- The exam is NAHRO's live ProctorU assessment with a two-hour limit and one attempt per purchase.
- Fees are $250 for NAHRO members and $350 for nonmembers; the application itself costs $0.
- Required training is Executive Management and Leadership plus 10 additional NAHRO hours, then ethics.
- Official domain weights, question count and numeric cutoff are not publicly verified, so treat any figure you see elsewhere with caution.
Which CME This Cheat Sheet Covers
"CME" is a crowded acronym, and plenty of search results belong to unrelated credentials. This page is about one thing only: the Certified Management Executive credential issued by NAHRO, the housing and community development association. If you need the basics of the name and what it signals, start with What Is CME Certification? and then return here for the one-page review.
Everything below is limited to facts that NAHRO publishes or that can be stated with confidence. Where the public record is silent or conflicting, this cheat sheet says so instead of filling the gap with a guess. That matters for a credential whose blueprint details are not openly posted.
The Numbers at a Glance
Keep this table as your anchor. It captures every hard number that can be verified for the exam and the credential lifecycle.
| Item | What to Remember |
|---|---|
| Issuer | NAHRO |
| Delivery | Live ProctorU remote exam |
| Time limit | Two hours |
| Attempts | One attempt per purchase |
| Exam fee | $250 member / $350 nonmember |
| Application fee | $0 (training and prep cost extra) |
| Credential validity | Three years |
| Renewal requirement | 2.5 CEUs (equal to 25 training hours), including required ethics |
| Renewal application fee | $0 |
| Grace period after expiry | Six months, then full reapplication and retest |
For a deeper look at how these fees stack up with training costs, see the CME certification cost breakdown.
The Qualification Path in One Pass
The exam is the last gate, not the first. NAHRO requires several pieces to be in place before the credential is awarded. Here is the sequence in plain terms:
- Baseline education and experience: a high-school diploma plus six months of experience, or an associate degree or higher.
- Required training: the Executive Management and Leadership course plus 10 additional NAHRO hours.
- Prior NAHRO credential: one of four specified earlier NAHRO credentials.
- Initial ethics: NAHRO Ethics for Housers or Ethics for Management.
- Exam and application: pass the exam and submit the application.
The full eligibility picture, including edge cases, is covered in CME Requirements: Eligibility, Prerequisites and How to Qualify.
Exam-Day Mechanics
The CME is delivered through a live remote proctor, so logistics deserve as much attention as content.
- Proctoring platform: ProctorU, with a live proctor rather than an unattended recording.
- Browser and equipment: expect Guardian Browser and equipment and security checks before you begin. Run these checks well ahead of your slot, not in the last ten minutes.
- One attempt per purchase: a failed or abandoned sitting means buying again, so do not book until you are ready.
- Unknown rules: whether books, calculators or adaptive item selection are permitted is not publicly documented. Do not assume; ask NAHRO or review the instructions delivered with your purchase.
For scheduling and deadline questions, see CME Exam Dates: Testing Windows, Deadlines and Scheduling.
The Nine Preparation Domains
NAHRO's current Executive Management and Leadership training is publicly described as preparation for the CME assessment, and its agenda has nine substantive headings. These are the nine preparation domains used throughout this site. They are an unweighted course agenda, not a published exam blueprint, so do not read them as percentage allocations. For a full walk-through of each, see the complete guide to all 9 CME content areas.
Domain 1: Core Elements of Leaders
The foundation: what separates leading from supervising and managing.
- Distinguish supervision, management and leadership as different roles
- Recognize leadership models and when each applies
Domain 2: Managing and Leading an Entity
The organization as a whole, including governance relationships.
- Executive Director, senior-management and Board responsibilities
- Mission, vision, values, strategy and ethical norms
Domain 3: Managing and Leading People
Day-to-day and strategic people leadership across a housing or community organization.
- Applying leadership tools, strategies and techniques to teams
- Matching approach to the situation and the people involved
Domain 4: Managing and Leading Processes
The operational systems that turn goals into results.
- Linking organizational goals to operational systems
- Using strategic-planning methods to structure work
Domain 5: Managing and Leading Communication
How executives communicate with boards, staff, residents and partners.
- Aligning messages with mission, vision and values
- Communicating ethical norms and expectations
Domain 6: Managing and Leading Lines of Business
Overseeing distinct programs or service lines within one organization.
- Balancing priorities across lines of business
- Connecting each line back to enterprise strategy
Domain 7: Managing and Leading Performance
Setting goals, measuring results and driving improvement.
- Tying performance to strategic objectives
- Using planning methods to define and track targets
Domain 8: Managing and Leading Brands
Reputation and identity as executive responsibilities.
