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California Real Estate Broker License Examination — Practice Test

What This Practice Exam Covers

The California Real Estate Broker License Examination is a 200-question test with a 240-minute time limit. You must score 75% or higher — 150 correct answers — to pass. The exam spans seven topic areas, from agency law and contracts to property valuation and financing.

This practice test comes in two versions. The free practice exam gives you 10 questions per attempt drawn from a curated pool. You can retake it as many times as you like to get a feel for question style and pacing — it costs nothing and requires no commitment.

The full practice exam is the serious preparation tool. It mirrors the real exam exactly: 200 questions, a 240-minute timer, and questions drawn from a pool of 812+ items — so every attempt produces a different exam with no duplicate runs. Questions are built around the exact topic blueprint published by the official test provider. Start free, then move to the full exam when you're ready to simulate real testing conditions.

What You'll Be Tested On

Property Ownership and Land Use Controls and Regulations — 30 items

This is a foundational topic. You'll need to distinguish classes of property (real vs. personal, fixtures), understand property characteristics including air rights, subsurface rights, and riparian water rights (Ca Code Excerpts — Civil Code, Water Rights, Riparian Rights). Encumbrances — liens, easements, deed restrictions, and encroachments — appear regularly. You must know types of ownership (joint tenancy, tenancy in common, community property) with their legal distinctions, including the right of survivorship. Property descriptions require you to interpret metes and bounds, lot and block, and rectangular survey systems. Government rights in land — police power, eminent domain, taxation, escheat — round out the topic. Questions on solar easements (Ca Code Excerpts — Civil Code Section 801.5) and subdivision map regulations (Ca Code Excerpts — Government Code Section 66410 et seq.) are drawn from this pool.

Laws of Agency and Fiduciary Duties — 34 items

The largest topic after Practice of Real Estate. Expect heavy testing on the definition and creation of agency, the distinction between general and special agents (Ca Code Excerpts, Civil Code § 2295), and the duties owed to principals — loyalty, confidentiality, disclosure, obedience, reasonable care, and accounting. The Agency Chapter discussion on loyalty, confidentiality, and secret profits is a tested source. Disclosure rules under Ca Code Excerpts, Civil Code § 2079.13 et seq. and the Agency Disclosure form procedures under Civil Code § 2079.14 and § 2079.17 are heavily represented. You must know termination of agency rules under Civil Code § 2355 and § 2356, dual agency confirmation requirements, and what the listing broker must deliver and when.

Property Valuation and Financial Analysis — 28 items

This topic demands calculation fluency. The three approaches to value — sales comparison, cost, and income — each have specific mechanics. For the sales comparison approach, know how to make and interpret adjustments. For the cost approach, master reproduction vs. replacement cost, the types of accrued depreciation (physical deterioration, functional obsolescence, external obsolescence), and the sequence of steps (Appraisal and Valuation chapter — Cost Approach Procedure). For the income approach, calculate effective gross income, deduct operating expenses including reserves for replacements, derive net operating income, and apply a capitalization rate. Know the Gross Rent Multiplier formula and when to use GRM vs. GIM — the monthly vs. annual income distinction matters (Appraisal and Valuation chapter — GRM vs. GIM, Monthly vs. Annual Income Distinction). Principles of value — contribution, progression, regression, conformity, highest and best use — are tested conceptually and in applied scenarios.

Financing — 18 items

Know the general structure of deeds of trust (trustor, trustee, beneficiary), how they differ from mortgages, and the significance of promissory notes. Loan types — fixed-rate, adjustable-rate, hard money, purchase money — appear regularly. California's high-cost mortgage rules under Ca Code Excerpts, Financial Code Section 4970 and the restrictions under Section 4973 are tested at the statutory detail level. Government programs (FHA, VA, Cal-Vet), sources of financing (primary vs. secondary market), and federal credit laws are also covered. Prepayment penalty rules, balloon payment restrictions, and the bridge loan exclusion under Financial Code Section 4970(d) are specific tested angles.

Transfer of Property — 16 items

This section covers deeds (grant, quitclaim, warranty), the requirements for valid delivery and acceptance (DRE Reference Book, Chapter 7 — Principal Instruments of Transfer, Delivery and Acceptance), recordation rules (Government Code Section 27279(a)), title insurance, escrow procedures (DRE Reference Book, Chapter 8 — Escrow, General Escrow Procedures), tax aspects including documentary transfer tax (Revenue and Taxation Code Section 11911), and special processes such as probate sales and court-supervised transfers.

Practice of Real Estate and Disclosures — 50 items

The single heaviest topic. Trust account management — including the prohibition on commingling under B&P Code §10145(a)(1) and Commissioner's Regulation 2832(a) — is a consistent source of exam questions. Fair housing laws, truth in advertising standards under B&P Code §10140.6(b)(1), record-keeping requirements, agency supervision, and what unlicensed sales assistants may and may not do are all tested. Natural hazard disclosure requirements under Civil Code Section 1103 et seq. appear here as well.

