Iowa Real Estate Salesperson Exam — All Questions

The principle of contribution states that the value of a component or improvement is measured by:

• a.The raw number of square feet of floor area or land area that the improvement happens to occupy
• b.The owner's personal emotional attachment to and sentimental feelings about that improvement
• c.Its original construction or installation cost in every case, dollar for dollar, with no exception
• d.How much it adds to the overall value of the property, not its cost✓

Under contribution, an improvement is worth the amount it adds to the whole property's market value, which may be more or less than its cost. This principle explains why some renovations do not fully return their expense, a key point in over-improvement analysis.

Under Internal Revenue Code Section 121, a qualifying homeowner may generally EXCLUDE from taxable capital gain:

• a.Up to $250,000 of gain if single, or $500,000 if married filing jointly✓
• b.Up to a full one million dollars of gain on any property at all, at any time and any frequency
• c.All gain on any and every investment or rental property the taxpayer happens to own and sell
• d.Absolutely nothing, because gain on the sale of a home is always fully and entirely taxable

Section 121 lets homeowners who owned and used the home as their principal residence for at least two of the prior five years exclude up to $250,000 of gain (single) or $500,000 (married filing jointly). It applies to a primary residence, not to investment property.

Depreciation recapture on the sale of investment real estate means that:

• a.All of the depreciation deductions previously claimed are simply refunded to the investor in cash
• b.The investor is legally required to physically restore and rebuild the depreciated building itself
• c.Gain from prior depreciation may be taxed, often at a special rate✓
• d.No income tax is ever owed at all on the sale of a property that has previously been depreciated

When depreciated property is sold at a gain, the portion of gain due to depreciation deductions is 'recaptured' and taxed under special rules, reflecting the earlier tax benefit. It is a tax concept, not a requirement to rebuild, and it increases, not eliminates, tax on sale.

Which appraisal approach is generally MOST reliable for a special-purpose property, such as a church or public school, that rarely sells and earns no market income?

• a.The sales comparison approach, which depends on recent sales of similar comparable properties
• b.The income approach, which converts a property's market rental income into an indicated value
• c.The gross rent multiplier method, which relies on typical market rents that these lack entirely
• d.The cost approach✓

Special-purpose properties have few or no comparable sales and generate no market rent, so the cost approach (replacement cost new, less depreciation, plus land) is typically most reliable. Sales comparison lacks comparables and the income/GRM methods need market income these properties do not produce.

The four characteristics an item must have to possess value in the market, often remembered as DUST, are:

• a.Debt, Utility, Supply, and Taxes, a mix of unrelated financing and cost terms rather than value
• b.Demand, Utility, Scarcity, and Transferability✓
• c.Depreciation, Use, Sale, and Title, which describe stages of ownership rather than value itself
• d.Demand, Ownership, Scarcity, and Time, which swaps in two terms that are not part of the concept

For something to have market value it must have Demand (buyers who want it), Utility (usefulness), Scarcity (limited supply), and Transferability (the ability to convey it). The DUST acronym captures these four essentials of value.

Which body issues and regulates real estate salesperson and broker licenses in Iowa?

• a.The Iowa Association of Realtors
• b.The Iowa Department of Revenue
• c.The Iowa Real Estate Commission✓
• d.The county recorder where the licensee lives

Real estate licensing in Iowa is administered by the Iowa Real Estate Commission under Iowa Code Chapter 543B. The Commission issues, renews, and disciplines licenses and adopts the administrative rules that govern practice. A trade association such as the Iowa Association of Realtors is a private membership group with no licensing authority.

In Iowa, a licensed salesperson may lawfully perform real estate brokerage activity only when the salesperson is:

• a.Employed by and acting for a licensed Iowa broker✓
• b.Approved by the Commission for each individual sale
• c.A member of a local Realtor board
• d.Operating independently under the salesperson's own license

Under Iowa Code Chapter 543B, a salesperson's license is valid only while the salesperson is associated with and acting on behalf of a licensed broker. The broker supervises the salesperson and is responsible for trust funds. A salesperson may not accept compensation directly from a client; commissions are paid through the employing broker.

The Iowa Real Estate Commission may discipline a licensee for which of the following?

