- Official section
- National X: Practice of Real Estate
- Broker weight
- 12% of the national broker portion
- Expected scored items
- Practice of Real Estate accounts for about 12 of 100 items
Practice of Real Estate topic guide
Employment status, antitrust, and Do Not Call
These rules protect three different relationships: worker classification, competition among businesses, and consumer control over solicitations. Name the relationship first so that a tax rule does not replace supervision, collaboration does not become collusion, and a lead list does not become permission to call.
What does this exam area cover?
Short answer: Know employee and independent-contractor tests, federal statutory nonemployee requirements, Illinois sponsoring-broker supervision, commission and expense agreements, price fixing, bid rigging, market and customer allocation, group boycotts, tying arrangements, Sherman Act criminal and civil consequences, independent business decisions, National Do Not Call access and 31-day scrubbing, internal do-not-call requests, established-business and inquiry windows, written permission, calling hours, caller identification, robocalls, texts, records, training, monitoring, and safe harbor.
The current national outline tests employment status, antitrust laws and penalties, and Do Not Call rules. Federal tax classification does not decide every employment statute. Antitrust questions often use clear competitor agreements, while actual analysis can be complex. Telemarketing must comply with FTC, FCC, Illinois, and carrier rules that apply to the call or text.
Practice the topic in Pass Illinois
From concept to decision
Drill this topic, then review the explanation
Pass Illinois gives you original national and Illinois questions, topic-by-topic study, clear explanations, timed practice, flashcards, progress tracking, and Math Coach. Start free, find the weak distinction, and focus the next session there.
What is on the official outline?
- Topic
- Worker-status tests
- What to know
- Employee, independent contractor, control, economic dependence, opportunity for profit or loss, investment, permanence, integral work, written agreement, actual practice, tax, wage, unemployment, workers' compensation, licensing, and law-specific analysis
- Best exam move
- The contract label is evidence, not the universal answer.
- Topic
- Federal statutory nonemployee
- What to know
- Licensed real estate agent, sales or output compensation, not hours, written contract, federal tax treatment, expenses, withholding, self-employment tax, records, brokerage payments, and IRS reporting
- Best exam move
- Memorize the three-part IRS test and keep it limited to federal tax classification.
- Topic
- Illinois supervision and agreements
- What to know
- Sponsoring broker, designated managing broker, license affiliation, office policy, supervision, training, advertising, escrow, records, compensation through sponsor, independent-contractor agreement, expenses, taxes, benefits, termination, and return of property
- Best exam move
- Independent contractor does not mean independently licensed from the sponsoring broker.
- Topic
- Antitrust foundation
- What to know
- Competition, agreement, concerted action, interstate commerce, per se conduct, rule of reason, Sherman Act, Federal Trade Commission Act, state law, criminal enforcement, civil enforcement, injunction, treble damages, attorney fees, and compliance
- Best exam move
- Look for an agreement or coordinated practice among competitors.
- Topic
- Price fixing and bid rigging
- What to know
- Commission rate, minimum fee, discount ban, referral fee, split, buyer fee, listing fee, service package, administrative fee, auction bid, rotation, cover bid, information exchange, signaling, informal agreement, and independent pricing
- Best exam move
- There is no standard commission that competitors may agree to enforce.
- Topic
- Market and customer allocation
- What to know
- Territory, city, subdivision, property type, price range, seller, buyer, landlord, tenant, developer, referral source, lead rotation, reciprocal restraint, noncompetition among rivals, and independent focus
- Best exam move
- A brokerage may choose its own market but cannot agree with rivals to divide one.
- Topic
- Group boycotts
- What to know
- Coordinated refusal, competitor, brokerage, discount model, listing platform, portal, photographer, title company, lender, appraiser, vendor, association, access, punishment, exclusion, and legitimate standard
- Best exam move
- Individual vendor choice differs from collective competitor pressure.
