Do you need a license to be a property manager in Arizona?

In Arizona, managing or renting property for others for pay is real estate work that needs a license: the real estate salesperson license, issued by the Arizona Department of Real Estate. The law exempts some staff employed by a property owner or a licensed broker, such as on-site or leasing employees doing limited tasks. The exact wording, with any exceptions, is below.

Managing property for others""Real estate broker" means a person, other than a salesperson, who, for another and for compensation: (a) Sells, exchanges, purchases, rents or leases real estate, businesses and business opportunities or timeshare interests. ... (g) Collects or offers, attempts or agrees to collect rent for the use of real estate, businesses and business opportunities or timeshare interests. This subdivision does not apply to a person who is not a licensee, who works for a real estate broker or a real estate salesperson, who collects in-person rent and related fees on behalf of the real estate broker or real estate salesperson for the use of real estate as part of the person's clerical duties and who provides a receipt when rent is paid. (h) Advertises or holds himself out as being engaged in the business of buying, selling, exchanging, renting or leasing real estate, businesses and" official source
On-site and employee exemptions"1. A natural person, a corporation through its officers, a partnership through its partners or a limited liability company through its members or managers that deals in selling, exchanging, purchasing, renting, leasing, managing or pledging the person's or entity's own property, including cemetery property and membership camping contracts, and that does not receive special compensation for a sales transaction or does not receive special compensation or other consideration, including property management fees or consulting fees for any property management services performed, if the majority of an officer's, partner's, member's or manager's activities do not involve the acts of a real estate broker, cemetery broker or membership camping broker as defined in section 32-2101." "6. Natural persons who are acting as residential leasing agents or on-site managers of residential rental property, who are performing residential leasing activities on residential income property at not more than one location during the period of the agents' or on-site managers' regular workday, who do not receive special compensation for the acts described in subdivisions (a) through (e) of this paragraph and who are employed by the owner or the owner's licensed management agent to perform the duties customarily associated with that employment." "6. Natural persons who are acting as residential leasing agents or on-site managers of residential rental property, who are performing residential leasing activities on residential income property at not more than one location during the period of the agents' or on-site managers' regular workday, who do not receive special compensation for the acts described in subdivisions (a) through (e) of this paragraph and who are employed by the owner or the owner's licensed management agent to perform the duties customarily associated with that employment." "8. One natural person who acts as a property manager for one nonresidential income property or for two or more contiguous nonresidential income properties that are under common ownership and who is employed by the owner or the owner's licensed management agent to perform the duties customarily associated with that employment." official source
Leasing agents"6. Natural persons who are acting as residential leasing agents or on-site managers of residential rental property, who are performing residential leasing activities on residential income property at not more than one location during the period of the agents' or on-site managers' regular workday, who do not receive special compensation for the acts described in subdivisions (a) through (e) of this paragraph and who are employed by the owner or the owner's licensed management agent to perform the duties customarily associated with that employment." official source
Licensing agencyArizona Department of Real Estate (state real estate department under the real estate commissioner) official source
CredentialReal estate salesperson license (or real estate broker license) official source

Checked against official Arizona sources on Oct 27, 2026. This is not legal advice: rules change and exemptions depend on who employs you, so confirm with the licensing agency. This page lists only what we could confirm on an official page.

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