• a.Referring a client to a licensed home inspector
• b.Commingling client trust funds with the broker's personal or business funds✓
• c.Advertising a listed property with the seller's consent
• d.Belonging to more than one professional association

Commingling or converting client trust money is a serious violation of Iowa license law and a common basis for discipline, along with fraud, misrepresentation, and dishonest dealing. The Commission may reprimand, fine, suspend, or revoke a license after due process. Lawful advertising with consent and ordinary referrals are not violations.

Under Iowa's brokerage relationship rules, when must a licensee disclose the party for whom the licensee is acting?

• a.Only after a purchase agreement is signed
• b.Within 30 days after closing
• c.In writing before or at the time the parties enter a binding agreement, and consistent with the licensee's duty to disclose whom the licensee represents✓
• d.Only if the buyer asks who the agent represents

Iowa requires a licensee to disclose in writing the brokerage relationship, including whom the licensee represents, so a consumer is not misled about representation before committing to the transaction. Early written disclosure lets a buyer or seller understand whether the licensee is a client's agent before sharing negotiating information.

An Iowa broker wishes to represent both the seller and the buyer in the same transaction. Under Iowa law this dual agency is permitted only if:

• a.The broker refunds part of the commission
• b.The two parties live in different counties
• c.The transaction price is below a statutory limit
• d.Both parties give written consent after being informed of the dual agency✓

Iowa allows a broker to act as a disclosed dual agent representing both seller and buyer only with the written, informed consent of both parties. Because a dual agent cannot fully advocate for either side, the licensee must not reveal one party's confidential information, such as the most a buyer will pay, to the other.

When an Iowa salesperson receives an earnest-money deposit from a buyer, the funds must be:

• a.Sent directly to the Iowa Real Estate Commission
• b.Deposited in the salesperson's personal account until closing
• c.Kept as cash by the salesperson until the seller accepts
• d.Delivered promptly to the broker to be held in the broker's trust account✓

Earnest money and other client funds must be handled through the employing broker's trust (escrow) account. A salesperson who receives such funds must deliver them promptly to the broker, who must keep trust money separate from business and personal accounts. Mishandling trust funds is a serious Iowa license-law violation.

In a typical Iowa residential sale, which document must the seller provide to disclose environmental information about the property at the time of transfer?

• a.A mechanic's lien waiver
• b.A federal flood certificate
• c.A Groundwater Hazard Statement✓
• d.A homeowners association resale packet

Iowa law requires a Groundwater Hazard Statement to be submitted when many real estate transfers are recorded, disclosing wells, solid waste, hazardous conditions, underground storage tanks, and private sewage information on the property. This state-specific disclosure is separate from the general residential property condition disclosure and helps ensure the transfer can be recorded properly.

Which best describes Iowa's education path for a newly licensed salesperson?

• a.Approved pre-license education and the licensing exam first, followed by required post-license education completed within the first year of licensure✓
• b.A four-year college degree in real estate
• c.A single continuing-education seminar with no exam
• d.Only on-the-job training with no coursework

Iowa requires a candidate to complete approved pre-license coursework and pass the licensing examination, then complete additional post-license education within the first 12 months of holding the license. New salespersons must also be associated with a licensed broker. After licensure, ongoing continuing education is required to renew.

To be eligible to sit for the Iowa real estate salesperson licensing examination, an applicant must complete how many hours of real estate principles and practices, and within what window?

• a.30 hours, completed within 24 months of the exam
• b.60 hours, completed within the 12 months before the exam✓
• c.90 hours of classroom instruction within the past 12 months
• d.60 hours, completed any time before the exam

Iowa requires 60 live-instruction or online-learning hours of real estate principles and practices, completed during the 12 months prior to taking the examination; the prelicense education expires after 12 months. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.1(7) (ARC 7766C, effective 5/22/2024).

An Iowa real estate salesperson license issued in June is valid until:

• a.June 30 of the third year, exactly three years later
• b.December 31 of the year following the year of issue
• c.the last day of its 36th month
• d.December 31 of the third year of the license term✓

A salesperson license is issued for a three-year term, counting the remaining portion of the year issued as a full year, and expires on December 31 of the third year. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.3(2).

