Pennsylvania Real Estate Salesperson Licensing Examination

Pennsylvania Real Estate Salesperson Licensing Examination

Key Concepts

Composition and meetings - The Commission includes five persons who are licensed and qualified real estate brokers, each having been engaged in the real estate business at least ten years prior to appointment (Act, Section 202(a)). - A member who fails to attend three consecutive meetings forfeits the seat, unless excused by the Commissioner of Professional and Occupational Affairs due to illness or the death of a family member (Act, Section 202(c)). - Beyond regularly scheduled meetings, there must be at least one public meeting each year in Pittsburgh, one in Philadelphia, and one in Harrisburg, with at least 15 days' public notice before each meeting (Act, Section 202(e)).

Powers and duties - The Commission enforces three areas: real estate activities requiring licensing, cemetery and cemetery company activities requiring registration, and campground membership activities requiring licensing (Act, Section 406). It must instruct and require its agents to bring prosecutions for unauthorized and unlawful practice (Section 406(1)). - Schools offering courses of study in real estate must first obtain Commission approval and thereafter abide by its rules and regulations (Act, Section 402). - If projected revenues from fees, fines and civil penalties are insufficient to match expenditures over a two-year period, the Commission shall increase fees by regulation, subject to review under the Regulatory Review Act (Act, Section 407(a)). - Annual reports on complaint types, case status and board actions go to the Professional Licensure Committee of the House and the Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee of the Senate (Act, Section 408(a)). - The Commission or its authorized representatives may conduct no more than four routine inspections per year, during regular…

Pennsylvania Real Estate Salesperson Licensing Examination

Key Concepts

Qualifications - A salesperson applicant must be at least 18 years of age prior to taking the examination (RELRA §521(1)). - An applicant who had not completed any of the required hours before the effective date of the subparagraph must complete 75 hours of real estate instruction within five years of taking the salesperson license examination (RELRA §521(2)(ii)). - The salesperson applicant must submit a sworn statement by the broker with whom the applicant desires to be affiliated, certifying that the broker will actively supervise and train the applicant (RELRA §522(b)). - A standard salesperson applicant must submit official transcripts evidencing the degrees or course credits required by §35.272(a)(2) (§35.223(a)(2)(ii)). - Broker applicants: at least 3 years as a licensed real estate salesperson, or equivalent education/experience deemed so by the Commission (RELRA §511(4)); high school graduation or GED equivalency plus minimum age 21 (§35.271(a)(2); RELRA §511(2)); passing grade on each part of the broker examination within 3 years prior to submitting a completed application (§35.222(a)(1)); recommendations from one currently licensed broker and two unrelated property owners in the county of residence or place of business (§35.222(a)(3)). - Broker education credits: salesperson-qualifying credits may not be applied toward the broker requirement — all 16 broker credits must be separately earned (§35.271(b)(2)). A bachelor's degree with a real estate major, equivalent coursework, or a Juris Doctor satisfies the requirement without showing specific coursework (§35.271(b)(1)). Two credits per year are allowed for each year of active practice as a licensed broker in another state during the preceding 10-year period (§35.271(b)(6)). Prelicensure courses must be completed within 10 years prior to successful completion of the…

PA Real Estate Salesperson Exam | 10 questions (25%)

Key Concepts

Agency relationships - A dual agent is a licensee who acts as agent for both the buyer/tenant and seller/landlord in the same transaction (§ 35.201; Section 606.5(a)(1)). Dual agency is permitted only if both parties consent in writing (§ 35.314(a)). - Once a broker enters a written agreement with a seller/landlord, every licensee employed by that broker acts as a seller's agent unless named a designated agent (§ 35.312(e)). - In designated agency, the designated licensees act exclusively for their respective principals, the broker automatically serves as dual agent (§ 35.315(e)(4); Consumer Notice, § 35.336), and non-designated licensees have no agency relationship with either party (§ 35.315(d)). The broker/dual agent must take reasonable care to protect confidential information disclosed to the designated licensees (§ 35.315(f)(1)). - A designated agent must disclose to the principal, prior to writing or presenting an offer, that the other party is represented by a licensee employed with the same broker, confirming the broker is a dual agent (§ 35.315(e)(3)–(4); Section 606.5(b)(3)).

