Ohio Real Estate Salesperson Practice Exam
Free Practice Exam
Test your knowledge with 10 questions from our pool of 20 free questions.
- 10 questions per attempt
- 30 minute time limit
- Unlimited attempts
- A new mix each time
- Instant results
Full Practice Exam
Complete exam simulation matching the real PSI test format.
- 40 questions (same as real exam)
- 60 minute time limit
- 4 topic areas covered
- 237 questions in pool
- Detailed explanations
Texts preferred · 9am–9pm Central
Ohio Real Estate Salesperson Practice Exam Guide
What's on the exam
Questions per topic, out of 40This guide covers the Ohio state portion of the salesperson examination, and it is a closed-book test. The official outline splits that portion into four topics: state governance of the real estate profession, licensing requirements, license law and the rules of the Ohio Real Estate Commission, and brokerage relationships under Ohio agency law. Those last two carry most of the weight, so that is where most of your study hours belong.
You have two ways to practice here. The free practice exam gives you 10 questions per attempt, and you can retake it as often as you want. The full practice exam gives you 40 questions on a 1 hour clock, drawn fresh from our question bank every time you start, so a second attempt is not the same paper you just finished. Work the free set until the rules stick, then run the timed set to see whether you can hold that knowledge under a clock.
State Governance of the Real Estate Profession 4 items
This is the smallest topic. Its outline covers the powers and structure of the governing bodies, audit of records, investigations, hearings and appeals, violations and penalties, and the Real Estate Recovery Fund. Practice questions ask how far the superintendent's subrogation rights reach after paying a claim — all rights, to the extent of the amount paid (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.12(G)) — and when the commission may not impose a special assessment on renewing licensees (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.12(A)). Others ask who may file against the fund (ORC 4735.12(B)(1)), how sanctions run from reprimand up to revocation (ORC 4735.051(I)), where added continuing education fits as an educational sanction (ORC 4735.051(I)(5); OAC 1301:5-1-18(C)), and where an adverse order is appealed (ORC 4735.19).
Licensing Requirements 6 items
Expect activities that require a license and what happens to a license already issued. One practice question turns on a single act contained in the definition of a real estate broker, done for another for compensation, making that person a broker or salesperson (Ohio Chapter 4735 | Real Estate Brokers, Section 4735.01(H)). Another puts your license in inactive status the moment your broker returns it to the division (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-1-06(A)(1)). Also covered: the three-year renewal cycle (OAC 1301:5-1-22(A)(B)), 30 hours of continuing education per renewal (ORC 4735.141(A)), 20 hours of post-license instruction within twelve months (ORC 4735.09(J)), license on deposit for military duty (ORC 4735.13(G)(1)), and who a licensed entity may not employ (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.02(B)).
License Law and Rules of the Ohio Real Estate Commission 16 items
The heaviest topic. In our practice questions, listing types come up repeatedly: exclusive right to sell (ORC 4735.01(U)), exclusive agency (ORC 4735.01(V)), nonexclusive agency (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.01(JJ)), and exclusive purchaser agency (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.01(W)). Exclusive listing agreements need a definite expiration date (ORC 4735.55(C)(1); ORC 4735.18(A)(28)), and a written agency agreement for the sale of residential real property needs a conspicuous statement that fees are fully negotiable (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.55(C)(7)). Trust account questions cover nonnegotiable instruments (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-5-08(A)) and the broker's own minimum balance funds (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-5-08(C)(1)). Advertising questions test what counts and what does not (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-1-02(H) and (I)), preferred first names (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-1-02(A)), and team ads (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-1-21(B)(2)).
Brokerage Relationships (Agency Law) 14 items
Second heaviest. Dual agency drives several practice questions: when it exists (ORC 4735.70), the written consent and neutrality it demands (ORC 4735.72(A)(2); ORC 4735.71(A)), and what a brokerage loses when a client accepts its resignation after a confidentiality breach (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.72(E)(2)). Others test fiduciary duties and their limits (ORC 4735.62), loyalty specifically (ORC 4735.62(D)), buyer agency (ORC 4735.53(A)(2)), customer versus client without a signed agreement (ORC 4735.69; ORC 4735.53(D)), termination (ORC 4735.52), unauthorized practice of law (ORC 4735.02(A)), and false claims of status or expertise (ORC 4735.18(A)(1); ORC 4735.18(A)(12)).
Sample 1 — License Law and Rules of the Ohio Real Estate Commission
Question: You are a principal broker in Ohio and have been approved to use multiple trade names for your brokerage. You want to ensure compliance with trust account requirements. What must you maintain for each trade name?
- A. A special or trust account in each trade name
- B. A separate brokerage license for each trade name
- C. A separate errors and omissions insurance policy for each trade name
- D. A separate principal broker for each trade name
Correct Answer: A
When a brokerage operates under multiple approved trade names, a special or trust account must be maintained in each trade name (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-3-13(C)(4)). The trade name is how the public identifies the money, so the account has to match it. The wrong options all sound like extra compliance, and that is the trick — a second license, a second policy, or a second principal broker are not what the rule requires. Read trade-name questions for what must be duplicated: the account, not the license.
