North Dakota Real Estate Salesperson Exam — All Questions
12 questions
Real estate salespersons in North Dakota are licensed and regulated under NDCC Chapter 43-23 by:
- a.The North Dakota Secretary of State
- b.The county recorder
- c.The North Dakota Real Estate Commission✓
- d.The North Dakota Association of Realtors
The North Dakota Real Estate Commission administers NDCC Chapter 43-23, licensing brokers and salespersons and disciplining violations. A trade association is a private membership organization and does not license practitioners.
Under North Dakota license law, a real estate salesperson must:
- a.Be licensed under and supervised by a licensed broker✓
- b.Register directly with the county where they work
- c.Hold a broker license to list property
- d.Practice independently once licensed
A North Dakota salesperson holds an entry-level license and must be licensed under and supervised by a licensed broker. The salesperson may not operate independently; the broker is responsible for supervising the salesperson and maintaining trust accounts.
A North Dakota salesperson may lawfully accept a commission for brokerage services from:
- a.The employing broker✓
- b.The seller directly upon listing
- c.Any cooperating broker in the transaction
- d.The buyer directly at closing
A North Dakota salesperson may accept compensation for brokerage services only from the employing broker, not directly from a buyer, seller, or another broker. The broker is responsible for supervision and for paying affiliated salespersons.
The North Dakota Real Estate Commission is made up of five members appointed by the Governor, of whom:
- a.All five members must be active real estate brokers
- b.Two of the five must be active real estate brokers
- c.None of them may hold any real estate license
- d.Three must be active real estate brokers✓
The Commission consists of five members appointed by the Governor, three of whom must be active real estate brokers; the Commission elects its own chairman. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-01.
A member of the North Dakota Real Estate Commission is appointed for a term of:
- a.Five years, and may not serve more than two consecutive terms✓
- b.Four years, and may not serve more than three consecutive terms
- c.Three years, with every member's term expiring in the same year
- d.Two years, with no limit at all on reappointment
Commissioners serve five-year terms, staggered so that one term expires each year, and a commissioner may not serve more than two consecutive five-year terms. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-02.
Under the North Dakota license law definitions, the term "real estate" does NOT include:
- a.Leasehold interests in land
- b.Improvements affixed to the land
- c.Oil, gas, and mineral leases and mineral interests✓
- d.Land situated outside North Dakota
The definition reaches any interest or estate in land, including leaseholds, whether situated in this state or elsewhere, but it expressly excludes oil, gas, and mineral leases and every other mineral leasehold, estate, or interest. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-06.1(8).
A person may sell North Dakota real estate for another without holding a real estate license when acting as:
- a.An unlicensed assistant who negotiates the sale price
- b.A rental agent who is paid a leasing commission by the owner
- c.An auctioneer at an advertised bona fide public auction✓
- d.A finder paid a referral fee by the listing broker
The chapter's exceptions cover an auctioneer, provided the sale is advertised as a bona fide public auction, along with attorneys, banks, holders of a power of attorney, court-appointed fiduciaries, and public officers. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-07(1)(c).
A person who acts as a real estate broker in North Dakota without a license is guilty of:
- a.A civil penalty of $1,000 with no criminal charge
- b.A class A felony punishable by prison
- c.An infraction and nothing more
- d.A class B misdemeanor✓
Violating the license requirement is a class B misdemeanor; by contrast, violating the broker trust-fund section is an infraction. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-17.
In an order imposing discipline, the North Dakota Real Estate Commission may direct the licensee to pay a fine not to exceed:
- a.$25,000 plus treble damages awarded to the complaining consumer
- b.$500 for each separate violation charged
- c.$1,000, and no costs may be added
- d.$5,000 plus the actual costs of investigation and prosecution✓
The Commission may direct a disciplined licensee to pay a fine of up to five thousand dollars plus the actual costs, including attorney's fees, of the investigation and prosecution. All fines go to the Commission's license fee account. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-11.1(4).
Two North Dakota licensees disagree about how a commission should be split. The Real Estate Commission will:
- a.Hold a contested case hearing and award the disputed fee to one side
- b.Decline the dispute; it hears no fee disputes between licensees✓
- c.Order the employing broker to escrow the disputed amount
- d.Suspend both licenses until the licensees settle privately
The Commission is not authorized by law to consider or conduct hearings on disputes over fees or commissions between licensees; that is a civil matter for the courts. Cite: N.D.A.C. 70-02-01-17.
A North Dakota broker must maintain a definite place of business in the state. The broker's own home:
- a.May qualify as that place of business✓
- b.Must instead be licensed as a branch office
- c.Is never acceptable as a place of business
- d.Qualifies only if the broker has no other office
The statute expressly allows the broker's home to qualify as the required place of business. Separately, the rules provide that if a broker does maintain a regular office, the broker's home is not treated as a branch office. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-12(1).
A North Dakota salesperson who changes employing brokers must give the Commission written notice:
- a.Only at the next annual renewal
- b.Only if the former broker objects
- c.Within five days of the change✓
- d.Within sixty days of the change
Prompt written notice, within five days, must be given to the Commission of a change of broker. A change of broker without notice to the Commission automatically cancels the salesperson's license. Cite: N.D.C.C. 43-23-12(2).