District of Columbia Real Estate Broker Exam — All Questions

Which of these people may perform acts that would otherwise require a real estate license in the District without holding one?

• a.A salesperson whose license lapsed while a listing was still active
• b.An unlicensed assistant who negotiates leases for a licensed broker
• c.An attorney at law acting in the ordinary practice of the profession✓
• d.A property manager collecting rents for several unrelated owners

D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.181(1), repeated at 17 DCMR § 2624.3(a), exempts "attorneys-at-law in the ordinary practice of their profession," alongside court-appointed receivers, executors, guardians, and trustees acting in that capacity. The exemption is narrow: 17 DCMR § 2624.2 forbids an exempt person from holding themselves out as a broker, salesperson, or property manager. Negotiating leases is a licensed activity, so an unlicensed assistant who does it is practicing without a license, and 17 DCMR § 2624.3(e) limits the clerical exemption to staff who perform none of the licensed activities. A lapsed license is no license, and an open listing does not extend it. Collecting rents for other owners for compensation is squarely within the broker and property manager scope of practice in § 47-2853.161(1) and § 47-2853.141.

Beyond meeting the requirements for a salesperson license, what must an applicant for a DC real estate broker license show?

• a.135 clock hours of approved coursework and two years of licensed activity✓
• b.60 clock hours of approved coursework and one year of licensed activity
• c.90 clock hours of approved coursework and three years of licensed activity
• d.180 clock hours of approved coursework and five years of licensed activity

17 DCMR § 2601.3 requires broker applicants to furnish evidence of coursework "of a minimum of 135 clock hours" covering nine named subject areas, among them Real Estate Law, Fair Housing Law, Agency Relationships, D.C. Real Estate Licensing Law and Regulations, and the Code of Ethics. On experience, D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.162(2) and 17 DCMR § 2601.7 require the applicant to have been licensed and actively engaged as a broker or salesperson "in the District or elsewhere the 2 years immediately preceding the date on which the application ... is filed," or to have equivalent experience the Commission accepts. The 60-hour figure is the District's salesperson pre-license requirement, not the broker one. The 90-, 180-hour, three-year, and five-year figures appear in neither the statute nor the rules.

In the District's licensing scheme, what is an "associate real estate broker"?

• a.A licensed broker employed by a firm who is not a partner, officer, or principal broker✓
• b.A property manager licensed to supervise one branch office of a firm
• c.A broker licensed in Maryland or Virginia working in the District
• d.A salesperson who has passed the broker examination but not yet applied

D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.182(d) defines the term as "any person licensed under this subchapter as a broker who is employed by a real estate broker, franchise firm, association, business, or corporation, but who is not a partner, an officer or a principal broker within a licensed legal entity." The person holds a full broker license; what distinguishes them is that they work under someone else's brokerage rather than running it. A salesperson who has merely passed the examination holds no broker license at all, and 17 DCMR § 2601.5 gives such a candidate six months to file before reexamination is required. A property manager holds a separate credential under § 47-2853.141. An out-of-jurisdiction broker practicing in the District needs a District license, obtained by reciprocity or endorsement under 17 DCMR § 2611 if eligible.

How much continuing education must a DC broker complete in order to renew the license?

• a.8 hours in each 2-year cycle, all of them general elective courses
• b.15 hours in each 2-year cycle, 9 mandated and 6 general elective✓
• c.12 hours in each 2-year cycle, 6 mandated and 6 general elective
• d.24 hours in each 2-year cycle, 12 mandated and 12 general elective

17 DCMR § 2605.3(a) requires "no fewer than fifteen (15) hours of acceptable continuing education credit during the two-(2-) year period preceding the date the license expires," and § 2605.3(b) splits that as nine hours of Commission-mandated courses and six hours of general electives. The credits count only if the program is Commission-approved under § 2607, and § 2605.2 puts the burden of checking that on the licensee. A first renewal after a license granted by examination is exempt under § 2605.1, which is why newly licensed brokers do not owe the hours in their first cycle. The 8-, 12-, and 24-hour splits are not the District's figures.

A DC broker lets the license expire and takes no action. After how long can the license no longer be reinstated at all?

• a.1 year after expiration; after that the applicant must qualify anew
• b.5 years after expiration; after that the applicant must qualify anew✓
• c.2 years after expiration; after that the applicant must qualify anew
• d.10 years after expiration; after that the applicant must qualify anew

17 DCMR § 2622.6 states that the Commission "shall not reinstate the license of a real estate broker, a real estate salesperson or property manager who fails to apply for reinstatement of a license within five (5) years after the license expires," and adds that anyone ineligible for reinstatement may become licensed only by meeting the requirements for initial licensure; D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.15 says the same thing at statute level. Inside that window there are two earlier steps: 17 DCMR § 2621.5 lets a holder renew within 60 days after expiration on payment of a late fee, and § 2621.6 treats a license not renewed in those 60 days as lapsed on the expiration date, pushing the holder into the reinstatement process. The 1-, 2-, and 10-year figures do not appear in the chapter.

A licensed DC broker wants to close her own firm and work for another brokerage as an associate real estate broker. What does the licensure statute require?

• a.She transfers her existing broker license to the new firm's principal broker
• b.She surrenders her broker license and applies for a salesperson license
• c.She waits until the next renewal cycle to change her licensed status
• d.She notifies the Board of the change in status by certified mail✓

D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.182(c) provides that "[a]ny broker who wishes to change his or her status to that of an associate real estate broker shall notify the Board of Real Estate by certified mail," and § 47-2853.182(b) lets the change be made for any unexpired portion of the licensure term on written request to the Mayor and payment of the required fees. Transferring the license to someone else is expressly forbidden: § 47-2853.182(a) says a license "shall not be transferred to another person." Nothing in the section asks a broker to drop down to a salesperson license; the associate broker in § 47-2853.182(d) still holds a broker license. And the statute ties the change to a written request, not to the renewal calendar.