(c) Capital Real Estate School, LLC PSI STUDY: OUTLINE for STUDY – Salesperson and Broker Candidate 2026
PSI STUDY GUIDE: The 15 Most Questioned Subtopics on the PSI Real Estate Salesperson Exam (Connecticut National/General Portion)
The 15 Most Questioned Subtopics on the PSI Real Estate Salesperson Exam (Connecticut National/General Portion)
Capital Real Estate School, LLC — PSI exam prep study guide for real estate salesperson and broker candidates
Connecticut licensing candidates sit a two-part PSI exam: an 80-question National (General) portion in 120 minutes and a 30-question Connecticut State portion in 45 minutes, with a passing score of 70% on each and a $59 first-time examination fee (Connecticut Salesperson Candidate Information Bulletin). This real estate study guide ranks the subtopics that generate the most scored items on the national portion, based on the 2023 National Real Estate Examination Detailed Content Outline in force since October 1, 2023 and reproduced in both Connecticut bulletins (PSI Broker Bulletin).
National exam weighting at a glance
PSI national exam weighting by section
| Section | Weight | Approx. scored items (of 80) |
| V. Contracts | 19% | ~15 |
| VI. Agency | 13% | ~10 |
| X. Practice of Real Estate | 12% | ~10 |
| I. Property Ownership | 10% | ~8 |
| IV. Financing | 10% | ~8 |
| III. Valuation and Market Analysis | 8% | ~6 |
| VII. Property Disclosures | 7% | ~6 |
| XI. Real Estate Calculations | 7% | ~6 |
| IX. Transfer of Title | 6% | ~5 |
| II. Land Use Controls | 5% | ~4 |
| VIII. Property Management | 3% | ~2 |
PSI exam tip: Contracts, Agency, and Practice of Real Estate together are 44% of the national portion. Master those three before touching anything else.
The top 15 subtopics
1. Elements of a valid contract (Topic 5 A2)
- Competent parties, mutual assent (offer and acceptance), consideration, legal purpose, and — for real estate — written form.
- Distinguish void (never existed), voidable (one party may cancel, e.g., a minor’s contract), unenforceable (valid but barred, often by the Statute of Frauds), and executed vs. executory.
- Tip: PSI loves the fact pattern where a contract is signed under duress or by a minor. That is voidable, not void.
2. Offer, counteroffer, and multiple offers (Topic 5 A4, A9, C)
- A counteroffer terminates the original offer; the original offeree becomes the offeror.
- Acceptance must be communicated/delivered to be effective — silence is not acceptance.
- Offers may be withdrawn any time before acceptance is communicated.
- Present all offers to the seller; the seller decides, not the licensee.
- Tip: When two questions look identical, the deciding word is usually “delivered,” “communicated,” or “before.”
3. Statute of Frauds and the writing requirement (Topic 5 A1)
- Contracts conveying an interest in real property, and leases beyond one year, must be in writing and signed.
- Electronic signatures are valid and enforceable (ESIGN/UETA) — a common modern PSI item (V.A.10).
- Tip: Listing agreements and buyer agreements must be written, dated, and contain a definite expiration.
4. Contingencies, addenda, and amendments (Topic 5 B1-B3)
- Financing, inspection, appraisal, and sale-of-existing-home contingencies each need a deadline, a standard, and a removal method.
- An addendum adds terms before signing; an amendment changes an existing contract.
- Failure to satisfy a contingency in time generally allows termination and deposit return.
5. Remedies for breach and termination (Topic 5)
- Specific performance, compensatory damages, liquidated damages (usually the earnest deposit), rescission, and mutual release.
- Distinguish rescission (unwind to pre-contract position) from cancellation and from assignment/novation.
6. Fiduciary duties of the agent (Topic 6)
- OLD CAR: Obedience, Loyalty, Disclosure, Confidentiality, Accounting, Reasonable care.
- Owed to the client (principal); customers get honesty, fair dealing, and disclosure of known material defects.
- Confidentiality survives the termination of the agency relationship.
- Tip: If the answer choice helps the customer at the client’s expense, it is wrong unless it involves a material defect or fair housing.
7. Creating and terminating agency; listing and buyer agreements (VI.A.1–A.6)
| Listing type | Who earns the commission |
| Exclusive right to sell | Broker paid no matter who sells |
| Exclusive agency | Broker paid unless the owner sells |
| Open | Only the procuring broker paid |
| Net (restricted/illegal in many states) | Seller sets a net; risky and disfavored |
- Agency arises by express written agreement; implied or accidental agency is a tested trap.
- Termination: expiration, mutual agreement, performance, revocation, death/incapacity, or destruction of the property.
- Post-2024, written buyer agreements before touring are standard practice and tested under Agency (VI.A.3).
