West Virginia Real Estate Practice Test

Correct: C Four; the fifth is an unlicensed citizen member

W. Va. Code §30-40-6(b)(1) requires four of the five commissioners to be licensed under the article — as a broker, associate broker OR salesperson — and one to be a citizen member who is not licensed. Each licensed commissioner must have been licensed and practiced in West Virginia as their primary vocation for at least 10 years immediately preceding appointment, and every commissioner must have been a state resident for at least six years.

Correct: A Broker trust accounts and business records

The WVREC may perform compliance audits on brokerage offices (§30-40-7(q)) and must be authorized by every broker to make periodic inspections of trust fund accounts (§30-40-18(j)). Records must be open to inspection at the broker's usual place of business during regular business hours. Title company escrow accounts are outside the Commission's jurisdiction.

Correct: A Fines, suspension, or revocation

Under §30-40-7(l) the WVREC "may impose one or more sanctions as considered appropriate," and the list is broader than fines and license action: denial of a license or renewal, an administrative fine not to exceed $1,000 per day per violation, probation, revocation, suspension, restitution, additional education, censure, denial of future license, downgrade of license, and reprimand.

Correct: D 70%

The salesperson passing score is 70% on each section, and the two sections are scored independently. Note that the broker passing score is higher — 75%. Pearson VUE converts raw scores into scaled scores from 0 to 100, and a numeric score is reported only to candidates who fail.

Correct: A Broker

Only a broker can operate independently and supervise salespersons in WV. An associate broker holds broker qualifications but works under another broker, similar to a salesperson.

Correct: A June 30

All licenses expire on June 30 "regardless of the date the license was issued" (174-1-8.1). The license term coincides with the fiscal year (§30-40-17(c)(5)). The WVREC opens its online renewal portal on May 1, but June 30 is the operative deadline; after that the license is expired and late fees apply through December 31.

Correct: C Negotiating the sale of real estate

Negotiating the sale, exchange, purchase, or rental of real estate for compensation requires a license. Physical property maintenance does not require a license.

Correct: A No, that constitutes unauthorized practice of law

Licensees may fill in blanks on approved forms but may not draft legal documents or give legal advice. Preparing a deed is the practice of law and requires an attorney.

Correct: D Company name, responsible broker's name with "Broker," office address, and a phone number

Each advertisement of property or a specific service must include four things: the company name, the name of the responsible broker together with the term "Broker," the physical address of a licensed office location, and a phone number (174-1-17.1). Those first three items must be displayed at no less than half the size of any associate broker, salesperson or team name in the ad. Yard signs are excused from the physical address requirement.

Correct: D One insured against loss by a federal agency

Each trust fund account "shall be established at a financial institution which is insured against loss by an agency of the federal government and the amount deposited therein cannot exceed the amount that is insured against loss" (§30-40-18(c)). The test is federal insurance, not FDIC specifically — an NCUA-insured credit union qualifies too.

Correct: B The WVREC promulgates the form

The WVREC promulgates a standard Notice of Agency Relationship form. This ensures uniform disclosure of agency relationships across all transactions in the state.

Correct: C Dual agent

Representing both sides is dual agency, and §30-40-19(a)(7) plus 174-1-16.2 require the written consent of both buyer and seller first. West Virginia's promulgated Notice of Agency form uses two specific labels for it: "Limited Dual Agent" where one licensee represents both parties, and "Designated Dual Agent" where the brokerage assigns a separate licensee to each side.

Correct: C Blindness

Blindness is its own protected characteristic alongside disability, so West Virginia protects blind applicants explicitly rather than folding them into a general disability category (§16B-18-5). Age, marital status and sexual orientation are not protected characteristics under the West Virginia Fair Housing Act.

Correct: D Four units

The exemption covers "rooms or units in dwellings containing living quarters occupied or intended to be occupied by no more than four families living independently of each other, if the owner actually maintains and occupies one of such living quarters as his residence" (§16B-18-4(a)(2)). Note the critical West Virginia limit: §16B-18-4(a) makes this exemption available "solely for the purposes of familial status," so it is no defence to a claim based on race, colour, religion, ancestry, sex, blindness, disability or national origin.

Correct: D Legislative rulemaking authority

The WVREC has legislative rulemaking authority to implement the Real Estate License Act, covering licensing requirements, education standards, advertising, trust accounts, and professional conduct.

Correct: A The broker violates the License Act

Brokers must authorize the commission to make periodic inspections of trust fund accounts. Refusing access is a violation of the License Act.

Correct: B Administrative fine and license suspension

The WVREC can fine (up to $1,000 per day per violation), suspend, revoke, downgrade, or place a licensee on probation, and may order restitution or the return of compensation collected from an injured consumer (§30-40-7(l)). It does not imprison — criminal charges are brought by the county prosecuting attorney on referral (§30-40-24(b)) — and it does not enter civil judgments for damages, though commingling is separately a disciplinary ground under §30-40-19(a)(9).

Correct: B Associate broker has broker qualifications

An associate broker holds broker qualifications (education and experience) but chooses to work under another broker rather than operating independently. A salesperson has only salesperson-level qualifications.

Correct: B Expired means not renewed by July 1; cancelled means still not renewed by December 31

Both are defined in §30-40-4. "Expired" means a license that was not renewed by July 1 — the day after the June 30 deadline. "Cancelled" means a license that was not renewed by December 31 of the year in which the license expired. So expiration comes first and can still be cured with a late fee; cancellation is the further lapse and requires reapplying and re-examining.

Correct: C Yes, collecting rent for compensation requires a license

Collecting rent for compensation falls within the §30-40-4 definition of a broker, and "property management" is itself a defined licensed activity. Watch the boundary: §30-40-5(c)(8) exempts a person "employed exclusively to act as the management or rental agent for the real estate of one person or entity," and (c)(2) exempts an owner's regular employees who perform incidental acts without extra compensation. Serving several unrelated owners for a fee falls outside both exemptions.