Free GA Real Estate Exam Flashcards

The state agency that licenses and regulates Georgia real estate salespersons and brokers under Title 43, Chapter 40. It can issue, suspend, and revoke licenses, investigate complaints, audit brokers, and impose citations and fines for violations.

Complete a 75-hour approved prelicense course, qualifying college or law school credits, or 75 hours of prelicense coursework approved by another state or Canadian province. For licensure, you must be at least 18 and hold a high school diploma or equivalent.

PSI’s candidate bulletin shows 152 scored questions, 100 national and 52 Georgia. Additional unscored questions may appear. The Georgia supplement has 16 laws and rules questions, 21 practice questions, and 15 finance and closing questions.

A newly licensed salesperson generally completes a 25-hour GREC-approved postlicense course within one year, even on inactive status. A qualifying salesperson may receive a six-month extension. Missing the applicable deadline causes the license to lapse.

Georgia licenses renew on a four-year cycle. Active salespersons generally complete 36 hours of approved CE, including at least three hours of license law. Reinstatement requirements depend on the lapse reason and its length.

A salesperson must work under a supervising broker who is responsible for their activities. A broker may operate independently; an associate broker holds a broker license but chooses to work under another broker rather than independently.

Under GREC Rule 520-1-.07, brokers are responsible for affiliated licensees’ violations of Georgia license law and rules. They must instruct affiliates on these requirements and notify GREC of violations.

Report a change to your mailing address, residence address or maintained email address to GREC in writing within one month. Changes of brokerage affiliation follow the separate release and transfer procedures.

GREC may use a citation or pursue formal discipline. Citation fines are capped at $1,000 per violation and $5,000 for multiple violations in one citation. Suspension and revocation are formal disciplinary sanctions.

The Brokerage Relationships in Real Estate Transactions Act (O.C.G.A. Section 10-6A) is Georgia's agency statute. It governs all brokerage relationships and recognizes client, customer, dual agency, and designated agency.

A client enters a written brokerage engagement and is owed the applicable BRRETA client duties. A customer receives the applicable statutory disclosures and may receive ministerial help.

Under BRRETA, a written brokerage engagement agreement is required to create a client (agency) relationship in Georgia. Without it, the party is treated as a customer, not a client.

Under GREC Rule 520-1-.06(4), disclose in writing whom the firm represents and from whom it will receive compensation. Make the disclosure in a timely manner, no later than the first offer. A firm representing neither party still discloses the source of compensation.

Dual agency is when one broker represents both buyer and seller in the same transaction. Georgia permits it only with the written, informed consent of both parties, and the brokerage must have a written office policy on dual agency.

Under the firm’s written policy, a broker designates affiliated licensees to represent different clients exclusively in the same transaction. The firm and licensees are not deemed dual agents when these appointments meet BRRETA.

Ministerial acts provide factual or clerical help without professional judgment. Examples include giving public listing information or arranging an appointment. These acts alone do not create a brokerage engagement.

A salesperson may be paid only through their sponsoring broker, never directly by a client or another party. Commission rates are fully negotiable; there are no state-fixed rates.

Paying a real estate referral fee or commission to an unlicensed person is generally prohibited. Brokers may, however, share commissions with properly licensed cooperating or out-of-state brokers.

GAR Form F201 is a residential purchase agreement published by Georgia REALTORS. Review the signed contract and exhibits for the due diligence and financing terms.

A negotiated clause can allow the buyer to terminate by giving notice during the agreed due diligence period. The contract specifies the deadline and the steps to exercise that right.

Under GAR Form F201, separate option money, if negotiated, is paid directly to the seller. Earnest money is held by the holder named in the agreement. The contract governs each payment’s disposition if the buyer terminates or closes.

A time-is-of-the-essence clause makes timely performance material. Missing an applicable deadline can be a breach. Check the contract for notice, cure and extension provisions.

The signed contract sets the buyer’s payment deadline. Under GREC Rules 520-1-.08 and .14, the broker generally deposits trust funds promptly after receipt. Depositing more than three business days after receipt may lead to a citation unless the contract provides otherwise.

A Georgia lawyer must oversee and participate in a real estate closing when the parties are not handling it themselves under Georgia’s pro se exception. The lawyer must control the process from beginning to end.

Georgia generally expects buyers to investigate a property. Sellers can face fraud liability for concealment or nondisclosure of known latent defects when there is a duty to speak. BRRETA requires timely disclosure of known adverse material physical facts that a reasonably diligent inspection would not reveal.

