Montana Real Estate Broker Exam — All Questions

A Montana broker holding a client's earnest money must:

• a.Deposit it in the broker's personal account
• b.Apply it toward the firm's advertising costs
• c.Keep it in cash in the office safe
• d.Hold it in a trust account separate from the broker's own funds✓

Client money such as earnest money must be held in a trust account kept separate from the broker's own funds. Commingling or converting trust money violates Montana license law. Using the funds for advertising or holding them as personal cash would be improper handling of trust money.

In Montana, a supervising broker who fails to oversee an affiliated salesperson's compliance with agency and trust-account rules may be:

• a.Held harmless because the salesperson acted
• b.Subject to discipline for failure to supervise✓
• c.Required only to attend a seminar
• d.Automatically upgraded to property manager

A Montana supervising broker is accountable for the licensed activity of affiliated salespersons and the firm's compliance with Board rules. Failing to supervise is an independent basis for discipline, regardless of whether the salesperson performed the underlying act. The broker cannot escape responsibility by pointing only to the salesperson.

Why must a Montana broker keep accurate trust-account records available for Board inspection?

• a.To calculate the broker's income tax
• b.To satisfy the county recorder
• c.To support proper reconciliation and show client money was not commingled✓
• d.To qualify for a property manager license

Accurate trust-account records support reconciliation and demonstrate that client money has been kept separate and not commingled with the broker's funds. The Board may inspect these records. Recordkeeping is a compliance and consumer-protection requirement, not a tax, recording, or property-manager-qualification matter.