Your FREE New York Real Estate Flashcards 2026 – 200+ Cards

The state agency that licenses and regulates New York real estate salespersons and brokers, through its Division of Licensing Services, under RPL Article 12-A. New York has no 'real estate commission.'

The DOS division that processes New York real estate license applications, renewals, and education approvals.

The head of the NY Department of State, who issues licenses and disciplines licensees (fines, suspension, revocation) under RPL 441-c.

New York's Real Property Law article that governs real estate licensing — salespersons, brokers, agency, compensation, and exemptions.

No. New York is regulated by the Department of State, not a real estate commission — a common exam distractor.

77 hours of DOS-approved qualifying education (raised from 75 to 77 effective December 21, 2022).

152 total hours — the 77-hour salesperson course plus an additional 75-hour broker course.

One combined exam of 75 multiple-choice questions; New York does NOT split it into national and state portions.

70% correct on the combined 75-question exam.

The Department of State; you schedule and pay ($15 per attempt) through the eAccessNY system — not Pearson VUE.

The DOS online system used to apply for, schedule, renew, and manage New York real estate licenses and exams.

Two years; the license must be renewed with the Department of State before it expires.

22.5 hours per two-year renewal cycle for most licensees (effective July 1, 2021).

At least 3 hours of fair housing instruction are required within the 22.5-hour CE.

At least 2 hours of implicit bias instruction are required within the 22.5-hour CE.

Hours on the law of agency, ethical business practice, cultural competency, and recent legal matters are also required.

Attorneys admitted to the New York State bar; the exemption does not extend to out-of-state attorneys.

The single licensed broker who supervises a New York salesperson and is named on the license; pays the salesperson's commission.

No — a salesperson may work under only one sponsoring broker at a time.

Only the salesperson's own sponsoring broker — never directly a buyer, seller, or another broker.

The new sponsoring broker files the change with the Department of State and the license is amended to reflect the current sponsor.

18 years old.

The DOS regulations on broker conduct — escrow of clients' money, advertising, commissions, and prohibited practices.

Must be kept in a separate, special escrow account and never commingled with the broker's own funds (19 NYCRR Part 175).

Improperly mixing clients' trust funds with the broker's own funds — a license-law violation.

The broker holds the funds in escrow until the buyer and seller resolve the dispute or a court directs disbursement.

Prohibited — a listing where the broker keeps any amount above a set seller price is a conflict of interest.

Advertising a listing must clearly indicate that the advertiser is a real estate broker.

Up to $2,000 per violation, in addition to suspension or revocation.

Fraud, misrepresentation, untrustworthiness, or incompetence in conducting real estate business, among others.

Generally prohibits paying a fee or commission to an unlicensed person for performing licensed activity.

An owner selling or renting his or her own property does not need a real estate license.

An attorney admitted to the NY bar acting within the scope of his or her law practice is exempt from licensure.

Governs the sale or lease of subdivided vacant lands offered to the public; the subdivider must file an accepted offering statement with the DOS.

A subdivider must file (and have accepted) an offering statement with the Department of State before offering Article 9-A lots.

Requires a written Agency Disclosure Form on the sale of one-to-four-family residential property in New York.

Residential real property of one to four units (including condos and co-ops).

The agency disclosure form is presented at the time of first substantive contact.

The listing agent presents the form before entering into a listing agreement.

An agent who, with the informed written consent of both parties, represents both the buyer and seller in one transaction.

The written consent both principals must give before a New York licensee may act as a dual agent.

With both parties' written consent, the broker appoints one sales agent for the seller and a different sales agent for the buyer.

Undivided loyalty — the agent must explain it cannot provide it in a dual-agency-with-designated-agents arrangement.

The agent notes the refusal on the form and keeps it; the duty to present the form still applies.

Required on the sale of a 1-to-4-family home; the seller must deliver it before the buyer signs the contract of sale.

Effective March 20, 2024, the former $500 credit option was eliminated; a seller can no longer skip the disclosure by giving a $500 credit.

