Broker Only
Area V is the ten scored items the salesperson never sees. The published subtopics run A to J, and this chapter follows them in order: escrow accounts, examination of records, eligibility for licensing, place of business and supervision, foreclosure consultants, manufactured homes and the DMV, the New Home Buyer Protection Act, the commercial broker's lien, conditional and installment sales agreements, and mortgage loan modification services.
Escrow accounts and examination of records
24 Del. C. Section 2923(a) makes every broker establish an escrow account in a federally insured bank with Delaware offices, opened in the brokerage organization's name and designated as an escrow account, with the broker as a signatory, used only for escrow deposits, earnest money, rental money and other client money — except the bank's minimum balance and money to cover bank fees. There is no dollar allowance for the broker's own money: the widely repeated "$100 of broker funds" rule traces to a 1999 proposed regulation that the Commission's later final order replaced, and the current text carries no figure. Deposits go in within 72 hours of the signing of the written agreement by all parties, excluding weekends and federal holidays. Disbursement follows the terms of the transaction unless the parties agree otherwise in writing or a court orders. Rule 6.3 requires a complete money record showing the broker's personal funds in escrow at all times, retained at least three years; Rule 6.2 bars accepting a photocopied, faxed or postdated check as earnest money; Rule 6.6 gives interest to the owner of the funds unless the agreement says otherwise. Section 2923(e) opens the books to Commission inspection or audit at the approved place of business during regular business hours.
Eligibility, place of business and supervision
A broker applicant carries the associate broker requirements — five continuous years actively licensed under Rule 3.1.1 and a list of at least thirty completed sale or lease transactions from those five years under Rule 3.2.4, with time share and property management transactions excluded — and then adds Rule 4.1.1's three years actively engaged as a licensed salesperson or associate broker immediately preceding application, an office permit application, an attestation of responsibility for day-to-day management, and evidence of escrow compliance. Section 2919 requires a Commission-approved office under the broker's direction, an office permit renewed biennially, an additional broker's license and permit for each branch, and a designated on-site supervisor with at least five years of continuous real estate services experience documented on the branch application. Rule 1.3.3 adds that the supervisor must be a Delaware licensee managing the branch full time; Rule 1.3.5 says employing one does not relieve the broker of anything. Rule 8.7.3 requires Commission approval and a separate entrance for an office in a private home.
Foreclosure consultants and mortgage loan modification services
Two consumer-protection chapters in Title 6 bracket distressed-property work, and their broker exemptions are not the same. Under the Mortgage Rescue Fraud Protection Act, 6 Del. C. chapter 24B, a foreclosure consultant may not charge or collect anything until every contracted service is fully performed (Section 2415B(a)(1)), may not acquire an interest in the residence in default, must give the homeowner the contract 24 hours before signing with a detachable NOTICE OF CANCELLATION, and the homeowner may cancel at any time without penalty. A separate three-business-day right to rescind attaches to a foreclosure reconveyance of the deed under Section 2423B(b)(5). Section 2403B(8) exempts a licensed broker or salesperson while engaging in any activity for which the person is licensed. The Mortgage Loan Modification Services Act, chapter 24C, requires registration with the Attorney General, a $1,000 fee and a $100,000 surety bond, and bars any fee before the homeowner has signed a modification agreement with the lender. Its broker exemption in Section 2403C(4) is much narrower: the dwelling must be listed for sale by the broker or brokerage AND no additional fee may be charged for the negotiation.
Manufactured homes, new homes and the commercial broker's lien
21 Del. C. Section 2301(d) stops the Division of Motor Vehicles transferring the title of a mobile home until all county taxes levied where it sits are paid in full, and Section 2302(e) makes a licensed Delaware dealer submit the title application immediately on sale; 25 Del. C. Section 7013(c)(1)a.2 requires three weeks' written notice to the community owner before selling a home sited in a community. The New Home Buyer Protection Act, 6 Del. C. Section 3602, requires the seller to set aside from the proceeds the full contractual cost of completing any unfinished work found at or before final settlement, but only where that cost, singly or in aggregate, reaches one percent of the contract price; the money goes to the buyer if the work is not done within 90 days. The Commercial Real Estate Broker's Lien Act, 25 Del. C. chapter 26, covers commercial real estate only, excludes associate brokers and salespersons, requires the affidavit and notice of lien to be recorded within 90 days of the failure to pay, gives the notice a one-year life, subordinates it to mortgages and mechanics' liens, and — the point most study guides miss — allows it to be filed only by a Delaware attorney in good standing.
Conditional and installment sales agreements
Delaware has no Land Installment Contract Act; the rules live in 25 Del. C. Section 314. Every seller-financed contract must carry a complete amortization schedule, signed by both parties, showing principal and interest per payment and the remaining balance, and must state the principal amount of seller financing exclusive of interest. For consumer purpose property — one-to-four family residential used primarily for personal, family or household purposes — the contract may not remain executory beyond six months, renewable once in writing for six more. A true contract for deed is still available under Section 314(d), which lets the parties defer settlement until the last installment provided the agreement states a periodic rental value no greater than 75 percent of the installment, a 120-day right to redeem after written notice of default, automatic conversion to a landlord-tenant agreement retroactive to the default, and treatment of the down payment as a security deposit subject to the Section 5514 cap. Non-compliance makes the contract voidable, and the Justice of the Peace Court shares jurisdiction with Chancery.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- Exam vendor
- Pearson VUE
- Passing score
- Scaled score of 70
- Scored questions
- 130
Who regulates real estate brokers in Delaware?
The Delaware Real Estate Commission, within the Division of Professional Regulation, licenses brokers and salespersons under 24 Del. C. Chapter 29. The Commission's exams are delivered by Pearson VUE (candidate handbook #090800).
What experience do I need before the Delaware broker exam?
A broker applicant must meet the associate broker requirements — actively licensed for five continuous years and a list of at least 30 completed sale or lease transactions from those five years — and, under Commission Rule 4.1.1, must also have been actively engaged in real estate services as a licensed salesperson or associate broker for the three years immediately preceding application. A broker applicant also applies for a real estate office permit.
How is the Delaware broker exam structured?
The Delaware broker exam has 130 scored questions (80 national/general + 50 Delaware state law) plus 10 unscored pretest items, is delivered by Pearson VUE in a four-hour appointment, and requires a scaled score of 70 to pass. The 50 state items are split 4 / 3 / 17 / 16 / 10 across the handbook's five state areas.
Sources: https://dpr.delaware.gov/boards/realestate/, https://www.pearsonvue.com/content/dam/VUE/vue/en/documents/publications/090800.pdf
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