Wisconsin Real Estate Broker Exam — All Questions

Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.02 (2) defines an "exclusive agency listing" as a listing containing all the elements of an exclusive right to sell listing, except that the owner retains the right to:

• a.cancel the listing at any time without giving any notice
• b.list the property with any number of other brokerage firms
• c.set a net price and keep any excess over that net amount
• d.sell the property personally without owing a commission✓

Subsection (2) defines the exclusive agency listing as one with all the elements of an exclusive right to sell listing "except that the owner retains the right to sell the property himself or herself without owing the listing broker a commission." A listing given to any number of firms, with the first to secure a buyer earning the commission, is an open listing under § REEB 16.02 (4). A net arrangement is not a listing type at all; it is prohibited by § REEB 24.10.

Under Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.03 (1) (a), which forms does the board approve for use by brokers in addition to the forms the board itself prepares and approves?

• a.State bar of Wisconsin forms for deeds, mortgages and land contracts✓
• b.Forms published by any national or state real estate trade association
• c.Forms drafted by a title insurance company doing business here
• d.Forms sold by a commercial legal-forms publisher in this state

Paragraph (1) (a) approves "[f]orms prepared and approved by the state bar of Wisconsin for deeds, mortgages, mortgage notes, truth-in-lending disclosures, land contracts, release of mortgage, satisfaction of mortgage, assignment of mortgage, and assignment of land contract." The rest of § REEB 16.03 (1) approves specified uniform commercial code forms, out-of-state contractual forms customarily used where the property lies, forms prepared by governmental, quasi-governmental and tribal agencies for their own programs, and property management agreements prepared by the broker, an attorney or the landlord. Trade association, title company and commercial publisher forms are not on that list.

For a kind of transaction for which the board has approved no contractual form, Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.04 (2) lets a licensee use a form drafted by a party or an attorney if:

• a.the drafter's name is imprinted on the form before the licensee uses it✓
• b.the licensee attaches a written explanation of each material provision
• c.the board grants written permission for that particular transaction type
• d.both parties initial every page of the form at the time of the signing

Subsection (2) permits a licensee acting as agent or party to use contractual forms drafted by a party or an attorney "if the name of the drafter is imprinted on the form before use by a licensee," and adds that for this purpose a listing firm is a party to the listing contract transaction. Subsection (1) states the default: except as provided in subs. (2) and (3), a licensee shall use approved forms. Subsection (3) allows the licensee to negotiate an agreement and let the parties or an attorney draft the contract embodying the negotiated terms.

Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.05 permits a Wisconsin licensee to do which of the following?

• a.Advise a party on the legal effect of a specific contract clause
• b.State an opinion about the condition of the title to the property
• c.Explain the legal rights the parties will have after the closing
• d.Give a general explanation of the provisions in an approved form✓

Subsection (1) bars a licensee from providing "advice or opinions concerning the legal rights or obligations of parties to a transaction, the legal effect of a specific contract or conveyance, or the state of title to real estate," and subsection (2) then permits "a general explanation of the provisions in an approved form to the parties to a transaction at the time of completing the form or when delivering an approved form for the seller's or buyer's acceptance." Wisconsin Statute § 452.40 (2) states the identical rule. The WB-11 prints the boundary in capitals: the Firm and its agents may give a general explanation of the Offer's provisions but are prohibited by law from giving advice or opinions on legal rights or how title should be taken.

Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.05 (4) prohibits a licensee from doing what in connection with an approved form?

• a.Attaching an attorney-drafted addendum to the form
• b.Making a separate charge for completing the form✓
• c.Crossing out a provision the parties do not want
• d.Filling in blanks at the instruction of the parties

Subsection (4) reads: "A licensee may not make a separate charge for completing an approved form in connection with a transaction." The other three are permitted: § REEB 16.06 (4) and (5) allow pre-prepared addenda on stated conditions, § REEB 16.06 (3) allows crossing out provisions to reflect the parties' agreement provided the deleted text remains legible, and "use a form" is defined in § REEB 16.02 (5) as filling in the blanks or modifying printed provisions at a party's instruction. Section REEB 16.05 (3) also limits form use to transactions where the licensee acts as a licensee or as a principal.

Under Wis. Admin. Code § REEB 16.06, which of the following is a licensee required to do?

• a.Retype an approved form to remove unused optional terms
• b.Erase provisions the parties strike so they are unreadable
• c.Add extra blank lines when the parties need more room
• d.Use the latest approved version of a board-approved form✓

Subsection (7) states flatly that "[a] licensee shall use the latest approved version of a board-approved form." The other three are prohibited. Paragraph (1) (b) forbids reproducing a form so that optional provisions are omitted and blank lines filled in without any indication of where they occur on the board-approved form; subsection (3) permits crossing out provisions only if the deleted provisions remain legible; and paragraph (1) (d) forbids adding blank lines or lines containing textual content, directing the licensee instead to fill in the blank lines provided or to use an addendum under subs. (4) and (5).