Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Changes to the Florida Sales Associate and Broker State License Exams

The  TILA-RESPA Integrated Mortgage Disclosure Rule went into effect on October 3, 2015.  This has 
created significant changes in the handling of Real Estate closings involving mortgage loans, from application through closing.  Students who are preparing for the Florida Sales Associate and Broker licensing exams are concerned as to how these changes affect their testing.

According to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, The rule’s impact to the Florida Real Estate Sales Associate examination is minimal.   There has been a change to terminology. The term that is used instead of HUD-1 is Closing Disclosure. Candidates have to be familiar with pages 2 and 3 of the new five-page disclosure and be able to perform basic calculations as they do now.  Here is a link to the new Closing Disclosure to familiarize students with the changes. 


 The DBPR began testing the Closing Disclosure changes on December 1, 2015. Broker examinees will have eight questions that may include calculation of documentary stamp taxes and intangible taxes as well as tax and rent prorations. Examinees must also know where the expenses, prorations, sales price, and mortgage balances are shown on the Closing Disclosure.

Sales Associate and Broker Candidates are urged by the DBPR to download and utilize the Candidate Information Booklets they provide.  The Sales Associate Candidate information Booklet was updated June 2015 and the Broker Candidate Information Booklet in December 2015.  These are a student's guidebook through the process and contain valuable information, especially with regard to the weight of each section of the textbook on the State Licensing exam.  The Broker CIB has sample closing scenario questions to familiarize the candidate with the expected format of the closing questions.

For information on obtaining a real estate license or if you are considering a career in Real Estate and live in the Tampa Bay area, contact Nature Coast Real Estate Schools website for our schedule of classes.

Nature Coast Real Estate School offers LIVE CLASSROOM and ONLINE INSTRUCTION for pre and post licensing classes for Sales Associates and Brokers, as well as Weekend Exam Prep Courses.  We have four convenient locations in Pasco and Hernando Counties to serve the Real Estate Licensing needs of the North Tampa Bay area.

For more information on the location and class preparation, call Jeanne Gavish at 352-650-029 or email me at jmgavish@aol.com.
  


Nature Coast Real Estate School