Environmental Issues and Hazardous Materials
Area VI is a full 10% and four items, and none of it is national content: lead, private sewage disposal, smoke and carbon monoxide detection, and wetlands.
Lead
M.G.L. c.111 s.197(a) is triggered by occupancy rather than by the age of the building: whenever a child under six years of age resides in premises where paint, plaster, or other accessible structural material contains dangerous levels of lead, the owner must abate or contain it. On a change of ownership after which a child under six will become or continue to be a resident, the new owner has ninety days. Section 197A requires every seller of premises to give the prospective purchaser the department's standard notification form before the purchase and sale agreement is signed, and requires the seller and any real estate agent involved to disclose what they know about dangerous levels of lead.
Title 5 and private sewage disposal
M.G.L. c.21A s.13 gives the Department of Environmental Protection the State Environmental Code, of which Title 5 is the sewage disposal part, and violations carry penalties of up to $25,000 a day. The statute itself names the transfers for which no inspection may be required: between current spouses, between parents and their children, between full siblings, and where the grantor conveys into a trust at least one of whose beneficiaries is of the first degree of relationship to him.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detection
M.G.L. c.148 s.26F requires the seller to equip a residential building with approved smoke detectors on sale or transfer, and s.26F1/2 requires working approved carbon monoxide alarms in any residence with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking, with landlords responsible for making them operational at the start of a tenancy and maintaining them annually. On a sale or transfer, the head of the fire department inspects for compliance and enforces both requirements.
Wetlands and rivers
M.G.L. c.131 s.40, the Wetlands Protection Act, forbids removing, filling, dredging, or altering a bank, riverfront area, wetland, beach, dune, flat, marsh, meadow, or swamp bordering on waters without first filing a written notice of intent with the conservation commission, sending a copy to the Department of Environmental Protection by certified mail, and receiving and complying with an order of conditions once all appeal periods have run.
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State-specific details
State exam facts
- Exam vendor
- PSI
- Prelicensing education
- 40 additional broker education hours (beyond the 40-hour salesperson course)
- Passing score
- 70%
- Scored questions
- 120
Who regulates real estate brokers in Massachusetts?
The Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons, within the Division of Occupational Licensure, licenses brokers. The Board contracts with PSI to deliver the licensing exams.
What experience do I need before the Massachusetts broker exam?
Broker applicants generally must have worked as an affiliated salesperson under an active Massachusetts broker for at least three years (a minimum of about 25 hours per week) and complete an additional 40 hours of broker education. Confirm the current requirement with the Board.
How is the Massachusetts broker exam structured?
The Massachusetts broker exam has about 120 questions split into a general portion and a state portion, delivered by PSI, and a score of at least 70% is required to pass.
Sources: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/prepare-for-and-schedule-your-real-estate-license-exam, https://www.psiexams.com/test-takers/massachusetts-real-estate/
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