Continuing education required of an Iowa salesperson renewing on active status is:

• a.36 hours total: 8 law update, 4 ethics, 24 electives✓
• b.24 hours: 4 law update, 4 ethics, 16 electives
• c.36 hours: 4 law update and 8 ethics hours
• d.30 hours: 8 law update, 4 ethics, 18 electives

Each salesperson must complete a minimum of 36 approved hours over the three-year renewal cycle, of which 8 must be Law Update and 4 must be Ethics. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.4(2) (ARC 9246C, effective 6/18/2025).

An Iowa salesperson completes 50 continuing education hours in a cycle that requires 36. What may be carried into the next renewal period?

• a.All 14 surplus hours, in any subject the licensee chose to take
• b.Up to 18 hours, which may include the mandatory law update course
• c.Up to 18 elective hours; none toward law update or ethics✓
• d.Nothing at all; surplus hours expire at the end of every cycle

Licensees may apply up to 50 percent of the required hours — a maximum of 18 — to the following renewal period, but no hours may be carried over toward the mandatory eight-hour law update course or the four-hour ethics course. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.4(1).

An Iowa salesperson's renewal application arrives January 12, after the December 31 expiration. The commission requires:

• a.the regular renewal fee, and nothing more
• b.the regular renewal fee plus a $25 late penalty✓
• c.a $100 reinstatement fee in addition to the renewal fee
• d.retaking the licensing examination

Iowa allows renewal within a 30-day grace period after expiration; an application received after midnight December 31 but before midnight January 30 must be accompanied by a $25 penalty. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.5(2)“b”; Iowa Code § 543B.28.

An Iowa salesperson license expired and was not renewed by January 30. The former licensee may reinstate it:

• a.within three years of expiration, paying $25 per month✓
• b.only by reapplying as a brand-new applicant, at any time
• c.within one year of expiration, with no additional fee
• d.at any time, once the missing continuing education is done

Reinstatement is available within three years of expiration on a complete application with the regular renewal fee plus a reinstatement fee of $25 for each partial or full month following expiration. The licensee may not practice between expiration and reinstatement. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.6.

A salesperson who does not reinstate an expired Iowa license by December 31 of the third year after expiration is:

• a.placed on inactive status until fees are paid
• b.granted an automatic two-year extension
• c.allowed to reinstate after a law update course
• d.treated as never having been licensed and must start over✓

Such a former salesperson is treated as if never licensed in Iowa and must start over in the licensing process. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.6(3).

Iowa rejects and returns a salesperson license application if the applicant's FBI criminal history check was not completed within how many days before the application is received?

• a.120 calendar days
• b.180 calendar days
• c.210 calendar days✓
• d.365 calendar days

An applicant for an initial license is subject to a national criminal history check; unless it was completed within the 210 calendar days before the commission receives the application, the commission must reject and return the application. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.15(9); Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2004.3.

An Iowa license applicant was convicted of embezzlement. The commission will not consider the application until how long after the sentence is completed?

• a.Five years✓
• b.Six months
• c.Four years
• d.Nine years

Iowa imposes a five-year wait for a felony or an offense involving forgery, embezzlement, obtaining money under false pretenses, theft, arson, extortion, conspiracy to defraud, or another criminal breach of fiduciary duty; other offenses involving moral turpitude carry a one-year wait, after which the application may still be denied on the merits. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.15(3).

Iowa's mandatory errors and omissions coverage for an active real estate licensee must carry a per-claim limit of at least:

• a.$50,000, with defense costs inside the limit
• b.$100,000, with defense costs paid in addition✓
• c.$300,000, with defense costs paid in addition to damages
• d.$1 million, with defense costs inside the limit

The commission's minimum terms require a per-claim limit of not less than $100,000 and an annual aggregate of not less than $100,000, applied per licensee per claim, with defense costs payable in addition to damages. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.47; Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2019.2(4).

Iowa, unlike many states, maintains no real estate recovery fund. Consumers harmed by a licensee are instead backed by:

• a.a bond posted by every broker with the county recorder
• b.a surcharge on transfer tax held in a state claims account
• c.mandatory errors and omissions insurance for active licensees✓
• d.a guaranty pool funded by multiple listing service dues

Iowa Code chapter 543B creates no recovery fund. Section 543B.47 instead directs the commission to require errors and omissions insurance of all licensees except those holding inactive licenses, and failure to carry it is grounds for denial, suspension or revocation. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.47.