The amended statement added questions on flood risk and flood history.

New York's anti-discrimination statute, enforced by the Division of Human Rights, protecting more classes than the federal Fair Housing Act.

A New York protected class (e.g., a Section 8 voucher) with no federal equivalent; refusing to rent because of it is unlawful.

Lawful source of income, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and military status.

The New York State Division of Human Rights.

$2 for each $500 of consideration (0.4%), generally paid by the seller (grantor).

The seller (grantor); if the seller fails to pay or is exempt, the buyer becomes liable.

An additional 1% tax on residential conveyances of $1,000,000 or more.

The buyer (grantee), unlike the base transfer tax paid by the seller.

Generally covers apartments in buildings of six or more units built before 1974 in adopting localities; limits increases and gives renewal rights.

New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) administers rent stabilization and rent control.

Attorneys typically draft the contract of sale and conduct the closing in New York transactions.

Lien theory — the borrower keeps title and gives the lender a mortgage lien.

Judicial foreclosure — the lender must sue and obtain a court judgment; there is no quick non-judicial trustee's sale.

The county clerk records deeds (the City Register in New York City), usually with a transfer-tax return.

A co-ownership form for married couples only, with survivorship and protection from one spouse's individual creditors.

No — New York is a common-law (separate-property) state; spouses often use tenancy by the entirety.

A conveyance to two or more persons is presumed a tenancy in common unless survivorship is expressly stated.

$15 per attempt, paid through eAccessNY.

$55 to apply for the salesperson license with the Department of State.

A salesperson typically works as an independent contractor of the sponsoring broker but is still supervised by that broker.

General opinion ('finest home you'll find') is permissible puffing; a false statement of material fact is misrepresentation.

Guiding a buyer toward or away from a subdivision or area based on a protected class — illegal under federal and NY law.

New York's name for a general warranty deed — the most protective deed, warranting title against all defects.

A common New York deed; with covenant it warrants only the grantor's own acts, without covenant it gives no warranties.

DOS-required brokerage procedures (e.g., on prospective-buyer ID and pre-approval) intended to prevent discriminatory treatment.

A licensed broker who chooses to work under and be supervised by another broker, rather than operating independently.

The DOS-issued identification a licensee carries showing the license is current and identifying the sponsoring broker.

Land plus everything permanently attached (improvements and fixtures) and the bundle of legal rights of ownership.

Movable property not permanently attached to land; it transfers by a bill of sale, not a deed.

Possession, use (enjoyment), exclusion, disposition (transfer), and control.

Personal property attached to real property so it becomes part of it and transfers with the land.

Tests for a fixture: Method of attachment, Adaptability, Relationship of parties, Intention, Agreement.

A tenant's business fixture; it remains personal property and the tenant may remove it before the lease ends.

The most complete ownership — unlimited duration, freely transferable by deed or will.

An estate that lasts for someone's lifetime; on death it passes to a remainderman or reverts to the grantor.

A nonpossessory right to use another's land for a specific purpose, such as a driveway or utility line.

An easement that benefits an adjoining parcel (the dominant estate) and burdens another (the servient estate).

An improvement that extends unlawfully onto a neighbor's land — an encumbrance discovered by survey.

Any claim, lien, charge, or right that limits an owner's title — liens, easements, encroachments, deed restrictions.

Government's authority to regulate land for public health, safety, and welfare — zoning, codes; no payment to the owner.

Government's power to take private property for public use through condemnation, paying just compensation.

Reversion of property to the state when an owner dies with no will and no legal heirs.

The four government powers: Police power, Eminent domain, Taxation, Escheat — only eminent domain pays the owner.

A legal description using distances and compass directions back to a point of beginning — the method most used in New York.

A legal description referencing a recorded subdivision plat by lot and block number.

A unit of land area equal to 43,560 square feet.

Littoral rights border a lake/ocean; riparian rights border a flowing river or stream.

Sole ownership of property by one person or entity.

Co-ownership with the right of survivorship; requires the four unities of time, title, interest, and possession.

