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Florida Real Estate Exam Practice Questions: Brokerage Operations and Discipline
4 practice questions on brokerage operations and discipline for the Florida real estate sales associate exam. Each one has the correct answer, a full explanation of why the other options are wrong, and the statute it comes from.
What this topic covers
Records, advertising, and penalties. Questions here test record keeping, advertising rules, and the penalties and procedures for violations.
Sources these questions cite include: § 475.484, Fla. Stat.; § 475.25, Fla. Stat.; § 475.22, Fla. Stat.; § 475.453, Fla. Stat.; § 475.482, Fla. Stat..
Question 1
Broker Paul Eng operates a principal office with a compliant entrance sign. He opens a branch office across town, registers it, and furnishes it with an enclosed room, but he does not post a sign because "the principal office already has one." Which statement is correct?
- A. No violation, because only the principal office needs an entrance sign; a registered branch office is exempt from the sign requirement.
- B. Violation, because an active broker must maintain a qualifying entrance sign at each branch office as well as the principal office.
- C. No violation, because a branch office must post a sign only if a sales associate works there on a full-time basis.
- D. Violation only if the branch is in a different county from the principal office; a branch in the same county needs no sign.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: B.
Section 475.22(1) requires each active broker to maintain a sign on or about the entrance of the principal office 'and each branch office' that can be easily observed and read by a person about to enter. Paul's branch needs its own sign with the broker's name, any trade name, and the words "licensed real estate broker" or "lic. real estate broker." A and C add exceptions the statute does not contain. D is wrong because the duty does not depend on county lines. A broker who fails to comply is subject to discipline under § 475.25.
Source: § 475.22(1), Fla. Stat.
Question 2
Broker Vega has already caused the Real Estate Recovery Fund to pay $120,000 on earlier judgments in several unrelated transactions. A new claimant, injured in a separate single transaction, holds a $45,000 unsatisfied judgment (all compensatory damages) against Vega. What is the most the fund may pay this claimant?
- A. $45,000, because the judgment is under the $50,000 per-transaction limit, so the fund pays the full amount regardless of earlier payments.
- B. $30,000, because total payments on judgments against any one licensee may not exceed $150,000.
- C. $50,000, because the fund always pays the full per-transaction limit when the claimant has a valid unpaid judgment against a licensee.
- D. $0, because a licensee may have only one claim paid by the fund in his lifetime and Vega has already had several paid.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: B.
Payments for claims arising out of the same transaction are limited to $50,000 in the aggregate, and payments on judgments against any one broker or sales associate may not exceed $150,000 in total (§ 475.484(3), (4)). Vega's earlier claims used $120,000, leaving $30,000 under the lifetime cap, so the fund can pay no more than $30,000 even though the judgment is $45,000 (see § 475.484(5) for payment order and proration). A ignores the per-licensee cap. C misstates the rule, because the fund pays the lesser of the unsatisfied judgment or the applicable caps. D invents a one-claim limit.
Source: § 475.484(3)-(5), Fla. Stat.
Question 3
Broker Rob Castillo wants to satisfy the office requirement by operating from a trailer that he tows every week between three subdivisions. The trailer has a lockable room, a desk, and a sign on its side reading "Castillo Realty - licensed real estate broker." Which statement is correct?
- A. The trailer qualifies, because it has an enclosed room and a compliant sign, even though it is moved between subdivisions every week.
- B. The trailer qualifies as long as Rob keeps a telephone number for it on file with the Commission and posts the sign at each site.
- C. The trailer qualifies if Rob registers it with the Commission as a branch office rather than as his principal place of business.
- D. The trailer does not qualify, because an active broker's office must consist of at least one enclosed room in a building of stationary construction.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D.
Section 475.22(1) provides that each active broker shall maintain an office, which shall consist of at least one enclosed room in a building of stationary construction. A trailer towed from site to site is not a building of stationary construction, even with an enclosed room and a proper sign. A is wrong because the room alone does not satisfy the stationary-building requirement. B is wrong because a phone number does not create an office. C is wrong because registering a branch does not change what qualifies as an office. Rob could meet the rule by leasing an enclosed room in a stationary building.
Source: § 475.22(1), Fla. Stat.
Question 4
Sales associate Mark Delgado tells a buyer, "This house has never flooded," knowing that water entered the garage twice in the last three years. The buyer closes and, after a dry year, has not yet experienced any loss. The buyer later learns the truth and files a complaint. Which statement is correct?
- A. Mark cannot be disciplined because the buyer has suffered no monetary loss from the false statement about flooding in the garage.
- B. Mark can be disciplined only after he has been criminally convicted of fraud in a court, since the Commission cannot act before that.
- C. Mark may be disciplined for fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment even though the buyer suffered no loss or any loss was later repaid.
- D. Mark can be disciplined only if his broker also knew about the flooding, because the associate's conduct is judged through the broker.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C.
Section 475.25(1)(b) makes it a ground for discipline to be guilty of fraud, misrepresentation, concealment, false promises, false pretenses, dishonest dealing by trick, scheme, or device, culpable negligence, or breach of trust in any business transaction. The licensee is subject to discipline even if the victim suffered no loss or the loss was later repaid. A is therefore wrong. B is wrong because discipline under paragraph (b) does not depend on a criminal conviction (conviction is a separate ground in paragraph (1)(f)). D is wrong because the associate's own misconduct is enough. The Commission may impose a fine of up to $5,000 per count, suspension up to 10 years, revocation, probation, or reprimand under § 475.25(1).
Source: § 475.25(1)(b), Fla. Stat.
Want more on this topic?
The full Prep475 kit has 15 questions on brokerage operations and discipline, all with the same statute-cited explanations, plus a timed 100-question exam simulation.
Independent study aid, not legal advice. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Florida Real Estate Commission, the DBPR, or Pearson VUE. Questions are original practice questions, not actual exam questions. Statutes, rules, and exam details change; always confirm against current Florida law and your pre-licensing course materials.
Last reviewed October 20, 2026.