Standalone Coverage Map
Key Takeaways
- The exam has two independently scored portions: 80 National questions and 30 Pennsylvania State questions; you must pass both.
- National content is conceptual and transferable; Pennsylvania content is procedural and built on RELRA, Commission regulations, and the Recovery Fund.
- Roughly one-third of the exam is Pennsylvania-specific, so the State portion deserves equal study seriousness despite being smaller.
- Study the National foundation first, then layer Pennsylvania specifics, finishing with timed mixed-portion practice exams.
- Use the blueprint-to-chapter table to budget study time in proportion to each area's question weight.
Standalone Coverage Map
This guide is standalone-complete: it teaches the full national real-estate salesperson blueprint plus the state-specific license-law chapters. Use the table below to map each official exam topic to where it is covered here.
The Pennsylvania real estate salesperson exam is delivered by PSI on behalf of the Pennsylvania Real Estate Commission. Like most state licensing tests, it is built in two parts: a National portion that covers principles common to every U.S. jurisdiction, and a Pennsylvania State portion that tests the statutes, regulations, and practices unique to the Commonwealth. You must pass both portions to qualify for licensure, and they are scored separately.
The National portion runs 80 scored questions; the Pennsylvania State portion runs 30 scored questions. Roughly a third of your exam, then, is Pennsylvania-specific. Many candidates over-study the larger National block and underprepare for the State block, but because the two are scored independently, a strong National score cannot rescue a failing State score. Treat the 30 State questions with the same seriousness as the 80 National ones.
National content is conceptual and transferable: ownership interests, contracts, agency, financing, valuation, fair housing, and federal disclosure law. Pennsylvania content is procedural and jurisdictional: the Real Estate Licensing and Registration Act (RELRA), Commission regulations, the Real Estate Recovery Fund, escrow handling, and disclosure forms required of Pennsylvania licensees. Knowing which bucket a topic belongs to tells you whether to memorize a universal principle or a specific Pennsylvania rule.
The table below maps each exam blueprint area to the chapters of this guide, with the approximate scored-question weight so you can budget study time proportionally.
| Blueprint area | Portion | Approx. questions | Guide chapters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property ownership & land use | National | 9 | Ch. 2, 3 |
| Valuation & market analysis | National | 7 | Ch. 4 |
| Financing | National | 9 | Ch. 5 |
| General brokerage principles | National | 9 | Ch. 6 |
| Agency & fiduciary duties | National | 11 | Ch. 7 |
| Property conditions & disclosures | National | 7 | Ch. 8 |
| Contracts | National | 14 | Ch. 9 |
| Federal law (fair housing, RESPA, TILA) | National | 14 | Ch. 10 |
| RELRA & licensing requirements | Pennsylvania | 8 | Ch. 11 |
| Commission rules & regulations | Pennsylvania | 7 | Ch. 12 |
| Escrow, recordkeeping & Recovery Fund | Pennsylvania | 8 | Ch. 13 |
| PA disclosures, contracts & practice | Pennsylvania | 7 | Ch. 14 |
A sensible study sequence works through the National foundation first, then layers the Pennsylvania specifics on top. Begin with ownership and land use (Ch. 2-3) to build vocabulary, then valuation and financing (Ch. 4-5) for the math-heavy material that rewards early, repeated practice. Move next to brokerage, agency, and disclosures (Ch. 6-8), the relationship core of daily practice.
Tackle contracts and federal law (Ch. 9-10) once the surrounding concepts are solid, because both lean on terms introduced earlier. Only then turn to the Pennsylvania chapters (Ch. 11-14): RELRA and licensing, Commission regulations, escrow and the Recovery Fund, and Pennsylvania-specific disclosures and contracts. Studying State content last lets you anchor each Commonwealth rule to the National principle it modifies, which improves recall under exam pressure.
Reserve the final week for mixed-portion practice exams under timed conditions. Alternating National and State questions trains the mental gear-shifting the real test demands and surfaces any blueprint area where your score still lags, so you can return to the mapped chapter and close the gap before exam day.