Free Hawaii Real Estate Salesperson Exam Flashcards

Nine members appointed to four-year terms. At least four must be licensed brokers with three years in the business; two are public members. Residency is fixed by county: four from Honolulu, one each from Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai. One member is designated chairperson (HRS 467-3).

Only the salesperson's employing broker or the broker with whom the salesperson is associated. Accepting compensation from anyone else, or acting for any other broker, is grounds for discipline. Every salesperson must be under the direction of a real estate broker for all real estate transactions (HRS 467-1; 467-14(5), (6)).

All real estate licenses expire December 31 of an even-numbered year. Failure to submit a completed renewal application and pay the biennial renewal fee forfeits the license as of January 1 of the following odd-numbered year (HRS 467-11(b); HAR 16-99-7).

Twenty hours of continuing education, including the commission-designated mandatory core course, completed during the two-year period preceding renewal. Missing the requirement by the expiration date does not forfeit the license; it renews automatically on inactive status. Excess hours do not carry forward (HRS 467-11.5; HAR 16-99-90, 16-99-93).

By the next business day after receipt, into a neutral escrow depository or a federally insured Hawaii trust fund account designating the principal broker as trustee. A salesperson who receives funds must deliver them to the principal broker or broker-in-charge by the next business day (HAR 16-99-4(a), (d), (g)).

The oral or written disclosure must be confirmed in writing in a separate paragraph of the buyer-seller contract titled "AGENCY DISCLOSURE," and the title itself must be in no less than ten-point bold print. No particular wording is required, but the commission approves suggested language that both buyer and seller initial (HAR 16-99-3.1(e)).

Written consent from both buyer and seller, stating that the licensee made full disclosure of the type of representation and briefly describing the representation each party will receive. A general statement that the licensee represents both parties is expressly not sufficient (HAR 16-99-3.1(g)).

Not more than $25,000 per transaction, including court costs, statutory fees, and reasonable attorney fees. Recovery is available only to a person aggrieved by a licensee's fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit, through commission settlement or court order (HRS 467-16(a)).

The seller must deliver the disclosure statement to the buyer no later than ten calendar days from acceptance of the purchase contract. The buyer then has fifteen calendar days to examine it and deliver written notice of rescission. Rescinding within that window returns the buyer's deposits in full (HRS 508D-5).

The transferee withholds 7.25% of the amount realized on the disposition of Hawaii real property by a nonresident person, and is personally liable for the tax. The return of the amount withheld is due to the Department of Taxation not more than twenty days following the transfer date (HRS 235-68(b), (c)).

First, the seller furnishes an affidavit with a taxpayer identification number stating they are a resident person, or that no gain or loss must be recognized. Second, an individual seller certifies the property was their principal residence for the year before the transfer and the amount realized does not exceed $300,000 (HRS 235-68(d), (f)).

Hawaii has no sales tax. The GET is levied on the business, and brokerage service income falls in the 4% class, plus any county surcharge. All four counties currently levy a 0.5% surcharge, and the maximum visible pass-on rate is 4.7120%. Passing the tax to the client is optional, not required.

That an occupant has AIDS or AIDS Related Complex, or has been tested for HIV. Otherwise a licensee must ascertain and disclose all material facts about every property for which they accept the agency, and failure to do so is grounds for discipline. Good-faith reliance on third-party information is considered (HRS 467-14(18)).

Portions are designated for separate ownership as units, and the remainder is designated for common ownership solely by those unit owners. Real estate is not a condominium unless the undivided interests in the common elements are vested in the unit owners. The owners' association is organized under HRS 514B-102 (HRS 514B-3).

A portion of the common elements designated by the declaration, or by operation of HRS 514B-35, for the exclusive use of one or more but fewer than all of the units. Assigned parking stalls, storage lockers, and lanais are typical examples. It is still common element, not part of the unit (HRS 514B-3).

Enough to fund at least fifty per cent of the estimated replacement reserves assessments, or one hundred per cent when using a cash flow plan. The estimate comes from a reserve study, which must be reviewed by an independent reserve study preparer at least every three years if not prepared by one (HRS 514B-148(a)(5), (b)).

Planned community associations, the typical single-family subdivision or planned unit development with common areas and mandatory membership, are governed by HRS chapter 421J. Condominiums are governed by HRS chapter 514B. The two chapters impose different governance, budget, and disclosure duties, so identify the regime before quoting a rule.

