Every chapter on the California, Texas, Florida & New York real estate exams

Real vs. personal property, fixtures, trade fixtures, land vs. improvements, and bundle of rights.

Sole ownership, joint tenancy, tenancy in common, community property, community property with right of survivorship, and tenancy in partnership.

Voluntary and involuntary liens, easements (appurtenant and in gross), licenses, and encroachments.

Metes and bounds, lot and block, rectangular survey system, and California's use of all three methods.

The four government powers: police power, eminent domain, taxation, and escheat.

Zoning, general plans, building codes, CEQA, and subdivision regulations.

Deed restrictions, CC&Rs, homeowners associations, and common interest developments.

Lead-based paint, asbestos, radon, mold, underground storage tanks, CERCLA, and environmental disclosures.

Riparian rights, littoral rights, prior appropriation, percolating water, and California water law.

Agricultural land, mineral rights, air rights, and California-specific land classifications.

Definition of agency, types of agents (universal, general, special), and single vs. dual agency.

Express, implied, ostensible, and ratified agency. Listing agreements as agency contracts.

The fiduciary duties of care, loyalty, obedience, disclosure, accounting, and confidentiality (OLD CAR).

The Agency Disclosure Statement (AD), required timing, and the three-step disclosure process in California.

When a licensee buys or sells for themselves, family, or when they have an ownership interest.

Mutual agreement, expiration, performance, death, incapacity, revocation, and abandonment.

How commissions are earned and paid, procuring cause, commission splits, and who can receive compensation.

Duties of honesty and fair dealing to non-client parties in a transaction.

Types of value (market, investment, assessed), characteristics of value (DUST), and economic principles.

The most common appraisal method for residential property. Finding comparables and making adjustments.

Used for new construction and unique properties. Reproduction vs. replacement cost, depreciation types.

Used for income-producing property. Capitalization rate, GRM, NOI, and effective gross income.

Commission calculations, prorations, loan payments, ARMs, LTV, and investment math.

Loan-to-value, points, PMI, down payments, and basic loan terminology.

Fixed-rate, adjustable-rate, interest-only, balloon, wraparound, purchase money, and hard money loans.

Banks, credit unions, mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae.

FHA, VA, Cal-Vet, USDA, and CalHFA loan programs.

California uses trust deeds not mortgages. Three parties, power of sale, non-judicial vs. judicial foreclosure.

Truth in Lending Act (TILA), RESPA, ECOA, Regulation Z, Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Mortgage loan originators, NMLS requirements, real property loan law, and broker activities.

Grant deed, quitclaim deed, warranty deed, trustee's deed. Requirements for a valid deed.

Standard (CLTA) vs. extended (ALTA) coverage, owner's vs. lender's policies, title search, and title defects.

Role of the escrow holder, neutral third party, escrow instructions, contingency satisfaction, and closing.

Proposition 13, 8, 19, and 58. Supplemental taxes, documentary transfer tax, and federal tax aspects of real estate.

Probate sales, court confirmation, intestate succession, and transfers through court supervision.

Adverse possession, eminent domain, dedication, gift, accession, and transfer by will.

Department of Real Estate structure, Real Estate Commissioner, license types, and activities requiring a license.

Grounds for license discipline, citations, fines, the Real Estate Recovery Fund, and consumer protection.

Trust funds, commingling, conversion, trust account requirements, and the 3-business-day deposit rule.

The 3-year retention requirement for all broker records, types of records, and audit procedures.

Advertising rules, blind ads, broker identification, and social media advertising requirements.

Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968, protected classes, exemptions, and prohibited practices like blockbusting, steering, and redlining.

Unruh Civil Rights Act, FEHA, Rumford Act, Holden Act, and California's expanded protected classes.

Broker responsibility to supervise salespersons, branch offices, policies and procedures, and teams.

What unlicensed personal assistants can and cannot do, and the compensation rules.

When TDS is required, timing of delivery, seller and agent responsibilities, and right of rescission.

The six natural hazard zones, NHD Statement, and delivery requirements.

Agent's visual inspection, material facts, death on property, Megan's Law, Mello-Roos, and Proposition 65.

Property management agreements, landlord-tenant law, security deposits, and types of leases.

Commercial leasing, 1031 exchanges, investment property analysis, and commercial-specific disclosures.

Code of Ethics, anti-trust laws, RESPA kickbacks, data security, and MLS rules.

Working with clients of different backgrounds, cultural competency, and implicit bias awareness.

Elements of a valid contract, types of contracts (void, voidable, unenforceable), statute of frauds.

Exclusive right to sell, exclusive agency, open listing, net listing, and required listing elements.

Exclusive, non-exclusive, and fee-for-service buyer representation agreements.

California Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA), contingencies, offer and acceptance, earnest money, and liquidated damages.

