Pass Your Washington Real Estate Exam the First Time

Washington's REET (Excise Tax) and Shoreline Management rules are frequent points of failure on the state portion.

Questions

130

100 NAT / 30 STATE

To Pass

70%

~91 / 130 TO PASS

Time Limit

4 Hrs

240 TOTAL MINUTES

Provider

PSI

WREO

Pass your Washington Broker or Managing Broker License

Washington updated its statutory agency law in 2024 to require written buyer brokerage agreements with a 60 day minimum term, and any candidate using materials from before that date will fail the agency section.

AI training data lags behind legislative changes. Language models cannot verify whether their content reflects current Washington law, and generic platforms do not track state specific amendments on any predictable schedule. The 2024 update changed how agency is established in Washington in ways that affect virtually every agency question on the state portion.

The License Professor is written by licensed Washington professionals who built questions around PSI state portion priorities. Every question on current Washington agency law, Real Estate Excise Tax calculations, and Growth Management Act requirements is grounded in current Washington statute.

Washington Sample Exams

Experience the real study interface — no account required.

Broker

Individuals new to real estate who want to start their career helping clients buy and sell property

Managing Broker

Experienced professionals who want to manage a brokerage office and supervise other agents

Three Topics that Trip Up Washington Students Most

Shoreline Management Act

Washington’s 1972 citizen-initiative SMA regulates all development along ocean, Puget Sound, river, and lake shorelines — the exam tests the three policy areas (shoreline use, environmental protection, public access) and permit types unique to Washington.

Agency Law (Statutory)

Washington replaced common-law fiduciary duties with statutory duties under RCW 18.86, updated in 2024 to require written buyer brokerage agreements with a 60-day minimum term — students using outdated materials will fail these questions.

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Excise Tax (REET)

Washington imposes a graduated Real Estate Excise Tax with rates from 1.1% to 3.0% based on selling price tiers, plus local REET up to 0.50% — multi-bracket calculations where one misplaced threshold turns a correct answer wrong.

The Washington Real Estate License Professor includes specialized deep dives for each of these.

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Washington Real Estate Practice Questions

Sample questions from the Washington real estate exam — with answers and explanations.

1. A Tacoma rental property generates $32,000 annual rent and sells for $420,000. What is the gross rent multiplier?

  1. A.13.1
  2. B.13.8
  3. C.15.2
  4. D.11.2
Explanation: A gross rent multiplier is sale price divided by gross rent, so $420,000 divided by $32,000 of annual rent is 13.125, which rounds to 13.1. The figure 13.8 comes from knocking 5% off the rent for vacancy first, which feels careful but is wrong, because gross means before any vacancy or expense deduction. Residential appraisers use the same gross basis on Fannie Mae Form 1025, which multiplies total gross monthly rent by a monthly GRM, so check whether a quoted multiplier was built on monthly or annual rent before you compare two properties.

2. Six months after the buyer bought a condo, the roof leaked during a rainstorm. When the condo was listed, the seller told the broker that the roof leaked, but they agreed not to tell any prospective buyers. The broker, who is the sellers' agent, claims that the buyer did not ask about the roof. Under these facts the buyer:

  1. A.can sue the broker for non-disclosure.
  2. B.cannot sue the broker under the license law.
  3. C.can sue the seller under license law.
  4. D.cannot do anything because the leaking roof could have been discovered by inspection.
Explanation: RCW 18.86.030(1)(d) gives every broker a duty, owed to all parties and not waivable, to disclose known material facts that are not apparent or readily ascertainable, so a seller's instruction to keep a known roof leak quiet is no defense, and Jackowski v. Borchelt, 174 Wn.2d 720 (2012), confirms the buyer can sue the broker in tort for breaching that duty. Blaming the buyer for skipping an inspection tempts because buyers are expected to look for themselves, but a leak that shows up only in a rainstorm is latent, and RCW 18.86.030(2) (no duty to inspect) never excuses what the broker already knows. The buyer's failure to ask changes nothing, since the duty is triggered by the broker's knowledge, not by a question. When a seller asks you to hide a known defect, say no in writing and take it to your designated broker before the listing goes live.