The Iowa Real Estate Commission is composed of:

• a.seven members: five licensed brokers and two members of the general public
• b.nine members: six licensees, two public members and a district judge
• c.five members: three brokers, one appraiser and one member of the public
• d.five members: four licensed under chapter 543B and one public member✓

The commission sits within the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing and consists of four members licensed under chapter 543B plus one member who is not licensed and represents the general public; at least one licensed member must be a licensed salesperson, and no more than one member may come from any one county. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.8(1)-(2).

Iowa Real Estate Commission members are appointed by the governor for terms of:

• a.two years, with unlimited reappointment
• b.three years, capped at three terms or nine years✓
• c.four years, capped at two consecutive terms
• d.five years, renewable once with senate confirmation

Appointments are for three-year terms subject to senate confirmation, and a member may serve no more than three terms or nine years, whichever is less. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.8(3).

The maximum civil penalty the Iowa Real Estate Commission may impose on a licensee, per violation, is:

• a.$2,500✓
• b.$1,000
• c.$5,000
• d.$7,500

Notwithstanding Iowa Code § 272C.3, licensee discipline may include a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars per violation. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.48.

An Iowa licensee is convicted of a felony. Iowa law requires the licensee to notify the commission within:

• a.30 days, after which the commission opens an investigation
• b.60 days, or at the next license renewal, whichever is sooner
• c.90 days, unless the conviction is reported by the court first
• d.10 days, and the license is immediately suspended pending hearing✓

A licensee must notify the commission of a conviction described in § 543B.15(3)“a” within ten days. Notification of a felony conviction results in immediate suspension pending a hearing, which must be held within thirty days of the notification. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.29(1)“f”(1).

An Iowa seller says, “Get me $300,000 and keep anything above that.” The licensee should:

• a.accept if the excess is disclosed in writing
• b.refuse; a net listing is barred in Iowa✓
• c.accept if the seller signs a waiver at closing
• d.accept, but only for commercial property listings

A net listing specifies a net sale price to the owner with the excess over that price going to the broker as compensation. Taking a net listing is unprofessional conduct in Iowa. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2011.1(5); Iowa Code §§ 543B.29(3), 543B.34(8).

An Iowa licensee prepares a second, higher contract to show the lender so the buyer can borrow more. Under Iowa Code § 543B.45 this is:

• a.permitted once the lender is told
• b.a recordkeeping error, not a disciplinary matter
• c.a fraudulent practice under Iowa law✓
• d.allowed if both parties sign

A licensee may not knowingly make, issue, deliver, receive or permit the use of two or more contracts on the same parcel where one is concealed from the lender or loan guarantor to enlarge the loan or qualify the buyer; violation is a fraudulent practice. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.45.

Who may lawfully engage in residential real estate wholesaling in Iowa?

• a.Only a licensed broker, or a person a broker represents✓
• b.Anyone at all, since an equitable interest is not real estate
• c.Only a person who first holds recorded legal title to it
• d.Only an attorney admitted to practice law in Iowa

A person must be licensed as a real estate broker, or be represented by a licensed broker, to engage in wholesaling — marketing and selling an equitable interest held under an assignable contract on property of one to four dwelling units. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.6A(2) (2024 Iowa Acts ch. 1040, § 1); Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2022.1.

An Iowa residential wholesaler fails to give the written disclosures required before contracting. The seller or buyer may:

• a.recover actual damages only after the sale has closed
• b.require the wholesaler to take legal title within 30 days
• c.ask the county recorder to cancel the recorded contract
• d.cancel before closing and keep the wholesaler's earnest money✓

If a wholesaler fails to make the required written disclosures, the seller or buyer may cancel the contract at any time prior to closing without penalty and may retain any earnest money the wholesaler paid, notwithstanding contrary contract terms. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.6A(3)“c”; Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2022.3.

Where must an Iowa salesperson's license be kept?

• a.On display in the salesperson's own home office at all times
• b.In the salesperson's possession while showing property
• c.In the custody and control of the employing broker✓
• d.On file with the recorder in the county of the broker

The license of a real estate salesperson is delivered or mailed to the employing real estate broker and is kept in the custody and control of that broker. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.24.