Promissory notes, negotiable instruments, securities regulation, and California's real property securities.

Option contracts, lease with option to buy, and right of first refusal.

DRE rules for advance fees, the 10-day DRE submission rule, and trust account requirements.

Real property, personal property, fixtures, trade fixtures, emblements, attachment, severance, and bills of sale.

Economic characteristics (scarcity, modification, permanence, situs) and physical characteristics (immobility, indestructibility, non-homogeneity).

Methods to describe real property in Texas: metes and bounds, lot and block, recorded subdivision plats, and the Texas land grant system.

The four government powers (PETE), zoning, CC&Rs, HOAs, easements, licenses, and encroachments.

Forms of ownership, fee simple absolute, fee simple defeasible, life estates, bundle of rights, leasehold estates, lien priority, and air, surface, and sub-surface rights.

Elements of a valid deed, types of deeds, voluntary and involuntary alienation, recording, chain of title, marketable title, title insurance, and Texas's attorney title opinion practice.

Market value vs. market price, characteristics of value (DUST), principles of value, highest and best use, and economic principles affecting value.

Purpose and steps of an appraisal, federal oversight of appraisals, the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), and TALCB regulation of appraisers.

Sales comparison approach, cost approach, income approach, gross rent multipliers, Comparative Market Analysis (CMA), Broker Price Opinion (BPO), and assessed value.

Express vs. implied, unilateral vs. bilateral, valid, void, voidable, unenforceable, executed, and executory contracts.

The five required elements: mutual assent (offer and acceptance), legally competent parties, lawful consideration, lawful purpose, and written form (Statute of Frauds).

Performance of contracts, breach, rescission, termination, liquidated damages, punitive damages, compensatory damages, Statute of Frauds, electronic signatures, and 'time is of the essence' clauses.

Offer and counteroffer, earnest money, equitable title, contingencies, option contracts, and installment sales contracts.

Types of agency, general vs. special agency, fiduciary duties, and Texas's unique INTERMEDIARY relationship (not dual agency).

How agency is created (express, implied, ratified, ostensible) and how it terminates (performance, expiration, mutual agreement, operation of law).

Duties owed to clients (fiduciary) vs. duties owed to non-client parties (honesty and fair dealing), and obligations to disclose known material facts.

Practicing within scope of expertise, avoiding unauthorized practice of law, and the broker's duty to supervise sponsored sales agents.

Exclusive right-to-sell, exclusive agency, open, net listings (conflict of interest), MLS, buyer representation, property management agreements.

Federal Fair Housing Act, Civil Rights Act of 1866, the 7 federal protected classes, HUD enforcement, ADA, blockbusting, steering, redlining, and exemptions.

Supervision, federal regulations including Do Not Call and privacy laws, vicarious liability, antitrust laws, fraud and misrepresentation, and types of insurance.

Lead-based paint, asbestos, radon, mold, groundwater contamination, underground storage tanks, brownfields, flood zones, CERCLA, EPA regulations, Phase I/II assessments, and wetlands protection.

Environmental disclosure obligations, seller's duty to disclose known defects, and licensee liability for misrepresentation.

Methods of financing including conventional and non-conventional loans, seller financing (contract for deed), lien theory vs. title theory, sources of financing, types of loans, and mortgage clauses.

FHA, VA, USDA, and conventional loan requirements; buyer qualification; LTV; hazard and flood insurance; PMI and MIP.

Truth in Lending Act and Regulation Z, TRID, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Loan Estimate, Closing Disclosure, RESPA (referrals and rebates), ECOA, mortgage fraud, and predatory lending.

The closing process, settlement statements, prorations, debits and credits, title transfer, and disbursement of funds.

Area calculations, property valuation math, commission calculations, loan financing costs, settlement and closing cost prorations, investment analysis, and property management math.

The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) composition, duties, powers, Real Estate Advisory Committees, investigations, hearings, appeals, disciplinary authority, and the Recovery Trust Account.

Activities requiring a license, exemptions, business entity licensing, the 180-hour pre-licensing education, exam, fitness requirements, background checks, sponsorship, and grounds to deny.

Continuing education (18 hours every 2 years including 4 hours Legal Update I, 4 hours Legal Update II, 3 hours contract-related), place of business, change of sponsorship, inactive status, and assumed names.

Professional ethics, grounds for discipline, unauthorized practice of law, trust accounts, splitting fees, rebates, and advertising rules.

Texas's UNIQUE intermediary brokerage relationship (replaces dual agency), the Information About Brokerage Services (IABS) form, duties to clients including minimum services, broker-sales agent relationships, broker's responsibility for acts of sales agents, and use of unlicensed assistants.