Within six months before, or ten calendar days after, the buyer's acceptance of the real estate purchase contract. The buyer must also acknowledge receipt on the contract, in an addendum, or in a separate document, and must be given the chance to examine it (HRS 508D-4).

Sale to a co-owner; sale to a spouse, parent, or child; and sale by devise, descent, or court order. Also exempt are transfers by operation of law such as foreclosure, lessor-to-lessee fee conversions, new-property sales under a chapter 484 public offering statement, condominium sales with an unexpired developer's public report, and time share interests (HRS 508D-3).

Whether the seller authorizes the firm to appoint seller's subagents, through a multiple listing service or otherwise, and whether the seller authorizes the firm to share commissions with seller's subagents or buyer's agents. The disclosure must be in writing, dated, and signed by both the seller and the firm (HAR 16-99-3.1(b)).

Before negotiations are initiated, orally or in writing, to the seller or to the listing brokerage firm if there is one. The licensee must also disclose before negotiations begin whether the licensee is, or intends to be, the buyer in the transaction (HAR 16-99-3.1(h)).

Both are filed at the Bureau of Conveyances, but they work differently. Regular System documents are simply recorded and indexed by grantor and grantee, so title must be traced through the chain. Land Court is Hawaii's Torrens system: documents go to the Assistant Registrar and are noted on a certificate of title, and the court's decree of registration quiets title, conclusive against all persons including the State, subject only to the HRS 501-82 exceptions.

A leasehold buyer owns the improvements and the right to use the land only for the remaining lease term, pays lease rent to the fee owner, faces scheduled rent renegotiations, and under a typical surrender clause gives the property back at expiration. A fee simple buyer owns land and improvements outright. Leaseholds are "real estate" under HRS 467-1, so selling them requires a license, and a lease for more than one year must be recorded (HRS 502-83).

In an Agreement of Sale the seller finances the purchase and retains legal title until the balance is paid, while the buyer takes possession and equitable title. With a purchase money mortgage the buyer takes legal title at closing and gives the seller a mortgage as security. Both are recorded seller-financing devices.

Twelve per cent a year, or one per cent per month, of simple interest. The ceiling rises to twenty-four per cent when the creditor is a financial institution regulated under chapter 412, other than a trust company or credit union. Transactions that are not consumer credit or home business loans have no statutory cap (HRS 478-4).

No more than one month's rent, plus up to one additional month's rent for a permitted pet, which cannot be charged for an assistance animal. The landlord must return the deposit, or written notice with itemized grounds and evidence, no later than fourteen days after the rental agreement terminates (HRS 521-44(b), (c)).

In small claims court, a wrongful and wilful retention lets the court award the tenant three times the amount wrongfully retained plus costs of suit. Merely wrongful retention gets the tenant the amount retained plus costs. Neither side may be represented by an attorney in that action (HRS 521-44(g), (h)).

By tiers on the full consideration, from ten cents per $100 under $600,000 up to one dollar per $100 at $10,000,000 or more. A higher schedule, fifteen cents to one dollar twenty-five cents per $100, applies when the buyer of a condominium or single family residence is ineligible for a county homeowner's exemption (HRS 247-2).

It applies only when the lease or sublease has a full unexpired term of five years or more. The tax is then based on the lease rentals discounted to present value and capitalized at six per cent, plus consideration paid for on-site and off-site improvements. The tax on any transaction is never less than $1 (HRS 247-2).

Urban, rural, agricultural, and conservation. The state Land Use Commission places all land in the State into one of the four and sets the boundary standards, giving consideration to each county's general or master plan. County zoning then regulates permitted uses within the district (HRS 205-2).

Commingling is mixing a client's money with the licensee's own funds or the firm's operating account. Conversion is using another person's money for the licensee's own purposes. Both are separate grounds for discipline, and commingling is a violation even when nothing is misappropriated and no client loses money.

Race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability. The 1968 Act started with race, color, religion, and national origin; sex was added in 1974; familial status and disability in 1988. The separate 1866 Civil Rights Act bars racial discrimination in all property transactions with no exemptions. State and county laws often add classes, so always check the local list too.

Price fixing, meaning agreeing with competitors on commission rates; market allocation, dividing territories or client types; group boycott, agreeing to refuse to deal with a competitor; and tying, conditioning the sale of one service on the purchase of another. Per se means no business justification is a defense.