- Topic
- Tying arrangements and referrals
- What to know
- Conditioned sale, desired product, tied product, market power, separate products, coercion, brokerage service, title, lender, warranty, insurance, affiliated business, disclosure, required use, thing of value, and RESPA overlap
- Best exam move
- Do not force purchase of an unwanted separate service as the condition for obtaining another product.
- Topic
- Antitrust penalties and prevention
- What to know
- Corporate fine, individual fine, imprisonment, twice gain or loss alternative, civil treble damages, attorney fees, injunction, state penalties, license discipline, reputational harm, meeting agenda, counsel, competitor contact, written policy, training, reporting, and preservation
- Best exam move
- Leave and report a competitor discussion about price, territory, or exclusion instead of participating silently.
- Topic
- National Do Not Call screening
- What to know
- Seller or telemarketer, outbound sales call, personal number, area code access, registry subscription, 31-day download, scrub, internal list, entity-specific request, established business relationship, inquiry, application, written permission, exempt call, reassigned number, and documentation
- Best exam move
- Check both the national registry and the company's own list before each campaign.
- Topic
- Calling and consent rules
- What to know
- 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time, caller identification, purpose disclosure, prompt connection, abandonment, prerecorded call, automatic dialing, wireless number, text message, prior express consent, prior express written consent where required, opt-out, revocation, reassigned number, and FCC overlap
- Best exam move
- A registry exception does not automatically satisfy robocall or text-consent rules.
- Topic
- Do Not Call safe harbor and operations
- What to know
- Written procedures, training, personnel monitoring, discipline, registry access limited to compliance, entity-specific suppression, vendor contract, lead-source warranty, scrub date, call record, request record, audit, complaint, remediation, and retention
- Best exam move
- Buying a lead list never replaces the seller's own compliance system.
Which distinctions produce the most mistakes?
- Terms
- Employee vs. statutory nonemployee
- Difference
- Employee status depends on the applicable law and facts. A qualifying statutory nonemployee receives a specific federal tax classification.
- Question cue
- Broad worker relationship versus three-part tax rule.
- Terms
- Independent contractor vs. unsupervised licensee
- Difference
- An independent-contractor agreement can govern compensation and tax treatment. Illinois sponsorship and supervision duties still apply.
- Question cue
- Business arrangement versus licensing control.
- Terms
- Independent pricing vs. price fixing
- Difference
- A firm may independently select any lawful fee. Competitors may not agree on fees or suppress discounts.
- Question cue
- Unilateral choice versus rival agreement.
- Terms
- Market focus vs. market allocation
- Difference
- A firm may independently specialize in an area or property type. Rivals may not agree to divide customers or territory.
- Question cue
- Own strategy versus reciprocal restraint.
- Terms
- Individual refusal vs. group boycott
- Difference
- A firm can independently choose partners for lawful reasons. A coordinated competitor refusal designed to exclude or coerce raises boycott concerns.
- Question cue
- Solo decision versus collective pressure.
- Terms
- Tying vs. ordinary package
- Difference
- Tying conditions access to one product on taking a separate unwanted product under legally relevant circumstances. A transparently offered optional package does not compel purchase.
- Question cue
- Required add-on versus buyer choice.
- Terms
- National Registry vs. internal list
- Difference
- The National Registry covers registered consumer numbers. The internal list records people who directly told that seller or telemarketer to stop.
- Question cue
- Government list versus company-specific request.
- Terms
- Established relationship vs. written permission
- Difference
- A qualifying relationship can support a time-limited registry exception. Signed written permission can authorize calls to the specified number under stated terms.
- Question cue
- Past transaction versus affirmative consent.
- Terms
- Live call vs. prerecorded or automated contact
- Difference
- A manually dialed live call follows registry and calling rules. Automated calls and texts can require additional FCC consent and opt-out compliance.
- Question cue
- Human conversation versus technology-triggered contact.
How should you solve a worker, competition, or call question?
- Name the legal relationship: worker and brokerage, competing businesses, or seller and consumer.