8. Agency disclosure and conflicts (Topic 6 C1 & C2)
- Disclose representation at first substantive contact and in writing before signing.
- Dual agency requires informed written consent of both parties; the dual agent cannot advocate price or terms.
- A licensee buying or selling for their own account must disclose licensed status.
9. Federal fair housing (Topic 10)
- Seven protected classes: race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), familial status, disability.
- Prohibited conduct: steering, blockbusting, redlining, disparate treatment, discriminatory advertising.
- Disability requires reasonable accommodations (rules/policies) and permitted reasonable modifications (physical).
- Race is never exempt — the Jones v. Mayer rule.
- Tip: Any answer that sorts buyers “for their own comfort” is steering and always wrong.
10. Antitrust, Do-Not-Call, and advertising rules (Topic 10)
- Price fixing, market allocation, group boycotts, and tie-in arrangements — commissions are always negotiable and set per brokerage.
- Advertising must identify the brokerage; no blind ads; social media and internet posts follow the same rules.
- Do-Not-Call applies to cold calls; expired-listing and FSBO calls are not automatic exemptions.
11. Handling funds and due diligence (Topic 10)
- Deposits go to the broker’s escrow/trust account promptly; commingling and conversion are classic violations.
- Confidential personal information must be protected in written, verbal, and electronic form.
- Tip: If a question mentions a licensee’s personal account, it is a violation.
12. Estates, co-ownership, and encumbrances (Topic 1)
- Bundle of rights: possession, control, enjoyment, exclusion, disposition.
- Joint tenancy = right of survivorship (PITT: possession, interest, time, title); tenancy in common = divisible, inheritable shares.
- Encumbrances: liens (voluntary/involuntary, general/specific), easements (appurtenant vs. in gross, by prescription/necessity), encroachments, licenses.
- Tip: Government powers = PETE (Police power, Eminent domain, Taxation, Escheat).
13. Valuation, the three approaches, and CMAs (Topic 3)
| Approach | Best used for | Core idea |
| Sales comparison | Residential resale | Adjust comparables to the subject |
| Cost | New or special-purpose | Replacement cost less depreciation + land |
| Income | Investment/rental | NOI ÷ cap rate = value |
- Value requires DUST: Demand, Utility, Scarcity, Transferability.
- A licensee prepares a CMA/BPO, not an appraisal; USPAP appraisals require a licensed or certified appraiser.
- Add value to the comparable when the comparable is inferior; subtract when superior.
14. Financing instruments and consumer protection laws (Topic 4A & C)
- PITI, LTV, discount points (1 point = 1% of loan amount, roughly 0.25% rate reduction), PMI, and standard clauses (acceleration, alienation/due-on-sale, defeasance, prepayment).
- Conventional vs. FHA insured, VA guaranteed, USDA; ARMs (index, margin, caps); seller financing and land contracts.
- TRID: Loan Estimate within 3 business days of application; Closing Disclosure at least 3 business days before consummation. RESPA bans kickbacks; Reg Z governs advertising triggering terms; ECOA bars credit discrimination.
15. Real estate math: prorations, net proceeds, and rates (Topic 11 A&B)
Commission = Sale price × rate
Seller’s net = Sale price minus (commission + liens + closing costs + prorations)
Equity = Market value minus debt
LTV = Loan ÷ value (or price, whichever is lower)
Cap rate = NOI ÷ value Value = NOI ÷ cap rate
Monthly interest = Principal × rate ÷ 12
Area = 43,560 sq ft per acre
- Prorate taxes and rents by day; know whether the closing day is charged to buyer or seller.
- Tip: Only non-programmable, silent, non-printing calculators without an alphabet keyboard are permitted at the PSI test center (PSI bulletin).
Study plan for the final two weeks
| Days | Focus | Target |
| 1–4 | Contracts + Agency (subtopics 1–8) | 85% on topic quizzes |
| 5–7 | Practice of Real Estate + Disclosures (9–11) | 100+ questions |
| 8–10 | Ownership, Land Use, Transfer of Title (12) | Vocabulary drilling |
| 11–12 | Valuation + Financing (13–14) | Formula recall, no notes |
| 13 | Math only (15) | 30 timed calculations |
| 14 | Two full-length timed 80-question exams | 80%+ |
Exam-day PSI tips
- Pace: 120 minutes ÷ 80 questions = 90 seconds each. Flag and move on; never burn four minutes on one item.
- Answer every question — there is no penalty for guessing.
- Eliminate two choices first; PSI distractors are usually a right answer to the wrong question.
- Watch qualifiers: always, never, except, least likely, best.
- Where a question does not say otherwise, answer from federal/national law, not Connecticut practice; save state rules for the 30-question Connecticut portion.
- Arrive early with two valid IDs; passing one portion and failing the other means retaking only the failed portion for $51 (PSI bulletin).
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