ParseForge
California DRE Real Estate License Scraper
parseforge/california-dre-real-estate-scraper
Lead generationReal estate
Searches the California DRE public license database by name, city, or license ID and returns each matching licensee as a flat row with status, expiration, broker, address, and discipline comments.
- Total users
- 2
- Monthly active
- 0
- Total runs
- 107
- Bookmarked
- 0
- Rating
- Not rated yet
- Last modified
- 9 days ago
Overview
California DRE Real Estate License Scraper
Scrape California DRE real estate license records by name, city, or license ID, up to a million per run. Every record returns the licensee's status, expiration date, broker, address, and any public discipline history. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.
The California Department of Real Estate public license lookup is the only official source for agent and broker credentials, but manually searching it is slow and you cannot export the results. This Actor searches the California DRE real estate license database directly by licensee name, city, state, or exact 8-digit license ID, and returns every matching record in a structured dataset.
It is ideal for compliance checks, lead verification, and building prospecting lists from the state's public real estate license records.
| Who uses it | What they scrape California DRE for |
|---|---|
| Real estate brokerages | Verify that every agent on the team holds an active California DRE real estate license before onboarding. |
| Lead generation firms | Build a prospecting list of recently licensed or renewed agents and brokers in a target city. |
| Compliance officers | Check a batch of license IDs for disciplinary actions or expired statuses. |
| Property management companies | Confirm that leasing agents have a current DRE license on file. |
What it does
This Actor searches the California DRE public license database by name, city, or license ID and returns each matching licensee as a flat row with their license status, expiration, broker, and address.
- 🔍 Name search: Enter a last name or full name to find all matching licensees across California.
- 🏙️ City and state filter: Narrow results to a specific city or city, state combination.
- 🪪 Exact license ID lookup: Provide an 8-digit DRE license ID to pull a single record instantly.
- 📊 Bulk collection: Set a high maxItems value to collect thousands of records in one run.
Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.
What you can do with California DRE data
🛡️ Pre-hire license verification.
A brokerage runs the Actor with a list of applicant names before extending an offer, confirming each person holds an active California DRE real estate license with no undisclosed discipline.
📋 Build a city-level prospecting list.
A lead generation team searches by city and state, collects every active salesperson and broker, and loads the CSV into their CRM for a direct-mail campaign.
📅 Renewal tracking.
A compliance officer runs the Actor monthly for their roster of license IDs, flags any license nearing expiration, and schedules renewal reminders.
⚖️ Discipline audit.
A law firm searches a batch of license IDs before filing a case, pulling the full discipline comments to see if the licensee has a history of DRE actions.
Why choose this scraper
| What you get | |
|---|---|
| No official API | The California DRE does not offer a public API. This Actor reads the live search results and structures them for you. |
| Batch export | Collect up to a million records and export them to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML in one click. |
| Discipline history included | Any public accusations, suspensions, or revocations appear in the row alongside the license data. |
| Fixed schema | Every run returns the same fields, so your downstream process never breaks on a schema change. |
How it compares
This Actor focuses on the California DRE public license database and returns the full record including discipline comments, while the competitors listed below also target the same source with varying feature sets.
| Feature | ParseForge | CA DRE Real Estate License Lookup Scraper | California DRE Licensee Search Scraper | State Real Estate License Scraper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Search by licensee name | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Yes |
| Search by city or state | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Search by exact license ID | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Yes |
| Discipline comments in output | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Bulk collection up to 1M records | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| CSV, JSON, Excel, XML export | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
Configure the run
Drive the Actor from a licensee name, city, state, or exact 8-digit license ID, alone or in combination, and the DRE search runs as each record is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.
A first run with the defaults:
{
"maxItems": 10
}
A larger pull:
{
"maxItems": 200
}
Pricing
Pay-per-result: $0.021 per result collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.
| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $2.10 |
| 1,000 results | $21.00 |
| 10,000 results | $210.00 |
New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.
Free users
Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. Upgrade your Apify plan to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.
Run it
- Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit.
