mortgage Broker Education Program from Mortgage Professionals Canada. It is the FCNB-approved education program for broker licensing, built around the Commission's qualifying standards for mortgage brokers, and it covers setting up a brokerage, staffing and supervising, brokerage operations and compliance, dealing with customers, and protecting customers. The program runs online for about 60 hours and ends in a final examination with a 60% pass mark, which you must complete within six months of the original registration date. The program lists at $495, set by the provider. You must have completed the associate course before starting the broker program, and the broker education must have been completed within the three years before your broker licence application.
Step 6: Apply again as a broker
The broker application runs through the same route: your brokerage submits it to the Commission, the principal broker authorizes it, and you pay a new $300 application fee and $300 annual fee. The fees are not transferable between licence types, so moving from associate to broker means paying again. You must be at least 19, a resident of Canada, authorized by the brokerage, and able to show the broker education and the 24-of-36-months associate experience. If you hold a licence of a similar type in another jurisdiction, the Commission asks for a Certificate of Authority from that jurisdiction as proof of your current licence. Once licensed as a broker, you work for one brokerage only, and if you change brokerages you terminate the licence and reapply with the new brokerage.
Figures the opened FCNB pages do not state
The FCNB pages state the fees, the age and residency rules, the 24-of-36-months experience rule, the principal broker authorization route, and the six-month criminal record check rule set out above. They do not state a processing time for licence applications, the number of examination attempts allowed, or the Commission's current continuing education requirements. Those figures were cut from this guide rather than filled in from a secondary source. The course prices, hours, and pass marks above come from the approved course provider's own pages, not from the Commission, so confirm them with Mortgage Professionals Canada before enrolling.
Related guides:
- How to become a mortgage broker in Saskatchewan: Saskatchewan's associate-to-broker ladder, also 24 of 36 months, under the Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority.
- How to become a mortgage broker in Manitoba: Manitoba's salesperson-to-authorized-official ladder under the Manitoba Securities Commission, whose Authorized Official is the Manitoba equivalent of a broker.
- How to become a mortgage broker in Alberta: Alberta's associate-to-broker ladder under the Real Estate Council of Alberta.
- How to become a mortgage agent in Ontario: Ontario's entry-level mortgage agent licence under the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario.
- How to become a mortgage broker in Nova Scotia: Nova Scotia's associate-to-broker ladder under the Registrar of Mortgage Regulation.
The New Brunswick mortgage broker path
- Start as a mortgage associateAt least 19, a resident of Canada, authorized by one licensed mortgage brokerage, with a criminal record check issued within the previous six months
- Complete the associate course and examThe New Brunswick Mortgage Associate Course, about 40 hours online, with a final examination passed at 60% within six months of registration
- Apply through your brokerageYour brokerage submits the application to FCNB, and the principal broker authorizes it before the Commission processes it
- Pay the associate feesA $300 application fee and a $300 annual fee, due March 31 each year
- Work 24 of 36 months as an associateLicensed as a mortgage associate for at least 24 of the 36 months before the broker application
- Complete the broker education and apply againThe New Brunswick Mortgage Broker Education Program, about 60 hours, with a final examination passed at 60%, then a new broker licence application
Questions people ask
Do I apply as a mortgage broker straight away in New Brunswick?
No. New Brunswick uses a two-step ladder. You start as a mortgage associate, complete the associate course and examination, and work as a licensed associate. The broker licence follows after the broker education program and at least 24 months as a licensed associate in the 36 months before the broker application.
What does it cost to get licensed in New Brunswick?
The Commission charges a $300 application fee and a $300 annual fee for both the associate licence and the broker licence, with the annual fee due March 31. The associate course lists at $375 with an electronic textbook or $425 with a printed textbook, and the broker education program lists at $495. Confirm the course prices with Mortgage Professionals Canada before enrolling, since the provider sets them.
What education do I need for the associate licence?
The New Brunswick Mortgage Associate Course from Mortgage Professionals Canada, the approved New Brunswick-specific course for associate licensing under the Mortgage Brokers Act. It runs about 40 hours online, ends in a final examination with a 60% pass mark, and must be completed within six months of the original registration date.
What experience do I need for the broker licence?
You must have been licensed as a mortgage associate for at least 24 of the 36 months preceding the broker licence application, and you must have completed the approved broker education program within the three years before applying. The broker education program is about 60 hours online, with a final examination passed at 60%.
Can I work for more than one brokerage, or move my licence to another brokerage?
No to both. You must be authorized by one mortgage brokerage to deal in mortgages, and you work for only that brokerage. Licences are not transferable: if you change brokerages, you terminate your licence and reapply with the new brokerage, and your previous brokerage reports the change through the Commission's online portal.
How fresh must the criminal record check be?
The completed criminal record check must have been issued within the previous six months, by the RCMP or a municipal or provincial police force, or by an approved background check vendor. The Commission also asks about bankruptcy and other suitability matters, and a past bankruptcy does not automatically block a licence, though the application is reviewed for suitability.
Sources
- Financial and Consumer Services Commission of New Brunswick, Mortgage Associate — the associate role, the $300 application fee and $300 annual fee for associate and broker licences, the principal broker authorization route, licences not being transferable, the six-month criminal record check rule, and the bankruptcy suitability note.
- Financial and Consumer Services Commission of New Brunswick, Rule MB-001 Mortgage Brokers Licensing and Ongoing Obligations — the broker licence criteria, the approved broker education within three years before applying, and the 24-of-36-months associate experience rule.
- Mortgage Professionals Canada, New Brunswick Mortgage Licensing — the approved associate course and broker education program, their hours, the 60% examination pass marks, the six-month completion windows, and the listed course prices.