Sample 2 — Brokerage Relationships (Agency Law)
Question: Under Ohio law, if either client in a dual agency relationship accepts the brokerage's resignation of representation after a confidentiality breach, what consequence applies to the brokerage?
- A. The brokerage shall not be entitled to any compensation from that client
- B. The brokerage must assign a new licensee to that client
- C. The brokerage must refund all marketing expenses to that client
- D. The brokerage must notify the Ohio Real Estate Commission within 48 hours
Correct Answer: A
If a client elects to accept the brokerage's resignation of representation following a confidentiality breach in a dual agency relationship, the brokerage is not entitled to any compensation from that client (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.72(E)(2)). The consequence is financial and immediate. Options B, C and D each invent a procedure the statute does not impose. When a dual agency question asks about consequences, check first whether the statute takes the fee away before you reach for a notice period or a refund.
Sample 3 — Licensing Requirements
Question: You are a licensed Ohio real estate salesperson and your principal broker terminates your affiliation and returns your license to the division. What happens to the status of your license?
- A. The license is automatically revoked
- B. The license is automatically placed in an inactive status
- C. The license remains active for 30 days to allow for transfer
- D. The license is automatically suspended for 12 months
Correct Answer: B
Upon return of the salesperson's license to the division, the license is automatically placed in inactive status (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-1-06(A)(1)). It is not revoked and not suspended — you simply cannot practice until you reactivate under the reactivation requirements. The wrong options trade on the idea that losing your broker is a punishment. It is a status change. Know the difference between inactive, suspended, revoked and resigned.
The real bar is 70% correct. Treat your first timed attempt as a diagnostic, not a verdict. Take it cold, before you review anything, so the number tells you where you actually stand instead of what you just reread.
Then ignore the total and go straight to the topic breakdown. That is the part that changes what you do next. If you are scoring clean on licensing requirements but dropping half the agency law items, you know where tonight's hours go.
Weight your effort by the outline counts. License law and rules is 16 items and brokerage relationships is 14, so those two together make up the bulk of the scored content. Five more correct answers in either one move your total more than a perfect run through state governance, which is only 4 items. That does not mean skip governance — the Recovery Fund rules are few and easy to lock down, so take those points.
Retake the timed set until you clear the pass mark with room left over, not by one item. A margin means a bad draw on exam day still leaves you standing. Track which specific rules you miss, not just which topics.
"Disclose all material facts to all parties" reads like a fiduciary duty and is not one. In Brokerage Relationships (Agency Law), fiduciary duties run to the client — loyalty, confidentiality, accounting, obedience, disclosure (ORC 4735.62). You owe honesty and fair dealing to everyone, but confidential client information stays protected. Candidates pick the option with the most duties in it and lose the item.
A single transaction counts. Licensing Requirements questions set up someone who negotiates one sale for a fee and offers you two tempting escapes: multiple transactions required, or a dollar threshold. Neither exists. One act contained in the definition of a real estate broker, done for another for compensation, makes that person a broker or salesperson (Ohio Chapter 4735 | Real Estate Brokers, Section 4735.01(H)).
Exclusive agency and exclusive right to sell get swapped under time pressure. Under License Law and Rules, exclusive right to sell pays the broker no matter who produces the buyer, including the owner (ORC 4735.01(U)). Exclusive agency lets the seller sell it themselves without paying (ORC 4735.01(V)). Read the stem for who found the buyer before you read the options.
Trust account items punish guessing about the broker's own money. Commingling is drilled into everyone, so candidates reject the correct answer on reflex. A broker may keep the broker's own funds in the trust account to satisfy a bank's minimum balance, clearly identified as the broker's funds (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-5-08(C)(1)). Separately, a nonnegotiable instrument needs the owner's knowledge and written consent (Ohio Administrative Code 1301:05, Rule 1301:5-5-08(A)).
Recovery Fund questions hinge on exact numbers and exact scope. In State Governance, know the dollar figure that stops a special assessment (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.12(A)) and that the superintendent's subrogation reaches all of the judgment creditor's rights to the extent paid (Ohio Chapter 4735, Section 4735.12(G)). Partial-scope options are written to look cautious and reasonable.
Pace is tight enough that stalling costs you items. You get 1 hour for 40 questions, which works out to about 1 minute 30 seconds per question. If a scenario question has you rereading the stem a third time, mark your best answer and move. Coming back with two minutes left beats running out of clock with five items untouched.
| Questions | 40 questions |
| Time limit | 1 hour |
| Passing score | 70% correct |
| Books in the exam room | Closed book (no books in the room) |
| Exam fee | The salesperson registration fee is $46.00 for national only, $43.00 for state only, and $66.00 for state and national taken at the same time. |
- To retake, the candidate must file an online Retake Application and fee with the Division for the portion failed and retest within the 12-month eligibility period.
Source: Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Real Estate and Professional Licensing — Real Estate Salesperson and Broker Candidate Information Bulletin, 7/1/2026. Check the bulletin before test day: fees and rules can change.