An Iowa broker terminates a salesperson's association. Under Iowa Code § 543B.33 the salesperson may keep working:

• a.until the commission receives a copy of the license✓
• b.for 30 days while a transfer is pending
• c.until the current license term ends
• d.as long as the pending transactions were signed earlier

The designated broker must immediately deliver, mail or electronically submit to the commission a copy of the salesperson's license endorsed with the termination date, and it is unlawful for the salesperson to act under that license from the date the commission receives the copy. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.33.

Iowa's agency disclosure rule requires a licensee to make the disclosure verbally:

• a.at the first showing of any property that the broker has listed
• b.before providing specific assistance to a client or customer✓
• c.at closing, when the settlement statements are finally delivered
• d.within three days after a purchase agreement is signed

Verbal disclosure of which party the licensee represents must be made before the licensee provides specific assistance; a written disclosure, acknowledged by separate signatures, must follow before any offer is made or accepted. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2012.2(2)-(3); Iowa Code § 543B.57(2).

Under Iowa Code § 543B.57, which of these IS “specific assistance” that triggers agency disclosure?

• a.Hosting an open house and greeting visitors at the door
• b.Answering a factual question about an advertised listing
• c.Discussing general price ranges and house styles
• d.Accepting confidential information about a buyer's finances✓

“Specific assistance” means eliciting or accepting confidential information about a party's real estate needs, motivation or financial qualifications, or information involving a proposed or preliminary offer on specific real estate. It expressly excludes an open house showing, preliminary conversations about price range, location and property styles, and answering general factual questions about advertised properties. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.57(2)“c”.

Every licensed Iowa brokerage, including a sole-proprietor single broker, must maintain:

• a.a resident manager licensed as a broker in two or more other states
• b.a signed subagency agreement filed with the local listing service
• c.a written company policy describing its brokerage relationships✓
• d.a separate trust account for every client that the brokerage serves

Every licensed sole proprietor, firm, partnership, limited liability company, association or corporation must have a written company policy identifying and describing the types of brokerage relationships it offers, whatever those types may be. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2012.1.

An Iowa disclosed dual agency consent agreement must, among other things, tell the clients that:

• a.the commission approved the exact wording used
• b.they are not obligated to consent to dual agency✓
• c.either client may cancel the sale at any time
• d.the broker's compensation is doubled in such a deal

The consent agreement must describe the representation, state the licensee's duties under Iowa Code § 543B.56(1) and (2), warn that representing more than one party may present a conflict of interest, and inform the clients that they are not obligated to consent to dual agency. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2012.5(2)“e”; Iowa Code § 543B.58(1).

An Iowa designated broker appoints one affiliated licensee to the seller and another to the buyer in the same sale. The designated broker is:

• a.not a dual agent solely because of the appointments✓
• b.a disclosed dual agent, solely because of the appointments
• c.barred from the transaction until one client withdraws
• d.required to refer both clients elsewhere

A brokerage and its designated broker are not considered dual agents solely because of an appointment under Iowa Code § 543B.59; only an affiliated licensee who personally represents both sides is a disclosed dual agent. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.59(2); Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2012.7(3).

In Iowa, an offer of subagency made through a multiple listing service is:

• a.automatic for every MLS participant
• b.permitted if the listing broker pays
• c.barred; MLS membership creates no subagency✓
• d.required when the seller declines agency

A licensee is not a subagent of another licensee's client solely by reason of membership or affiliation in a multiple listing service or similar information source, and an offer of subagency shall not be made through such a service. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.63.

Iowa Code § 543B.56A requires a signed brokerage agreement before a broker shows a property to a buyer, EXCEPT for:

• a.a buyer who has already been prequalified by a lender
• b.a buyer who is a past client of the same brokerage
• c.a buyer paying all cash rather than financing the purchase
• d.a buyer attending an open house or an auction✓

The brokerage agreement requirement does not apply to customers attending an open house or auction, to a potential buyer of a property of more than four dwelling units, or to property not intended for human inhabitance. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.56A(3), as amended by 2025 Iowa Acts ch. 83, § 2.

An exclusive listing on Iowa residential property must state a definite expiration date not to exceed:

• a.six months from the effective date
• b.one calendar year from the effective date✓
• c.two years from the effective date
• d.the date on which the seller's mortgage matures

All Iowa brokerage agreements must be in writing, state the compensation together with a disclosure that compensation is negotiable and not set by law, carry the signatures of all parties, and for residential property state a definite expiration date not exceeding one calendar year from the effective date. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2011.1.