Co-ownership with no survivorship; each owner holds a willable, undivided share — New York's default.

Time, Title, Interest, and Possession — all required to create a joint tenancy.

A deceased co-owner's share passes automatically to the surviving co-owners (joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety).

The written instrument that conveys title from grantor to grantee.

Grantor = the one conveying title; grantee = the one receiving it. Only the grantor signs the deed.

Title transfers when the grantor delivers the deed and the grantee accepts it — not when it is recorded.

Conveys only whatever interest the grantor has, with no warranties; used to clear a cloud on title.

The 'to have and to hold' clause in a deed that defines the extent of ownership conveyed.

Entering a deed in the public record (county clerk / NYC City Register) to give constructive notice and set priority.

Notice the law presumes everyone has once a document is properly recorded.

A policy protecting the insured against loss from title defects existing before the policy date.

A summary of the recorded history of a property's title used to find defects.

A claim or encumbrance that may impair title; often removed by a quitclaim deed or court action.

Acquiring title by open, notorious, continuous, hostile possession for the statutory period (10 years in New York).

When an owner dies without a will, the estate passes to heirs under state law; with no heirs it escheats.

The court process that validates a will and oversees distribution of a decedent's estate.

The most probable price under fair, open-market conditions — an opinion, distinct from market price.

The actual price a property sold for, which may differ from market value.

An impartial, supported opinion of value by a licensed appraiser as of a specific date, following USPAP.

A licensee's value estimate from recent comparable sales to help price a listing — not a formal appraisal.

The legal, possible, feasible, and most profitable use of a site — the basis of value.

Estimates value by comparing the subject to recent comparable sales, adjusting for differences. Best for homes.

Land value + cost to rebuild the improvements new − depreciation. Best for new or special-use property.

Value = net operating income ÷ capitalization rate. Best for income-producing property.

Effective gross income minus operating expenses, before any mortgage payment.

NOI ÷ value; a higher cap rate implies more risk and a lower value.

Weighing the three value indications into one final opinion — not simply averaging them.

A buyer will pay no more than the cost of an equally desirable substitute — the basis of the sales comparison approach.

An improvement adds value only by what it contributes to the whole, which may be less than its cost.

Loss in value from physical deterioration, functional obsolescence, or external obsolescence.

Sale price ÷ monthly (or annual) rent — a quick screening tool for income property.

The value a local assessor places on property for taxation, which may differ from market value.

Mutual agreement (offer + acceptance), consideration, legal purpose, and competent parties.

Requires real estate sales contracts (and most leases over one year) to be in writing to be enforceable.

Void = no legal effect (missing an essential element); voidable = one party may rescind (e.g., a minor's contract).

Both parties exchange promises — a purchase agreement is bilateral.

A promise in exchange for an act — an open listing or option is unilateral.

A buyer's good-faith deposit held in the broker's escrow account and usually applied to the price at closing.

A condition that must be met for the contract to become binding — financing, inspection, or appraisal.

A court order forcing a defaulting seller to complete the sale because land is unique.

A pre-agreed amount (often the earnest money) the seller may keep if the buyer defaults.

The listing broker earns the commission no matter who finds the buyer.

The broker earns the commission unless the owner sells the property themselves.

Only the broker who actually finds the buyer earns a commission.

A fiduciary relationship in which an agent represents a principal in dealings with third parties.

The principal (client) is owed fiduciary duties; a customer is owed honesty and fair dealing.

Fiduciary duties: Obedience, Loyalty, Disclosure, Confidentiality, Accounting, Reasonable care.

An agent must keep a client's confidential information private — and it survives the end of the relationship.

Express agency is created by a written/oral agreement; implied agency arises from the parties' conduct.

Represents the seller and owes the seller fiduciary duties.

Represents the buyer and owes the buyer fiduciary duties, including undivided loyalty.

An agent who cooperates with a listing or buyer's agent to help the principal, but is not the principal's agent.

The agent whose efforts mainly brought about the sale and who therefore earns the commission.

