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Vermont: what an unlicensed TC can do

What Vermont law says about unlicensed transaction coordinators, what needs a license, and the one rule written for unlicensed staff.

Last reviewed October 2026 from Vermont Statutes. Vermont contract deadlines →

Yes, you can work as a TC in Vermont without a real estate license.Stick to administrative work under a licensed agent and their broker, and leave anything that needs a license to them. Here's where the line is.

What you can do without a license

Vermont Commission rules say a principal broker "may be vicariously responsible for the professional conduct of licensees and employees of the brokerage firm" (Rule 4.2(a)). Vermont has no rule listing tasks for unlicensed staff, so work under your broker's direction.

You can do (no license needed)

  • As a non-licensed employee of a licensee, respond to inquiries from the public, if you make clear you are not licensed and that the information should be confirmed by a licensed person (26 V.S.A. § 2211(a)(4)(G)).
  • Work on leases. Vermont's broker definition does not cover leasing real estate or offering it for lease (26 V.S.A. § 2211(b)(8); Rule 2.1(c)).

Needs a license

  • List, or offer or agree to list, real estate for sale or exchange for someone else, for pay.
  • Sell, exchange or purchase real estate for someone else, or offer to.
  • Negotiate, or offer, attempt or agree to negotiate, a sale, exchange or purchase.
  • Buy, sell or otherwise deal in options on real estate for others.
  • Advertise or hold yourself out as being in the business of buying, selling or exchanging real estate.
  • Assist or direct in procuring prospects "calculated to result in the sale or exchange of real estate."
  • Be paid by a licensee for performing brokerage services (Rule 4.13(a)).
Vermont has no list for assistantsVermont's statute and the Real Estate Commission's rules don't list tasks an unlicensed assistant may do. The one provision written for unlicensed staff says "a nonlicensed employee of a licensee shall be allowed to respond to inquiries from members of the public, so long as the employee makes it clear that he or she is not licensed and that any information provided should be confirmed by a licensed person" (26 V.S.A. § 2211(a)(4)(G)). Ask your broker what you may handle, and send anything about terms to your agent.

A practical example

You can:
A buyer calls to ask whether the inspection report has come in. You say you're not licensed, answer, and suggest they confirm with your agent.
Refer to the agent:
The seller asks whether they should accept a lower offer. Send it to your agent.

Staying on the right side of the rules

The exception names employees

The public-inquiry exception covers "a nonlicensed employee of a licensee" (26 V.S.A. § 2211(a)(4)(G)). It doesn't mention independent contractors. If you work for agents on your own, the exception may not cover you.

Licensees can't pay you for brokerage services

"A licensee shall not pay or otherwise compensate an unlicensed person, either directly or indirectly, for the performance of brokerage services" (Commission Rule 4.13(a)).

Penalties

No one may act as a real estate broker or salesperson in Vermont without a license (26 V.S.A. § 2212). Violations carry the penalties in 3 V.S.A. § 127 (26 V.S.A. § 2213): a civil penalty of up to $5,000, and unauthorized practice is punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, up to one year in prison, or both. An employer who permits unauthorized practice can also be penalized (3 V.S.A. § 127(b)).

How Closima handles it

Closima asks whether you hold a Vermont license. If you don't, purchase agreements and addenda go to your agent with a link: they check every value and complete the form, and Closima records that a licensee completed it. If you do, you fill them in yourself and send them to your agent for approval before they go out. Everything else (deadlines, documents, emails, other forms) works as usual.

Thinking about a license?

You don't need one to work as a TC in Vermont. A license lets you also do the work in the "Needs a license" column, under a broker. Here's what's involved:

Vermont's first license is the real estate salesperson license. You complete a 40-hour pre-licensing course, pass the national exam through PSI and the Vermont state exam (taken as part of the online application), and affiliate with a Vermont-licensed principal broker and registered office. Applications are filed through OPR's Online Licensing platform. How to apply.

Quick answers

Do you need a license to be a transaction coordinator in Vermont?

No. You can work as a TC in Vermont without a real estate license. Stick to administrative work under a licensed agent and their broker, and leave anything that needs a license to them.

Can an unlicensed TC fill out a purchase agreement in Vermont?

Vermont has no official list for assistants and says nothing about who fills in purchase and sale agreements, so leave completing them to the licensee.

What can an unlicensed TC do in Vermont?

As a non-licensed employee of a licensee, respond to inquiries from the public, if you make clear you are not licensed and that the information should be confirmed by a licensed person (26 V.S.A. § 2211(a)(4)(G)); work on leases. Vermont's broker definition does not cover leasing real estate or offering it for lease (26 V.S.A. § 2211(b)(8); Rule 2.1(c)).

What needs a real estate license in Vermont?

List, or offer or agree to list, real estate for sale or exchange for someone else, for pay; sell, exchange or purchase real estate for someone else, or offer to; negotiate, or offer, attempt or agree to negotiate, a sale, exchange or purchase; buy, sell or otherwise deal in options on real estate for others; advertise or hold yourself out as being in the business of buying, selling or exchanging real estate.

How do you get a real estate license in Vermont?

Vermont's first license is the real estate salesperson license. You complete a 40-hour pre-licensing course, pass the national exam through PSI and the Vermont state exam (taken as part of the online application), and affiliate with a Vermont-licensed principal broker and registered office. Applications are filed through OPR's Online Licensing platform.

Resources

Questions about what's allowed? Ask the regulator: Vermont Real Estate Commission (Office of Professional Regulation, Secretary of State), 802-828-1505, [email protected].

Source: Vermont Statutes, Title 26, Chapter 41 (Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons), and the Vermont Real Estate Commission Administrative Rules (Office of Professional Regulation) (Statutes as published 2026; Commission rules effective December 1, 2015).

Buying or selling a home yourself? These pages are for people who work in real estate. Work with a licensed agent or a real estate attorney.

General information, not legal advice. Rules change, and your broker's policies may be stricter: confirm your duties with your supervising broker and your state's real estate regulator.

See also: Vermont contract deadlines · TC duties, licensed and unlicensed · How to become a transaction coordinator

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