Delaware Real Estate Salesperson Exam — All Questions

Real estate salespersons in Delaware are licensed and regulated by:

• a.The Delaware Court of Chancery
• b.The Delaware Real Estate Commission, within the Division of Professional Regulation✓
• c.The Delaware Association of Realtors
• d.The Delaware State Housing Authority

The Delaware Real Estate Commission licenses and disciplines brokers, associate brokers, and salespersons under 24 Del. C. Chapter 29, operating within the Division of Professional Regulation. A trade association is a private membership group and has no licensing authority.

A Delaware salesperson may lawfully accept a commission for brokerage services:

• a.Directly from the buyer at closing
• b.From the Real Estate Guaranty Fund
• c.Only through the broker with whom the salesperson is licensed✓
• d.From any licensee in the transaction

A Delaware salesperson works under and is paid only by the broker who holds the salesperson's license. A salesperson may not accept a fee or commission directly from a buyer, seller, or another licensee. The employing broker supervises the salesperson and is responsible for escrow money.

The Delaware Real Estate Guaranty Fund exists primarily to:

• a.Insure the value of properties sold through licensed brokers
• b.Pay Commission staff salaries
• c.Provide down-payment assistance to buyers
• d.Reimburse a consumer for an actual loss from certain fraudulent acts of a licensee when a judgment cannot be collected✓

The Guaranty Fund may reimburse a member of the public who obtains a final judgment against a licensee for an actual loss from fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit and cannot otherwise collect, subject to statutory limits. When the fund pays, the licensee's license is suspended until the fund is repaid. It is not an insurance or assistance program.

A first conviction for engaging in the practice of providing real estate services in Delaware without a licence carries a fine of:

• a.Not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars
• b.Not less than five hundred nor more than five thousand dollars✓
• c.Not less than one thousand nor more than ten thousand dollars
• d.Not less than two thousand nor more than twenty thousand dollars

Unlicensed practice is a misdemeanor. On a first offence the fine is not less than $500 nor more than $5,000 for each offence; for a second or subsequent conviction it is not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 for each offence. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2924.

The monetary penalty the Delaware Real Estate Commission may impose on a licensee after a disciplinary hearing may not exceed:

• a.One thousand dollars for each violation
• b.Two thousand five hundred dollars for each violation
• c.Five thousand dollars for each violation✓
• d.Ten thousand dollars for each violation

Among the sanctions available are a letter of reprimand, probation, suspension, revocation, and a monetary penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each violation. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2914(a)(3).

When a Delaware broker's licence is revoked, the licences of the salespersons and associate brokers working under that broker are:

• a.Unaffected, because each individual licence stands entirely on its own
• b.Revoked along with the broker's licence
• c.Suspended for ninety days, after which they lapse
• d.Automatically suspended pending a change of employing broker✓

Revocation of a broker's licence automatically suspends every licence granted to an individual by virtue of employment by that broker, pending a change of employing broker and issuance of a new licence, which is issued without charge if granted in the same licensure period. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2917.

Recovery from the Delaware Real Estate Guaranty Fund is capped, in the aggregate, in connection with any one transaction or claim, at:

• a.Fifty thousand dollars✓
• b.Twenty-five thousand dollars
• c.One hundred thousand dollars
• d.Three hundred fifty thousand dollars

A person with a final judgment against a licensee for theft, forgery, fraud, misrepresentation or deceit may recover not more than $50,000 in the aggregate in connection with any one transaction or claim, regardless of the number of persons aggrieved or parcels involved. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2922(a).

A verified claim against the Delaware Real Estate Guaranty Fund must be filed with the Commission within:

• a.Thirty days after the final judgment is obtained
• b.Sixty days after the final judgment is obtained✓
• c.Six months after the final judgment is obtained
• d.One year after the final judgment is obtained

The aggrieved person must file the verified claim within 60 days after the final judgment has been obtained, with a copy of the pleadings, a certified copy of the judgment, and documentation of collection efforts. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2922(b).

The Delaware Real Estate Guaranty Fund must be maintained above a set level, and a pro rata assessment is levied on licensees if the balance falls below:

• a.Fifty thousand dollars
• b.One hundred thousand dollars
• c.One hundred fifty thousand dollars
• d.Two hundred fifty thousand dollars✓

The Commission must maintain the Fund in excess of $350,000; if the balance falls below $250,000 the Commission shall, at the next renewal date, assess each licensee a pro rata fee sufficient to return the Fund to the $250,000 level. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2922(i), (j).

After the Delaware Guaranty Fund pays a claim on a licensee's account, the licensee remains ineligible for a new licence until:

• a.The Commission's suspension order expires by its terms
• b.Two years have run from the date of the payment
• c.The amount paid is repaid in full with interest at the legal rate✓
• d.A court of competent jurisdiction sets aside the underlying judgment

The licence may be suspended or revoked, and in the Commission's discretion the licensee is ineligible for a new licence until the amount paid from the Fund is repaid in full plus interest at the legal rate. A discharge in bankruptcy does not relieve the licensee of this. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2922(d).

The on-site supervisor designated for a Delaware branch office must be a licensee with a minimum of:

• a.Five years of continuous real estate services experience✓
• b.Two years of continuous real estate services experience
• c.Three years of experience as a licensed associate broker
• d.Ten years of experience in the brokerage business

A broker with more than one office must obtain an additional broker's licence and office permit for each branch, and the branch application must state the address and the designated on-site supervisor, who must be a licensee with a minimum of 5 years of continuous real estate services experience. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2919(d).

Misrepresenting the availability or content of the seller's disclosure of real property condition report is, under Delaware law:

• a.A criminal offence prosecuted by the Attorney General
• b.A ground for discipline by the Real Estate Commission✓
• c.A matter for the Division of Revenue, not the Commission
• d.Actionable only by the buyer in a civil suit for damages

The grounds for discipline expressly include misrepresenting the availability of or the content of any statutorily required form such as the seller's disclosure of real property condition report or the radon disclosure under Chapter 25 of Title 6. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2912(a)(11).

A Delaware county or municipality may not charge a real estate licensee a local business licence fee for renting real estate for owners or tenants unless:

• a.The licensee maintains a physical office in that jurisdiction
• b.The licensee also lists property for sale in that jurisdiction
• c.The rental is of a residential property containing four or more units
• d.The property is in a city with a population over fifty thousand✓

Local business licensing requirements, fees and taxes may not be imposed for listing real estate, representing buyers, or renting real estate for owners or tenants, except that the rental exemption does not apply where the property is in a city with a population over 50,000. Cite: 24 Del. C. Sec. 2939(a)(3).