COLUMBUS, OH—Three months after launching the Licensing, Permitting, and Inspections (LPI) Portal, the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Real Estate and Professional Licensing is reminding tens of thousands of real estate professionals across the state to claim their license on the new system.
To date, nearly 27,000 Ohio licensees, including real estate salespeople, brokers, appraisers and home inspectors have successfully claimed their license. However, that reflects only about one-third of the roughly 42,000 individuals who have an active license and 18,000 individuals with an inactive license with the Division.
The Division is calling attention to this issue because, until a licensee claims their license on the portal, they will not receive any notices about their license status, including notifications about an upcoming renewal date. In addition, a licensee’s information via our License Lookup Tool may appear incomplete, giving the impression that they do not have a broker affiliation and are not actively selling. This could lead to confusion among consumers who want to verify that an agent they’re working with is indeed actively licensed with the state of Ohio.
“It’s critical that our licensees complete this process because it directly impacts consumer confidence,” said Division Superintendent Daphne Hawk. “When consumers search for an agent, they need to know they’re working with a licensed professional they can trust. Claiming your license on the portal ensures transparency and helps Ohioans make informed decisions.”
Claiming a license takes only about 10 minutes to complete. The only information salesperson and broker licensees need to provide is their license number and expiration date, which occurs every three years on the salesperson or broker’s birthday. Even individuals who have an inactive license are urged to claim their license on the portal since they’ll be required to complete that process before they are able to renew. It’s important to note that the Division is not accepting paper license renewal forms nor non-electronic payment methods.
How to Claim Your License
- Sign up for an OHID account at https://ohid.ohio.gov if you don’t already have one.
- Log in to the portal at https://lpi.elicense.ohio.gov and connect your license using your license number and expiration date.
For more information about the LPI Portal and step-by-step instructions on how to claim your license, visit https://com.ohio.gov/newsystem.