Substituting a new contract or party for an old one, releasing the original obligation.

Transferring one's rights under a contract to another party (unless prohibited).

Federal law banning housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability.

Race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability.

Inducing panic selling by claiming a protected class is moving into a neighborhood — illegal.

A lender refusing to lend or insure in an area based on its racial or ethnic makeup — illegal.

A change in rules or services so a person with a disability can use housing — e.g., allowing a service animal.

A physical change to a dwelling a disabled tenant may make (usually at their expense) for full use.

The ADA covers public accommodations; the Fair Housing Act covers housing.

Brokers agreeing to set commission rates is an illegal antitrust violation; rates are always negotiable.

A contract by which an owner hires a manager to operate the property for a fee.

Conveys the right to use property for a term in exchange for rent; landlord = lessor, tenant = lessee.

Gross: landlord pays operating expenses; net: tenant pays some or all expenses (taxes, insurance, maintenance).

Generally limited to one month's rent for many residential leases under New York's 2019 rent law.

A fact that would affect a buyer's decision or price; a known material defect must be disclosed.

A hidden defect not found by ordinary inspection; a known latent defect must be disclosed.

'Let the buyer beware' — limited today by disclosure laws and the duty to disclose known material defects.

A property psychologically impacted by an event (e.g., a death); New York generally does not require disclosing such facts.

For pre-1978 housing: disclose known lead, give the EPA pamphlet, and allow a 10-day inspection window for sales.

An odorless, radioactive gas from soil that can accumulate indoors and is a known health hazard.

A hazardous material in old insulation/flooring; controlled by removal or encapsulation.

Fungal growth in damp areas that may require disclosure and remediation.

A buried tank that can leak and contaminate soil and groundwater, creating cleanup liability.

Federal law imposing liability for cleanup of hazardous-waste contamination on current and past owners.

Protected areas where development is restricted; permits may be required before building.

Provides public access to a sex-offender registry; agents typically refer buyers to the registry rather than investigate.

The borrower's written promise to repay the loan; the mortgage secures it against the property.

The security instrument giving the lender a lien on the property; New York is a lien-theory state.

Mortgagor = the borrower who gives the mortgage; mortgagee = the lender who receives it.

Foreclosure through a court lawsuit and judgment — the rule in New York.

The borrower's right to pay the debt and reclaim the property before the foreclosure sale.

A loan not insured or guaranteed by the government; PMI is usually required when LTV exceeds 80%.

A government-insured loan with lower down payments, insured by the Federal Housing Administration.

A loan guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, often with no down payment for eligible veterans.

Loan amount ÷ value or price; a higher LTV means a smaller down payment and more lender risk.

Insurance a borrower pays on a conventional loan when the LTV is above 80%, protecting the lender.

Requires settlement-cost disclosures (Loan Estimate, Closing Disclosure) and prohibits kickbacks at closing.

Requires lenders to disclose the cost of credit, including the annual percentage rate (APR).

Must reach the borrower at least three business days before closing.

Prepaid interest (1 point = 1% of the loan) paid at closing to lower the interest rate.

Commission = sale price × commission rate. A $500,000 sale at 5% = $25,000.

Price = net ÷ (1 − commission rate). A $470,000 net at 6% = $470,000 ÷ 0.94 = $500,000.

43,560 square feet — not provided at the test center, so memorize it.

5,280 feet per mile — memorize it for the exam.

One section = one square mile = 640 acres.

Area = length × width; convert square feet to acres by dividing by 43,560.

LTV = loan ÷ value. An 80% LTV on a $500,000 home is a $400,000 loan.

Value = NOI ÷ cap rate. $90,000 NOI ÷ 0.09 = $1,000,000.

$2 for every $500 of price. A $400,000 sale = (400,000 ÷ 500) × $2 = $1,600.

1% of the price on residential sales of $1,000,000 or more. A $1,200,000 sale = $12,000.

Splitting taxes, rent, or interest by the days each party owns the property as of closing.