- Consistency between stated values and organizational behavior
- Protecting trust through ethical leadership
Domain 9: Leading and Creating Legacy
Long-term impact beyond a single leader's tenure.
- Building durable strategy and culture
- Succession and sustained organizational mission
The Four Course Objectives to Memorize
The current course lists four learning objectives. Because they describe what the training expects you to be able to do, they are the best available signal of how exam questions are likely to be framed. Know all four cold:
- Distinguish supervision, management and leadership.
- Apply leadership models, tools, strategies and techniques.
- Distinguish Executive Director, senior-management and Board responsibilities for mission, vision, values, strategy and ethical norms.
- Apply strategic-planning methods to organizational goals and operational systems.
Notice the two verbs: distinguish and apply. Objectives 1 and 3 are about telling roles apart, which suggests scenario questions where you must decide who owns a decision. Objectives 2 and 4 are about use, which suggests choosing the right model or planning method for a described situation. This is an inference from the objectives, not a confirmed description of item format.
Key Takeaway
Build a one-page role matrix for supervisor, manager, leader, Executive Director, senior management and Board. For each, list who owns mission, vision, values, strategy and ethical norms. Objective 3 is the most clearly testable "who owns what" skill in the public course description.
What Is Not Publicly Verified
A trustworthy cheat sheet is explicit about its gaps. As of the latest review, the following are not publicly confirmed:
- Total question count and the scored versus unscored split
- Item format (multiple choice, scenario-based or other)
- The numeric passing score or cutoff
- The current exam blueprint version
- Official domain count, names and weights, and which domain is largest
- Whether references, calculators or adaptive delivery are allowed
On pass rates, the only official figure is a historical 2021 NAHRO report: 72 passes from 91 exams since 2011, which rounds to 79%. That is a cumulative historical figure, not a 2026 pass rate and not a confirmed first-attempt rate. NAHRO does not disclose a current pass rate. For context on how to read that number responsibly, see CME Pass Rate: What the Data Shows, and for the scoring question see CME Passing Score: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Renewal, Ethics and the Grace Period
The credential is valid for three years. Staying certified is mostly a matter of tracking hours and the ethics requirement.
- Renewal hours: 2.5 CEUs, equivalent to 25 training hours.
- Ethics: required ethics training counts within that total where accepted.
- Ethics for Housers: required for recertification effective January 1, 2026, even though older pages may still list other ethics options.
- Fee: the renewal application costs $0.
- Grace: six months after expiry; after that you must reapply and retest.
The practical advice is to treat the January 1, 2026 ethics change as the controlling rule and not rely on older listings. Schedule your hours early in the three-year cycle rather than in the final months, because missing the grace window means sitting the exam again.
Sequencing Your Review
Because the exam is a single attempt and weights are unknown, spread attention evenly and front-load the foundations. A sensible order follows the logic of the nine domains: roles first, then organization, then operations, then long-term legacy.
Roles and the Entity (Domains 1 and 2)
- Memorize the supervision, management and leadership distinctions
- Build the Executive Director, senior-management and Board responsibility matrix
People and Processes (Domains 3 and 4)
- Review leadership models and when each fits
- Practice linking strategic-planning methods to operational systems
Communication and Lines of Business (Domains 5 and 6)
- Connect messaging to mission, vision, values and ethical norms
- Work through multi-program prioritization scenarios
Performance, Brand and Legacy (Domains 7 to 9), then a full mixed review
- Tie performance measures to strategy
- Finish with a timed two-hour run and a remote-proctoring equipment check
For a fuller plan and technique guidance, use the CME study guide, and to calibrate expectations read How Hard Is the CME Exam?. When you are ready to test yourself against realistic scenario-style questions, the CME practice test mirrors the nine-area structure. Remember that the allocation of practice questions across areas is editorial, not a reflection of official weighting.
Quick-Answer FAQ
The two-hour limit comes from NAHRO's earlier official exam-detail record. The direct page now returns a 404, although the indexed official record remains, so confirm the current limit when you purchase.
The exam is $250 for NAHRO members and $350 for nonmembers. The application is $0, and training and preparation are purchased separately. See the full cost breakdown for the larger picture.
Each purchase covers one attempt. A new sitting requires a new purchase, which is why readiness checks matter before you book.
The nine preparation areas are Core Elements of Leaders, Managing and Leading an Entity, People, Processes, Communication, Lines of Business, Performance, Brands, and Leading and Creating Legacy. They are an unweighted course agenda, and official weights are not publicly verified.
That depends on your path in housing and community development leadership. Weigh the training investment against your goals using the ROI analysis and the salary guide.