Contracts — 24 items

You must know the essential elements of a valid contract, listing agreement types (exclusive right to sell, exclusive agency, open), buyer-broker agreements, and the components of purchase contracts. The statute of frauds as applied to real estate (Ca Real Estate Law, Civil Code § 1624(d)) governs which agreements must be in writing. Promissory note characteristics and securities provisions (Ca Code Excerpts, Business and Professions Code Section 10230 series) also appear in this block.

Worked Sample Questions

Question 1 — Practice of Real Estate and Disclosures

Under California real estate law, which of the following actions is specifically listed as a ground for the commissioner to suspend or revoke a real estate license?
A. Failing to attend a continuing education seminar within the first year of licensure
B. Commingling the licensee's own money or property with the money or property of others received and held by the licensee
C. Charging a commission rate higher than the local average
D. Failing to advertise a property within 30 days of listing

Correct answer: B. Under Business and Professions Code Section 10176(e), commingling personal funds with client funds held by the licensee is an explicit statutory ground for suspension or revocation. Choices A, C, and D describe actions that are either not prohibited at all (C — commissions are freely negotiable) or not enumerated revocation grounds. Source: Ca Real Estate Law, Section 10176(e).

Question 2 — Laws of Agency and Fiduciary Duties

When a disclosure required under California's Transfer Disclosure Statement is delivered after execution of an offer to purchase, how many days does the buyer have to terminate the offer after delivery by mail?
A. 3 days B. 5 days C. 7 days D. 10 days

Correct answer: B. The rule is asymmetrical: 3 days if delivered in person, 5 days if mailed. Both windows run from the moment of delivery. The buyer exercises the right by delivering written notice to the seller or seller's agent. Source: Ca Code Excerpts, Civil Code § 1102.3.

Question 3 — Property Ownership and Land Use Controls and Regulations (Valuation)

A fourplex generates $1,400/month per unit. A comparable fourplex sold for $780,000 with monthly rent of $1,300 per unit. Using the GRM, what is the subject's estimated value?
A. $840,000 B. $780,000 C. $210,000 D. $728,000

Correct answer: A. Step 1: Comparable total monthly rent = 4 × $1,300 = $5,200. GRM = $780,000 ÷ $5,200 = 150. Step 2: Subject total monthly rent = 4 × $1,400 = $5,600. Step 3: Value = $5,600 × 150 = $840,000. The trap answers result from using single-unit rent without multiplying by 4, or ignoring the rent difference entirely. Source: Appraisal and Valuation chapter — Gross Rent Multiplier Calculation.

How to Read Your Score

The passing threshold on the real exam is 75% — 150 out of 200 questions correct. Use the same benchmark on practice runs, but interpret your score carefully.

A first attempt is a diagnostic, not a verdict. Most candidates score lower on their initial full practice run because exam-style phrasing differs from how material is taught. A score in the low 60s tells you where to focus study time, not that you will fail the real exam.

Use the topic-by-topic breakdown after each attempt. If you score 85% on Contracts but 58% on Property Valuation and Financial Analysis, that tells you exactly where to put your remaining hours. The 28-item valuation section contains multi-step calculations — one missed step costs points across several related questions.

A score consistently near 75% on practice usually means you need more work. Aim for 80–85% on practice before scheduling the real exam. That buffer accounts for the pressure of live testing conditions and questions you haven't seen before. The 812+ question pool in the full exam ensures you're exposed to genuine variety, not the same items on repeat.

Where Candidates Lose Points

Multi-step calculation errors — GRM and income approach questions require you to build through several steps. Candidates who apply GRM to a single unit's rent when the property has multiple units arrive at a plausible-looking wrong number. Always confirm whether rent figures are per-unit or total before calculating.

Misreading statutory timelines — The Laws of Agency and Fiduciary Duties section is full of specific day counts. The TDS mailing rule (5 days) vs. personal delivery rule (3 days) is a classic trap. Similar precision is required for escrow and disclosure deadlines under Civil Code § 2079.14 and § 2079.17.

Confusing trust account rules — Candidates mix up when a broker must deposit funds, what qualifies as commingling, and what the statutory exceptions are. B&P Code §10145(a)(1) and Commissioner's Regulation 2832(a) each set specific requirements that the exam tests separately.

Depreciation type misidentification — In the cost approach, functional obsolescence, physical deterioration, and external obsolescence have distinct definitions and causes. Selecting the wrong type on a scenario question is a common error in the 28-item valuation block.

Time mismanagement on Practice of Real Estate — With 50 items, this is the largest topic on the exam. Candidates who front-load time on earlier sections often rush through fair housing, trust accounting, and disclosure questions — exactly where precision matters most.

Exam Quick Facts