- Open the California DRE Real Estate License Scraper.
- Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
- Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the Dataset tab.
Run it programmatically through the Apify API (run-sync-get-dataset-items) or the ApifyClient for JavaScript and Python.
Use with AI agents (MCP)
Give an AI agent live access to California DRE through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/california-dre-real-estate-scraper"
Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.
Troubleshooting
Why am I getting no results?
Check that your licensee name is spelled correctly. The DRE search is exact on last name. Try a shorter last name or remove the city filter to broaden the search. If using a license ID, confirm it is exactly 8 digits.
The Actor returns fewer records than I expected.
The DRE website paginates results. The Actor follows pages automatically, but if the DRE search itself caps results, the Actor cannot exceed that cap. Try a more specific query to ensure you are getting the intended subset.
I see an error about the website timing out.
The DRE public site can be slow during business hours. Increase the run timeout in your Apify actor settings or retry the run during off-peak hours.
The license ID lookup returns the wrong person.
Confirm the license ID is exactly 8 digits with no spaces or dashes. The DRE license ID is numeric only. If the ID is correct, the record shown is what the DRE has on file for that number.
Some fields are empty in my export.
The DRE does not always populate every field for every licensee. Empty fields in your CSV or JSON mean the DRE had no data for that attribute. This is expected for older or certain license types.
FAQ
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What data does the California DRE license scraper return? | It returns the licensee name, license type, license status, expiration date, issuing date, broker name, broker license ID, mailing address, city, state, zip, and any public discipline comments the DRE has posted. |
| Can I search by license ID? | Yes. Enter an exact 8-digit California DRE license ID in the License ID field and the Actor will return that single record. |
| How many records can I scrape in one run? | You can set the maxItems input up to 1,000,000. The Actor will stop when it reaches that count or when the DRE search returns no more results. |
| Does this Actor require a login or API key? | No. It reads the public California DRE license lookup website directly. You do not need to register an app or obtain credentials. |
| Can I search by city only? | Yes. Leave the licensee name blank and fill in the city or city, state field. The Actor will return all licensees in that location. |
| Does it include broker and corporation licenses? | Yes. The DRE public search returns salesperson, broker, and corporation license records, and this Actor collects all of them. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export your dataset to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML directly from the Apify run console. |
| Is this Actor affiliated with the California Department of Real Estate? | No. This is an unofficial scraper that reads publicly available data from the DRE website. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with the California Department of Real Estate. |
| Can I schedule this Actor to run automatically? | Yes. Apify supports scheduled runs. You can set this Actor to run daily, weekly, or monthly to monitor license status changes. |
| What happens if the DRE website changes its layout? | The Actor is maintained to adapt to DRE website changes. If you notice an issue, report it and the maintainer will update the scraper. |
Related actors
Browse the full ParseForge collection for more scrapers.
🆘 Need help? Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.
⚠️ Disclaimer. This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by California Department of Real Estate. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.
Input
| Field | Type | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| maxItems | integer | How many licensees to collect per run. | 10 |
| licenseeName | string | Licensee name (last name or full name) to search for. | smith |
| cityState | string | Optional city or city, state filter. | not set |
| licenseId | string | Optional exact 8-digit License ID (e.g. 01244127). | not set |
Pricing
from $19.00 per 1,000 results
| Charged for | What it is | Price each |
|---|---|---|
| result | Single result in the default dataset. | $0.019 to $0.021 |
Tiered: the lower figure is the price on a higher Apify plan. Billing and the free credit live on Apify.
API
One POST returns the dataset directly. Same shape for every scraper in the library, so swapping the slug is the only change.
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/parseforge~california-dre-real-estate-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"helloWorld": 123
}' Examples
Input that runs as-is.
{
"helloWorld": 123
} Reviews
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Issues
We build and maintain this scraper, so a problem with it comes to us. Report it on the Apify listing and the thread stays attached to the scraper where the next person can find it: open an issue.
Broken and urgent, or you would rather not post in public? Write to parseforge@protonmail.com and it reaches the people who wrote it.
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