Virginia VREB Rules Cover More Than Most Candidates Expect

Virginia follows a Caveat Emptor approach to seller disclosure, and the VREB tests the gap between what candidates expect and what Virginia law actually requires.

The VREB governs real estate licensing in Virginia. The PSI exam tests 40 state specific questions alongside 80 national questions, with a minimum passing score of 75%. Three topics account for the majority of state-portion errors: the VREB's dense regulatory code including dam-break zone disclosures, the Residential Disclosure Act's caveat emptor framework, and the designated agency rule that makes the supervising broker a dual agent by default. Here's the thing most people miss: Virginia's disclosure law doesn't require sellers to volunteer problems. It requires them to answer honestly. That gap is where candidates lose the most points.

VREB Regulations

The VREB regulatory code includes Virginia-specific disclosure obligations for dam break inundation zones and mold that have no equivalent in national prep courses. Candidates who know the general advertising and escrow rules but skip these Virginia-specific additions lose points that are straightforward to earn once you know they exist.

The Virginia Real Estate Board regulates everything from licensing to escrow to advertising under a dense code that includes Virginia-specific disclosures for dam break zones and mold, provisions candidates from other states will not have encountered.

The PSI exam tests the dam break inundation zone disclosure requirement, the mold disclosure standard, and the specific advertising rules under VREB regulations. Know when each disclosure is triggered and what the required form must contain, because the exam presents scenarios where the disclosure obligation is arguably borderline, requiring you to know the specific trigger.

Residential Disclosure Act

Virginia's Residential Disclosure Act operates on a "respond honestly to direct questions" standard rather than a proactive disclosure obligation. Most candidates trained nationally expect sellers to volunteer defects, but that's not what Virginia law requires.

Virginia follows a "caveat emptor" approach where sellers must honestly answer questions but are not obligated to volunteer defects, the exam exploits the gap between what students expect (full disclosure) and what Virginia law actually requires.

The PSI exam tests what sellers are and are not required to disclose under the Residential Disclosure Act. Know that Virginia sellers must use the standard disclosure form but that completing it honestly satisfies the obligation. A seller who doesn't mention a leaking roof isn't necessarily in violation if the form didn't ask about it. The exam builds questions around scenarios where candidates assume a duty to disclose that Virginia law does not impose.

The VREB tests this topic specifically because the gap between Virginia's approach and most other states' mandatory disclosure regimes is large enough to consistently trip up candidates who trained elsewhere. The exam doesn't reward overthinking here. It rewards candidates who know exactly where the disclosure obligation starts and stops under the Residential Disclosure Act.

Dual/Designated Agency

Virginia's designated agency rule contains a trap that most candidates miss: when a firm uses designated agents to represent buyer and seller separately, the supervising broker is automatically a dual agent, not a designated agent with narrowed duties, but a full dual agent.

Virginia permits both dual and designated agency with written consent, but the supervising broker in a designated arrangement is automatically considered a dual agent, a critical nuance students almost always miss.

Designated agency is an important alternative to dual agency in Virginia and neighboring states. North Carolina doesn't permit designated agency. Licensees representing both sides creates dual agency with all its limitations. Maryland permits designated agency through its Understanding Representation framework. Virginia's rules on when designated agency is permitted and what disclosures it requires are specific to the VREB regulations the exam tests.

The PSI exam tests the specific written consent required for both dual and designated agency, the timing of that consent, and what the supervising broker's dual agent status means for the transaction. Know the distinction between the broker's role and the designated agents' roles under Virginia's framework.

The supervising broker as automatic dual agent is a Virginia-specific rule not taught in any national course. It appears on the exam because it's the most counterintuitive element of a framework candidates often assume they already understand.