Agency: real estate exam study notes

Agency is the relationship where a licensee acts for a principal. The exam tests how it is created, the duties it carries, and how it ends.

Updated 2026-09-23 · 2 sources · By the RealEstateExamKit team

How much it counts

VendorOutline area (salesperson national)
Pearson VUEReal estate contracts and agency (16, shared with contracts) of 80 scored items
PSIAgency 13% of the national portion

Study notes

  • Duties to a client are usually taught as OLDCAR: obedience, loyalty, disclosure, confidentiality, accounting, reasonable care.
  • Customers vs clients. A customer is owed honesty and fair dealing; a client is owed fiduciary duties.
  • Creation: express (written or oral agreement) or implied by conduct. Termination: completion, expiration, mutual agreement, death or incapacity, destruction of the property, bankruptcy.
  • Dual agency and designated agency are state-defined. Some states prohibit dual agency (Florida does; it uses transaction brokerage).

Exam traps

  • Loyalty vs honesty to the other side. You must not lie to the customer even while advocating for your client.
  • Confidentiality survives the end of the agency in many states.
  • Disclosure timing is state law - memorize yours from your state page.

Educational summary, not legal advice. State law can change the rule - your state portion tests your state’s version.

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Sources

  1. Pearson VUE - Texas Real Estate Candidate Handbook (national salesperson outline, effective March 1, 2025) (accessed 2026-09-23)
  2. PSI - Georgia Real Estate Commission Candidate Information Bulletin (national portion outline) (accessed 2026-09-23)