TREC-promulgated contract forms (One to Four Family Residential, New Home Construction, Unimproved Property, Farm and Ranch, Residential Condominium, Resale), addenda, and Statute of Frauds.

Texas Seller's Disclosure Notice required for sales of residential property by Section 5.008 of the Property Code, contents, exemptions, and timing.

Texas as a community property state, separate vs. community property, management of community property, and treatment at death and divorce.

Texas's powerful homestead protections (unique in scope), urban (10 acres) and rural (200 acres family, 100 acres single) homestead, exemptions from creditors, and property tax homestead exemption.

The Texas DTPA, laundry list of false practices, consumer protections, damages (up to 3x actual damages), and how it applies to real estate.

Texas wills, intestate succession, probate, independent administration (unique to Texas), and transfer of real property at death.

Security deposits (no statutory cap in Texas but must return within 30 days), notice requirements, lease termination, and Texas Property Code Chapter 92.

Texas non-judicial foreclosure using deed of trust, the 21-day notice requirement, foreclosure on the first Tuesday of the month, deficiency rules, and short sales.

Texas's notice-type recording statute, the importance of recording, constructive vs. actual notice, and bona fide purchaser status.

Texas constitutional and statutory mechanic's liens, perfecting a lien, notice requirements, and homestead protections from M&M liens.

The Texas Veterans Land Board home loan, land loan, and home improvement loan programs available to qualifying Texas veterans.

Texas HOAs, restrictive covenants, the Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governing HOAs, and the concept of equitable interest in a purchase contract.

Brokerage specialties, property management, appraisal vs. CMA vs. BPO, mortgage loan originators, and the phases of development.

Who qualifies for a Florida sales associate license, the 63-hour course, post-licensing, exemptions, unlicensed activity, and mutual recognition.

FREC composition and powers, DBPR and the Division of Real Estate, license statuses, active vs. inactive, and multiple and group licenses.

The Brokerage Relationship Disclosure Act: transaction broker, single agent, no brokerage relationship, required duties, disclosure forms, and the transition to transaction broker.

Office and sign rules, advertising, earnest money deadlines, escrow disputes and the four settlement procedures, changing brokers, and business entities.

Complaints, investigations, probable cause panels, formal hearings, disciplinary penalties, the Real Estate Recovery Fund, and criminal penalties.

Fair housing (Civil Rights Act of 1866, Jones v. Mayer, 1968 Act and 1988 amendments), ADA, the Florida Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, and Interstate Land Sales.

Real vs. personal property, fixtures, bundle of rights, estates and tenancies, Florida homestead, condominiums, cooperatives, CDDs, HOAs and time-shares.

Alienation, adverse possession, notice, abstracts and title insurance, deed requirements and types, liens, easements, and other ownership restrictions.

Metes and bounds, the rectangular survey system, lot and block, townships and sections, and acreage calculations.

Contract essentials and classifications, offers, termination, breach and remedies, the statute of frauds, options, listing agreements, and required Florida disclosures.

Lien vs. title theory, the note and mortgage, LTV, PITI, points, assignment, estoppel, foreclosure, and buying subject to or assuming a mortgage.

ARMs, amortized and other mortgage types, FHA and VA loans, qualifying ratios, primary lenders, the secondary market, lending laws, and mortgage fraud.

Commission, profit and loss, prorations, Florida documentary stamp and intangible taxes, and the Closing Disclosure.

Physical and economic characteristics of real estate, supply and demand factors, and reading market indicators.

Appraisal regulation, USPAP, types of value, principles of value, the sales comparison, cost and income approaches, reconciliation, gross multipliers, and CMAs.

Investment types, advantages and risks, investment analysis, and how business brokerage differs from real estate brokerage.

Immune and exempt property, homestead exemptions, Save Our Homes, computing property tax, tax appeals, the Green Belt Law, special assessments, and income tax issues.

Local planning agencies, comprehensive plans, zoning classifications, variances and nonconforming uses, PUDs, flood insurance, CERCLA, and environmental hazards.

Who needs a license, how a salesperson qualifies, fees, renewal and continuing education, compensation rules, discipline, advertising and the core DOS regulations in 19 NYCRR Part 175.

What agency is, clients vs. customers, the six fiduciary duties, how agency is created and ended, subagents, broker's agents, buyer agency, vicarious liability and antitrust.

New York's RPL §443 agency disclosure forms, first substantive contact, informed consent to dual agency, designated sales agents, listing agreement types, stigmatized property and the independent contractor rules.

Land, real estate and real property, the bundle of rights, freehold and leasehold estates, forms of co-ownership under New York law, trusts and ownership by business entities.

Encumbrances, general and specific liens, mechanic's liens and lis pendens, lien priority and subordination, deed restrictions, the types of easements and how they are created and ended.

