Virginia Real Estate Broker Exam — All Questions

Before any excavation or demolition in Virginia, Section 56-265.17 requires the excavator to do what?

• a.Obtain a permit from the local zoning administrator
• b.Notify each utility operator by certified mail
• c.Submit a locate request to the notification center✓
• d.Mark the buried lines using the operators' colors

Subsection A of Section 56-265.17 says "no person shall make or begin any excavation or demolition without first submitting a locate request to the notification center," and adds that "submission of a locate request shall be deemed to be notice to each operator who is a member of the notification center." That deeming provision is why contacting operators directly is neither required nor sufficient; the center distributes the notice and tells the excavator which utilities were notified. Zoning permits govern what may be built and where, and have nothing to do with protecting buried lines. Marking the utility lines is the operator's job, not the excavator's, and subsection B lets work begin only after the positive response system shows every operator has marked its lines or reported none present; the only marking subsection E asks of the excavator is white paint showing the route of the proposed work, and only where a specific location cannot be given. Under the same subsection A, an excavator who willfully fails to submit a locate request owes treble repair costs, with punitive damages capped at $10,000 in any single cause of action.

A Virginia unit owners' association wants to charge fees when an owner leases a condominium unit. What does Section 55.1-1973 permit?

• a.A monthly fee set by the association's board
• b.Any fee authorized by a majority of unit owners
• c.A refundable deposit collected from the tenant
• d.Fees capped at $50 during the term of any lease✓

Subdivision A 2 of Section 55.1-1973 bars a unit owners' association from charging "a rental fee, application fee, or other processing fee of any kind in excess of $50 during the term of any lease," and subdivision A 3 separately bars any annual or monthly rental fee not expressly authorized in Section 55.1-1904, which disposes of the monthly-fee answer. Subdivision A 5 bars the association from charging "any deposit from the unit owner or the tenant of the unit owner," refundable or not. And a vote of the owners cannot enlarge these limits, because subsection A restricts the association "except as expressly authorized in this chapter or in the condominium instruments or as otherwise provided by law." Subsection B does let the association require the owner to supply the names and contact details of tenants and occupants, vehicle information, and the tenant's acknowledgment of the association's rules.

What is the maximum security deposit a Virginia landlord may demand under the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act?

• a.Two months' periodic rent✓
• b.One month's periodic rent
• c.Three months' periodic rent
• d.Any amount the lease states

Subsection A of Section 55.1-1226 provides that "no landlord may demand or receive a security deposit, however denominated, in an amount or value in excess of two months' periodic rent." One month is below the statutory ceiling, so a landlord charging it is complying rather than being limited to it, and three months exceeds what the section allows. Freedom of contract does not reach this term; the phrase "however denominated" is there to stop a landlord relabelling the excess as something other than a deposit. The same subsection requires the landlord to itemize the deposit and any deductions in a written notice to the tenant within 45 days after the later of the termination date or the date the tenant vacates. Subsection B adds that where the landlord or managing agent is a real estate licensee, complying with that subsection is deemed compliance with Section 54.1-2108 and the Real Estate Board's escrow regulations.

A company offers management services to condominium and homeowner associations in Virginia. What does the Common Interest Communities Act require?

• a.A common interest community manager license from its Board✓
• b.Registration of each association it manages with DPOR
• c.A property management endorsement on a salesperson license
• d.A real estate broker license from the Real Estate Board

Subsection A of Section 54.1-2346 provides that, unless exempted by Section 54.1-2347, "any person, partnership, corporation, or other entity offering management services to a common interest community... shall hold a valid license issued in accordance with the provisions of this article prior to engaging in such management services," issued by the Common Interest Community Board. A real estate broker license comes from a different board under a different chapter and does not authorize this activity. Association registration is a separate obligation of the associations themselves and does not license the manager. Virginia issues no property management endorsement on a salesperson license. Subsection C conditions issuance and renewal on employees with principal or supervisory responsibility holding a Board certificate within two years of employment or working under a certificated employee's direct supervision, and subsection D requires a fidelity bond or employee dishonesty policy of at least $10,000 and up to $2 million.

Under the Virginia Property Owners' Association Act, when may an association's board impose a late fee on an unpaid assessment?

• a.After 60 days, capped by the penalty in Section 58.1-3915✓
• b.After 30 days, at a rate the board sets by resolution
• c.Immediately, on the day after the assessment falls due
• d.After 90 days, and only once the lien has been recorded

Section 55.1-1824 says that except to the extent the declaration or rules provide otherwise, "the board may impose a late fee that does not exceed the penalty provided in Section 58.1-3915 for any assessment or installment that is not paid within 60 days of the due date." Both the waiting period and the ceiling matter: charging on the first day late, or at 30 days at a rate the board picks for itself, ignores the 60-day floor and the statutory cap on the amount. Ninety days is longer than the section requires, and recording an assessment lien under Section 55.1-1833 is a separate collection step that no late fee waits on. The opening words also matter in practice, because a declaration may set different terms, which is one reason the resale certificate under Section 55.1-2310 must include the governing documents and a statement of assessments and other fees due.