3. In order to obtain a broker license, an applicant must:

  1. A.be 21 years of age or older
  2. B.pass a broker examination
  3. C.complete an approved course within one year of application
  4. D.successfully complete 72 hours of instruction in real estate fundamentals
Explanation: RCW 18.85.101 requires a broker applicant to pass the broker's license examination, along with being at least 18, holding a high school diploma or equivalent, and completing 90 hours of approved instruction (figures as of the 2021 amendment). The one year course deadline is the trap: RCW 18.85.101 allows each course to be completed within two years before applying for the exam, and the one year window that does exist is the Department of Licensing's deadline to apply for the license after passing the final exam. Build your calendar backward from that exam date so your course certificates do not expire while you schedule.
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More on Washington Licensing

Deeper reading on the topics that matter most for Washington candidates.

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Washington Real Estate Exam Structure: What to Expect

The Washington Broker exam combines 100 national questions and 30 state-specific questions in 240 minutes.

Question breakdown

National portion: 100 questions

Standard PSI national content, the same material a candidate sees in most states. If you have done national practice questions, this portion is winnable on preparation alone. It is not where Washington candidates lose the exam.

Washington portion: 30 questions

Topics:

  • WA license law and WREO rules (8-9 questions)
  • WA Real Estate Brokerage Relationships Act (6-8 questions)
  • Law of Real Estate Agency pamphlet (3-4 questions)
  • Trust accounts (4-5 questions)
  • Community property law (2-3 questions)
  • Shoreline Management Act (2-3 questions)

Combined scoring

Washington uses a scaled score of 70 (not a literal percentage of 130 correct).

Time management

240 minutes for 130 questions averages about 111 seconds per question, which sounds generous. The catch is the 30 Washington questions. They are scenario-based and read longer than the national questions. A pamphlet-delivery or dual-agency scenario can take two or three minutes to work through. Move quickly on the national portion and bank the time for the state questions, not the other way around.

Cost structure

  • Pre-licensing (90 hours): $400-$800
  • Exam: $138
  • License: $146
  • Background check: ~$50
  • Total: $734-$1,134

Retake rules

Retakes allowed. $138 per attempt. Score report shows weak content areas.

If you're taking the Managing Broker exam

Note: Washington's entry-level license is itself called "Broker" (the exam described above). Managing Broker is the state's upper tier, reached after experience as a Broker. The Managing Broker exam is smaller than the entry Broker exam — 134 questions (90 national + 44 state) instead of 130, in the same 240 minutes — with a higher passing threshold: a scaled score of 75, corresponding to 101 correct rather than 91. Managing Broker content shifts toward supervising other licensees and firm-level trust account responsibilities. Source: sourcing comment on the Managing Broker exam entry in this platform's data (Sprint 1628).

Topics Covered on the Washington Real Estate Exam

The figures below describe the Broker exam.

National Exam Topics (100 questions)

  1. Property Ownership. Estates, deeds, easements, joint ownership.
  2. Land Use Controls. Zoning, government powers.
  3. Valuation. The three approaches, CMA.
  4. Financing. Mortgages, FHA/VA, RESPA, TILA.
  5. Agency. National agency principles.
  6. Contracts. Listing agreements, purchase contracts.
  7. Closing. Closing procedures, prorations.
  8. Practice. Working with buyers and sellers, fair housing, advertising, math.

Washington State Exam Topics (40 questions)

  1. WA Real Estate Brokerage Relationships Act. Agency relationships under WA law.
  2. WA Licensing Laws. Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons (RCW 18.85).
  3. Trust Account Rules. Broker trust account requirements.
  4. Agency Relationships. The four agency types under WA law.
  5. Disclosure Requirements. Law of Real Estate Agency pamphlet, agency disclosure form.

Why this list matters

Each state topic generates 5-10 questions. Skip the WA Brokerage Relationships Act and you've lost major points. Effective candidates allocate study proportional to question weight.

What this list doesn't tell you

PSI writes scenario-based questions. Practice questions, not just topic review.

Washington Exam FAQ

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