Care, Obedience to lawful instructions, Accounting for money and documents, Loyalty by putting the client's interests first, and Disclosure of material facts known to the agent. Loyalty and full disclosure are the two most restricted by dual agency, which is why written consent from both principals is required.

A special agent, hired for one specific transaction with limited authority and no power to bind the principal to a contract. A general agent, such as a property manager, handles a continuing series of transactions. A universal agent, created by a broad power of attorney, may act for the principal in all matters.

By acts of the parties, including expiration of the term, completion or performance, mutual agreement, or revocation and renunciation. Or by operation of law, including death or incapacity of either party, bankruptcy of the principal, and destruction of the property. Termination does not erase the duty of confidentiality.

Competent parties, mutual assent shown by offer and acceptance, consideration, a lawful object, and a legal description of the property. Because it conveys an interest in land, it must also be in writing and signed to satisfy the statute of frauds. Missing an essential element makes the contract void, not merely voidable.

It rejects and terminates it. The offeree becomes the offeror, and the original offeror is free to accept, reject, or counter again. An offer that has been countered cannot be revived by later acceptance; the parties must re-offer. An offer also dies on revocation before acceptance, lapse of time, or death of either party.

Sales comparison, best for single-family homes and condominiums with active comparable sales. Cost, meaning land value plus replacement cost less depreciation, best for new or special-purpose property with few comparables. Income, capitalizing net operating income, best for rental and investment property. The appraiser reconciles them, never averages them.

A licensee prepares a CMA or broker opinion of value from comparable listings and sales to help set a price, and it is not an appraisal. An appraisal is an independent, impartial opinion of value by a licensed or certified appraiser, made to standards and usually required by a lender before it will fund a loan.

In a lien theory state the borrower keeps legal title and the lender holds only a lien, so the lender must foreclose to reach the property. In a title theory state legal title passes to the lender or a trustee until the debt is paid, which lets the lender take possession on default. Whether a foreclosure is judicial or non-judicial depends on state statute and the security instrument, not on the theory alone.

It lets the lender demand the entire unpaid balance if the borrower sells or transfers the property, which prevents a buyer from assuming the loan without lender approval. Without it, and with lender consent, a buyer may assume the loan and take over payments, or take subject to the loan without personal liability.

For target housing built before 1978, the seller or landlord must disclose known lead-based paint and hazards, give the buyer or tenant the EPA pamphlet and any available reports, and attach the disclosure to the contract. Buyers get a 10-day opportunity to conduct a lead inspection or risk assessment, which they may waive in writing.

A stigmatized property is one made undesirable by a psychological factor such as a death, crime, or reported haunting, rather than by a physical defect. Most states limit or bar required disclosure of these facts. Agents generally should not answer sex-offender questions themselves; refer buyers to the state's Megan's Law registry.

$12,750. Total commission is $850,000 times 0.05, or $42,500. The listing firm's half is $21,250, and the agent's 60% share of that is $12,750. Work outward in order: total commission, then the firm split, then the agent split. Never apply the agent's percentage to the full commission.

Divide the annual amount by 365 or by 360 depending on the method, multiply by the days each party owns the property, then debit and credit accordingly. Prepaid items credit the seller and debit the buyer; accrued unpaid items debit the seller and credit the buyer. Hawaii property tax runs on a July 1 to June 30 fiscal year, paid in two installments due August 20 and February 20, so a seller who paid the August installment is credited for the unused days.

Method of attachment, adaptation to the real estate, relationship of the parties, intent of the party who attached it, and any agreement between the parties. Intent is the controlling test. An attached item that a tenant installs to conduct business is a trade fixture and stays personal property, removable before the lease ends.

Police power, regulation for public health, safety, and welfare through zoning and building codes, with no compensation. Eminent domain, taking for public use with just compensation. Taxation, collecting ad valorem property taxes, with a tax lien and sale for nonpayment. Escheat, property passing to the state when an owner dies with no heirs or will.

The general warranty deed, which warrants title against all defects for the entire history of the property. A special warranty deed covers only defects arising during the grantor's ownership. A quitclaim deed carries no warranty at all; it conveys whatever interest the grantor happens to have, and is used to clear clouds on title.

In a gross lease the tenant pays a flat rent and the landlord pays the operating expenses, which is typical for residential leases. In a net lease the tenant also pays some combination of taxes, insurance, and maintenance. In a percentage lease the tenant pays base rent plus a share of gross sales, typical for retail.