To enforce a protective clause after an Iowa exclusive brokerage agreement expires, the broker must:

• a.record the expired brokerage agreement with the recorder
• b.notify the commission in writing within ten days of the expiration
• c.obtain the buyer's written consent to the protection being claimed
• d.furnish the client a written list of prospects before expiration✓

The agreement must contain a protective clause establishing a definite protection period, and before expiration the broker must furnish in writing the names and available contact information of persons to whom the property was presented, or a list of properties shown, delivered by personal or electronic service with written acknowledgment or by mail postmarked before expiration. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2011.5 (ARC 9477C, effective 9/10/2025).

An Iowa seller refuses to sign the agency disclosure document. The licensee must:

• a.note the date, place, time and others present on the form✓
• b.stop all work on the property until the seller signs it
• c.file a written complaint with the commission
• d.have the refusal witnessed by a notary public in Iowa

If a party refuses to sign or to acknowledge receipt, the licensee notes that fact with the date, place, time and names of others in attendance on a copy of the disclosure, obtains other documentation establishing delivery, and keeps it in the transaction file. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2012.2(10).

An Iowa purchase offer receives its last signature of acceptance on Monday. Absent a contrary contract term, the earnest money must reach the trust account:

• a.within 24 hours of receiving the buyer's earnest check
• b.no later than ten full business days after acceptance
• c.no later than five banking days after acceptance✓
• d.at closing, when the funds are finally disbursed to all

All trust funds must be deposited no later than five banking days after the date indicated on the document that the last signature of acceptance is obtained, unless the contract specifies otherwise. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2013.1(1)“a”.

Interest earned on an Iowa broker's common trust account is, absent a written agreement to the contrary:

• a.kept by the broker as compensation for administration
• b.sent quarterly to the state for the housing trust fund✓
• c.credited to each buyer at the closing of that transaction
• d.paid annually to the listing service

The common trust account must be interest-bearing, and interest is transferred quarterly to the treasurer of state and on to the Iowa Finance Authority for deposit in the housing trust fund established in Iowa Code § 16.181; the broker may not benefit from interest on others' funds. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.46(1); Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2013.1(2).

How much of a broker's own money may sit in an Iowa trust account to cover bank service charges?

• a.Nothing; any personal funds are commingling
• b.Up to $500, if the broker's written policy says so
• c.Any amount, so long as it is reconciled monthly
• d.Up to $1,000, specifically identified as such✓

A broker may deposit and keep a sum not to exceed one thousand dollars of personal funds in the trust account, specifically identified and deposited to cover bank service charges relating to the account. Cite: Iowa Code § 543B.46(4); Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2013.1(1)“c”.

An Iowa earnest money dispute is 30 days old, with no lawsuit and no written agreement. The broker may release the deposit to the buyer:

• a.after 30 days' written notice by certified mail to all parties✓
• b.only after a court orders the disposition of the funds
• c.immediately, because the contingency period has run out
• d.only if the seller signs a release within five banking days

Absent a pending civil action or written agreement, it is not grounds for discipline if, on passage of 30 days from the date of the dispute, the broker disburses the earnest money to the buyer on a good faith decision that a contingency was not met — but only after giving 30 days' written notice by certified mail to all parties at their last-known addresses. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2013.1(8)“a”.

Trust funds an Iowa broker cannot trace to any individual become reportable unclaimed property after:

• a.one year, payable to the treasurer of that county
• b.five years, payable to the real estate commission
• c.three years, payable to the Treasurer of State✓
• d.seven years, payable to the Iowa Finance Authority

Trust funds not traceable to any individual for disbursement are unclaimed property; after three years they are reported and remitted to the Treasurer of State, Unclaimed Property Division. Cite: Iowa Admin. Code r. 481—2013.1(14); Iowa Code ch. 556.

Iowa's seller disclosure of property condition under chapter 558A applies to a transfer of property with:

• a.any number of residential units under one roof
• b.at least two but not more than eight dwelling units
• c.one single-family dwelling occupied by the seller
• d.at least one but not more than four dwelling units✓

“Transfer” under chapter 558A reaches a sale, exchange, real estate contract or other purchase method only if the property includes at least one but not more than four dwelling units. Cite: Iowa Code § 558A.1(7).