- For worker status, identify the law being applied, actual control, compensation method, license, and written agreement.
- For antitrust, identify competitors, communication, agreement, price, territory, customer, vendor, product condition, and competitive effect.
- Separate unilateral business decisions from coordinated competitor conduct.
- For calls or texts, identify seller, caller, purpose, number type, technology, local time, registry status, internal request, relationship, inquiry, and consent.
- Apply the strictest relevant restriction and remember that one exception does not erase another statute.
- Use written policies, training, records, monitoring, counsel escalation, and prompt correction rather than informal assumptions.
- Rule
- IRS statutory nonemployee
- Core requirement
- License, output pay, written tax contract
- Exam anchor
- Three-part federal test
- Rule
- Price fixing
- Core requirement
- No competitor fee agreement
- Exam anchor
- Independent commission decision
- Rule
- Market allocation
- Core requirement
- No customer or territory division
- Exam anchor
- Compete for business
- Rule
- Group boycott
- Core requirement
- No coordinated refusal to deal
- Exam anchor
- Independent partner choice
- Rule
- Registry scrub
- Core requirement
- Version no more than 31 days old
- Exam anchor
- Campaign screening
- Rule
- Internal request
- Core requirement
- Honor company-specific stop request
- Exam anchor
- Overrides relationship exception
How do the rules work in scenarios?
Statutory nonemployee
Scenario: A licensed agent is paid only by closed-transaction output and signs a contract stating the agent is not an employee for federal tax purposes.
- The worker holds the required real estate license.
- Compensation is output-based rather than hourly.
- The written contract contains the federal tax statement.
Answer: The facts satisfy the federal statutory-nonemployee test, without deciding every other employment law.
Commission discussion
Scenario: Competing brokers agree at lunch that none will charge below a 2.5% fee for buyer representation.
- The participants are competitors.
- They agree on a minimum price term.
- Calling the number common or professional does not make the agreement lawful.
Answer: The agreement is price fixing.
Territory split
Scenario: Two competing firms agree that one will take all north-side listings and the other will take all south-side listings.
- The firms agree not to compete in allocated areas.
- The restriction divides territory and potential clients.
- Each firm's independent specialization would be different.
Answer: The agreement is market allocation.
Direct stop request
Scenario: A past client bought a home six months ago but tells the brokerage not to call again. The number is not on the National Registry.
- A past transaction could otherwise support a relationship exception.
- The consumer made a direct company-specific request.
- The internal request controls for that seller.
Answer: Place the number on the internal suppression list and stop solicitation calls.
What are the common exam traps?
- Trap
- The independent-contractor label decides every worker law.
- Correction
- Each law applies its own test to actual facts.
- Trap
- An independent contractor needs no sponsoring-broker supervision.
- Correction
- Illinois licensing supervision remains.
- Trap
- A customary commission is safe to coordinate.
- Correction
- Competitors must set rates independently; there is no lawful industry-fixed commission.
- Trap
- Market allocation requires a written contract.
- Correction
- An informal or implied competitor agreement can violate antitrust law.
- Trap
- A boycott is lawful whenever competitors dislike a vendor.
- Correction
- Coordinated exclusion can be unlawful; each firm should decide independently.
- Trap
- Tying and an optional service package are identical.
- Correction
- Tying involves coercive conditioning of one product on another separate product.
- Trap
- Antitrust liability affects only corporations.
- Correction
- Individuals can face fines, imprisonment, civil liability, and discipline.
- Trap
- Registry access once a year is enough.
- Correction
- FTC safe harbor requires a version downloaded no more than 31 days before the call.
- Trap
- An established business relationship overrides a direct stop request.
- Correction
- A company-specific do-not-call request must be honored.
- Trap
- A purchased lead is consent for every call and text.
- Correction
- The caller must verify registry, internal request, technology, and consent requirements.
Can you answer these original practice questions?
These questions are original study items aligned to the published outline. They are not copied, recalled, or predicted PSI questions.
