New Hampshire Real Estate Broker Bond$25,000 — Principal & Managing Brokers

No. RSA 331-A:14 attaches the $25,000 bond only to the "principal or managing broker" license. New Hampshire runs a three-tier broker structure — salesperson, associate broker, then the supervisory tiers (managing and principal broker) — and the bond climbs on only at the top two. The logic follows custody: an associate broker still works under a principal broker and doesn't independently hold the firm's trust account, so the statute puts the accounting bond on the people who actually control entrusted funds.

The statute conditions the bond on "the faithful accounting by the broker for all funds entrusted to the broker in the broker's capacity as a principal or managing real estate broker." In practice that means earnest-money deposits, tenant security deposits, and other client funds moving through the brokerage trust account. If a broker fails to account for that money, any aggrieved person can sue on the bond in their own name — but the surety's aggregate payout across every claimant is capped at the $25,000 bond amount, not $25,000 per victim.

This is the part New Hampshire wrote teeth into. RSA 331-A:14 states plainly that "the commission may revoke the license of any principal or managing broker whenever the bond filed by the broker ceases to be in full force and effect." There is no grace window baked into the statute — a canceled or expired bond is grounds for the Real Estate Commission to pull the license, so keeping continuous coverage is not optional housekeeping.

Yes — the bond runs with the license, and the principal broker and each managing broker each hold their own principal/managing license. A firm with a principal broker plus a managing broker running a branch office has two bonded supervisors, each needing a $25,000 bond on file. It is one of the more common surprises when a growing New Hampshire brokerage promotes a branch manager into a managing-broker role.

New Hampshire real estate licenses renew on a two-year cycle through the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, and the Commission expects the bond to run concurrently with the dates of licensure. When you renew — alongside your continuing-education hours — an active $25,000 bond has to be on file. Most sureties will match the bond term to your renewal dates so you're not left with a coverage gap at the checkpoint.

Rarely. This is a standard-market license bond, and at $25,000 the surety's exposure is modest, so approval rates are high even with credit challenges. Credit affects your rate more than your eligibility — strong credit earns the lowest premium, while a weaker file pays a higher percentage but is still routinely approved. You post the premium, not the full $25,000.