Duties - Owed to all consumers: present all offers, counteroffers and written communications in a reasonably practicable period of time, unless the property is under an existing contract and the seller gave a written waiver (§ 35.292(a)(3)); advise the consumer to seek expert advice beyond the licensee's expertise (§ 35.292(a)(8)). A licensee is not required to conduct an independent inspection (§ 35.292(b)) and is not liable for a consumer's acts unless the consumer acted at the licensee's express direction or on a representation reasonably relied upon (§ 35.292(d)). - Buyer's agent: continuous and good faith effort to find a property, except where…

Key Concepts

Advertising - A broker, cemetery broker or rental listing referral agent must advertise and hold himself out to the public under the business name designated on the license (§ 35.305(a)); a nickname must be registered with the Commission (§ 35.305(b)). - A salesperson's or associate broker's advertisement must carry the broker's business name and telephone number in at least equal size as the licensee's own name and number (§ 35.305(c)). - A licensee selling or leasing his own real estate must disclose licensee status in ads for the property — unless the property is listed with a real estate company (§ 35.304). - "Sales volume" or "production" claims may refer only to closed transactions: a listing sold or a sale made after a fully executed deed is delivered (§ 35.307(a)). Claims about the number of offices may refer only to offices issued branch office licenses by the Commission (§ 35.307(c)). - Advertising without the seller's/lessor's authority (§ 35.301(a)), and publishing a rental the lessor or property manager said was not to be listed by rental listing referral agents (§ 35.301(b)), are citable. - Act violations: misleading or untruthful advertising or using a trade name/insignia of membership in an organization the licensee does not belong to (Section 604(a)(4)); "for sale"/"for rent" signs or advertising without the owner's written consent (63 P.S. § 455.604(a)(8)); prize/lottery/free-lot offers as deceptive conduct, with mail or telephone prize offers requiring the fair market value (not suggested retail price) of all prizes plus the odds, printed clearly and conspicuously if by mail (Section 604(a)(18) and (18)(i)).

Key Concepts

Property disclosures - The property disclosure statement promulgated by the State Real Estate Commission must call for disclosures on: seller's expertise; when the property was last occupied by the seller; roof; basements and crawl spaces; termites/wood destroying insects, dry rot and pests; structural problems; additions, remodeling and structural changes; water and sewage systems; plumbing; heating and air conditioning; electrical; other equipment and appliances included in the sale; soils, drainage, boundaries and sinkholes; presence of hazardous substances; condominiums and other homeowners associations; legal issues affecting title or use and enjoyment; and the condition and location of all storm water facilities, including who is responsible for ongoing maintenance (68 Pa.C.S. § 7304(b)). Market value and comparable sales are not required subjects. - Hazardous substances disclosure includes "asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), radon, lead paint, urea-formaldehyde foam insulation (UFFI), etc." (49 Pa. Code § 35.335a(14)(i)). - "Material defect" = a problem with the property that would have a significant adverse impact on value or that involves an unreasonable risk to people on the land; a structural element, system or subsystem near, at or beyond the end of its normal useful life is not by itself a material defect (§ 35.335a). - A licensee representing sellers (or a transaction licensee with a seller agreement) must deliver the completed statement — or the statement marked "refused" — to the buyer, the buyer's licensee, or the buyer's transaction licensee prior to execution of an agreement of sale (§ 35.284a(a)(3)). - Licensees must disclose in writing all material defects of which they have actual knowledge that are not otherwise disclosed (§ 35.284a(c)), but are not required to conduct an independent investigation to confirm the seller's…