The essential elements of a valid deed, New York deed forms, legal descriptions, acknowledgment and recording, transfer of title after death, and other ways title passes.

How a New York title closing works, who attends, RESPA and TRID timing, title insurance, seller and buyer closing costs, transfer and mortgage recording taxes, and prorations.

Lease requirements, types of leases, New York's 2019 tenant protections on deposits, fees and notices, subletting and roommates, rent stabilization basics and the NYC FARE Act.

Elements of a valid contract, types of contracts, the New York contract of sale, binders and offers, options and rights of first refusal, the Statute of Frauds, remedies, the mandatory Property Condition Disclosure Statement, and how contracts are prepared upstate and downstate.

Mortgages and notes, borrower duties, foreclosure in New York, sales subject to or assuming a mortgage, loan types, FHA/VA/SONYMA, the secondary market, Truth in Lending, PMI, underwriting and predatory lending.

Private and public land use controls, police power, the comprehensive plan, zoning classifications and tools, planning boards, zoning boards of appeals, use and area variances, special permits, SEQRA and subdivision rules.

Plans, permits and certificates of occupancy, site requirements for wells and septic systems, structural components from footing to ridge, insulation and R-value, heating, cooling, plumbing and electrical systems, and New York's mandated new-home and home-improvement protections.

Water, septic and wood-destroying insects, plus the contemporary hazards tested on the exam: asbestos, lead (with the federal pre-1978 disclosure rule), radon, indoor air quality, PCBs, CFCs, EMFs, mold, underground tanks, environmental site assessments and the agent's role and liability.

The difference between appraisal, valuation and evaluation, the definition of market value, price versus cost, the comparative market analysis (which may never be called an appraisal), highest and best use, the three approaches to value, depreciation and how a salesperson prices a listing.

Federal fair housing law from the Civil Rights Act of 1866 to the 1988 amendments, New York's Human Rights Law and its broader protected classes, exemptions, steering, blockbusting and redlining, the DOS-2156 disclosure and posting rules, reasonable accommodations, implicit bias, nonsolicitation orders and cease-and-desist zones.

The calculations the exam expects: commissions and splits, interest, appreciation and depreciation, points, area and perimeter, acres and hectares, price per square foot, basic mortgage qualifying, and New York transfer tax, mortgage recording tax and property tax computations.

Which local body does what: legislative boards that adopt zoning and budgets, planning boards, zoning boards of appeals, architectural review, conservation and historic preservation bodies, the building department, assessor, receiver of taxes, municipal engineer and county health department.

Why property insurance matters, where to buy it, monoline vs. package policies, the HO-1 through HO-8 forms as the syllabus defines them, actual cash value vs. replacement cost, coinsurance, NYPIUA and the NFIP for hard-to-insure property, cancellation and nonrenewal, windstorm deductibles and the agent's role.

Personal safety at the office, on the road, at showings and open houses; protecting personal and client information from cyber threats and wire fraud; liability for accidents and injuries; New York's justification rules on the use of physical force; and office safety policies.

How New York property taxes work: ad valorem taxation, assessed value and the assessment ratio, equalization, tax levy and tax rate calculations, taxing jurisdictions, special assessment districts, exemptions including STAR, the grievance process, SCAR, tax certiorari, and tax liens and foreclosure.

How condos and co-ops differ, sponsors and offering plans under the Martin Act, letters of intent and CPS-1, price changes and amendments, certificates of occupancy, closing costs and taxes, co-op documents, board packages and interviews, financing with recognition agreements, subletting, flip taxes and the condop and 80/20 rule.

Investment characteristics (risk, liquidity, leverage), commercial property types, fee simple vs. leasehold, the reconstructed operating statement, NOI, before- and after-tax cash flow, cash-on-cash return, taxable income, capitalization rates and IRV valuation.

Rentable, usable and carpetable square footage, loss and add-on factors, gross, net, office, retail percentage and loft leases, natural breakpoint, key lease clauses (use, attornment, estoppel, assignment and sublease, SNDA), electric service arrangements and escalation clauses including base year, expense stops, porter's wage and CPI.

Federal income tax rules a licensee should understand: homeowner deductions, IRA withdrawals for a first home, capital gains, the $250,000/$500,000 home sale exclusion, basis and adjusted basis, depreciation and recapture, active/passive/portfolio income, Section 1031 like-kind exchanges, and rules on interest, points and refinancing.

What a mortgage broker does, how it differs from a mortgage banker, New York Banking Law registration and disclosure requirements including the dual agency disclosure for real estate brokers, and key terms such as prequalification, preapproval, commitment, rate lock and underwriting.

What property managers do and when they need a license, the management agreement as a general agency, the skills a manager needs, differences among office, retail, residential and condo/co-op management, budgets and maintenance types, security deposit handling and the manager's obligations to the owner.