For most pre-1978 housing, disclose known lead-based paint and hazards, share available records, and provide the EPA pamphlet. Buyers generally receive a 10-day inspection or risk-assessment opportunity unless the parties agree to a different period or the buyer waives it in writing.

O.C.G.A. § 44-1-16 generally shields the failure to volunteer facts such as a homicide or suicide on the property or a past occupant’s nontransmissible illness. Sellers and licensees must answer direct questions truthfully, subject to federal and state confidentiality and fair housing law.

BRRETA requires timely disclosure to the other parties of adverse material physical facts actually known to the broker that a reasonably diligent inspection would not reveal. Client duties can require broader disclosures.

Unless the interested parties agree otherwise in writing, the broker promptly deposits cash and checks in a federally insured account designated as a trust account and registered with GREC.

Commingling mixes trust funds with a broker’s own funds, subject to limited rule-based exceptions. Conversion uses trust funds without authorization. Both can result in discipline.

Reconcile trust accounts at least monthly and retain the reconciliations and required transaction records for at least three years. GREC may examine trust accounts during renewal or at another time upon reasonable cause.

Rule 520-1-.08 addresses a broker’s commission claim after a sale closes or the contractual closing date and any extensions pass. The rule also identifies permissible grounds for disbursing disputed funds, including interpleader, a court order, or reasonable interpretation of the contract.

Georgia generally assesses real property at 40% of fair market value. Taxable assessed value after applicable exemptions is multiplied by the local millage rate.

One mill equals $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable assessed value. Apply the jurisdiction’s millage after accounting for applicable exemptions.

A qualifying owner-occupant may claim a homestead exemption to reduce taxable assessed value. The state and local taxing jurisdictions can have different exemption amounts and eligibility rules.

For unpaid taxes, a seller typically credits the buyer for the seller’s allocated days. Use the contract’s day-count method and check which party is assigned the closing day.

O.C.G.A. Section 8-3-200 mirrors the federal Fair Housing Act and protects 7 classes: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and familial status. The Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (GCEO) enforces it.

A Georgia administrative fair housing complaint generally must be filed within one year after the alleged discriminatory practice occurs or ends. The filing deadline for a private civil action is separate.

Steering directs buyers toward or away from areas based on protected class; blockbusting induces panic selling by suggesting protected-class change; redlining is denying loans or insurance by area demographics. All are prohibited under federal and Georgia fair housing law.

An estate of potentially indefinite duration that can be sold, given away or inherited. The owner’s rights remain subject to law and any valid restrictions on the property.

Joint tenancy carries the right of survivorship and in Georgia must be expressly stated to be created. Tenancy in common has no survivorship—each owner's share passes through their estate. Georgia is an equitable-distribution (not community property) state.

An easement is a legal right to use another's land for a specific purpose (e.g., utility access). An encroachment is an unauthorized physical intrusion onto a neighbor's land; it is a title defect, not a granted right.

A general warranty deed protects against lawful title claims that can predate the grantor’s ownership, subject to stated exceptions. A quitclaim deed conveys the grantor’s existing interest without title warranties.

A deed to secure debt conveys legal title to the lender as security while the borrower retains equitable ownership. A power of sale in the deed can allow nonjudicial foreclosure after the required notice.

A lender may foreclose under a security deed’s power of sale after giving the required notice and publishing the sale. The borrower has no ordinary statutory post-sale redemption period for this type of sale. Delinquent property tax sales have a separate redemption process.

Conventional loans are not government-insured and often need PMI below 20% down. FHA loans are federally insured with low down payments and mortgage insurance premiums. VA loans are federally guaranteed for eligible veterans, often with no down payment.

LTV = loan amount divided by the lesser of sale price or appraised value. A higher LTV means more lender risk; conventional loans above 80% LTV typically require private mortgage insurance.

A comparative market analysis helps a client estimate a likely price using comparable properties. An appraisal is a formal opinion of value prepared by a qualified appraiser, often for a lender.

Estimates value by adjusting recent comparable sales for differences in features, location, and condition. It is the primary approach for residential property and underlies a salesperson's CMA.

A state fund that may pay limited monetary judgments to consumers harmed by a licensee's fraud or violation when the judgment cannot be collected from the licensee. Payment from the fund can result in suspension of the responsible licensee.