1. Which is part of the federal statutory-nonemployee test for licensed real estate agents?
- Hourly compensation
- Output-based compensation
- No written agreement
- No real estate license
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
Substantially all pay must depend on sales or other output rather than hours.
2. Competing brokers agree to charge the same minimum fee. What is this?
- Price fixing
- Market focus
- Independent pricing
- Appraisal
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A
A competitor agreement on fees is price fixing.
3. Competing firms divide sellers by ZIP code. What is this?
- Market allocation
- Severalty
- Substitution
- Amortization
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A
The competitors have divided territory and customers rather than competing.
4. How recent must the National Registry version be under the FTC safe-harbor framework?
- No more than 31 days old
- One year old
- Five years old
- Only downloaded once
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A
The caller must use a registry version downloaded no more than 31 days before the call.
5. A consumer directly tells a brokerage to stop calling. What should happen?
- Keep calling for 18 months
- Honor the internal do-not-call request
- Call only after 9 p.m.
- Sell the number to another team
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
A seller-specific stop request must be recorded and honored.
How should you study this area?
- Session
- 1. Worker status
- Focus
- Employee, contractor, control, economic dependence, written agreement, compensation, licensing, tax, wage, and actual practice
- Proof you are ready
- State which legal test applies in eight scenarios.
- Session
- 2. Illinois supervision
- Focus
- Sponsor, managing broker, affiliation, advertising, escrow, records, compensation, training, expenses, and termination
- Proof you are ready
- List duties that survive contractor classification.
- Session
- 3. Antitrust agreements
- Focus
- Price fixing, bid rigging, allocation, boycott, tying, competitor, agreement, unilateral action, and legitimate collaboration
- Proof you are ready
- Classify fifteen competitor interactions.
- Session
- 4. Penalties and prevention
- Focus
- Criminal fines, prison, alternative fine, treble damages, injunction, discipline, meetings, policy, counsel, reporting, and preservation
- Proof you are ready
- Recite penalties and a safe response to a prohibited discussion.
- Session
- 5. Do Not Call screening
- Focus
- Registry, 31 days, internal list, relationship, inquiry, written permission, purpose, number, time, and identity
- Proof you are ready
- Decide whether ten live calls may proceed.
- Session
- 6. Automated contact and operations
- Focus
- Robocall, autodial, text, consent, opt-out, reassigned number, vendor, procedure, training, monitoring, records, and safe harbor
- Proof you are ready
- Score at least 90% and document each consent or suppression basis.
Do not count recognition as mastery. Close the notes and explain the rule, apply it to a new fact pattern, and identify why each distractor fails.
Employment, Antitrust, and Do Not Call FAQ
Can an Illinois real estate licensee be an independent contractor?
Yes, if the relationship satisfies the applicable legal test and agreement. Federal tax law, wage law, unemployment, workers' compensation, licensing, and agency law can use different tests, so one label does not decide every purpose.
What is the federal statutory nonemployee test for a real estate agent?
The worker must be properly licensed, substantially all compensation must depend on sales or other output rather than hours, and a written contract must state that the worker will not be treated as an employee for federal tax purposes.
Does independent-contractor status eliminate sponsoring-broker supervision?
No. Illinois licensing duties and sponsoring-broker supervision continue regardless of a federal tax classification or contract label.
What is price fixing in real estate?
Price fixing is an agreement among competitors about commissions, fees, splits, discounts, service prices, minimums, or other price terms. Each brokerage must set its business terms independently.
What is market allocation?
It is an agreement among competitors to divide territories, property types, customers, listings, price ranges, or referral sources so they do not compete for the allocated business.
What is a group boycott?
A group boycott is coordinated refusal among competitors to deal with a person, brokerage, platform, vendor, or business partner. Joint standards can have legitimate purposes, but competitors should not use collective pressure to suppress competition.
What are the current federal criminal Sherman Act maximums?
A corporation can face up to $100 million, and an individual can face up to $1 million and up to 10 years in prison. An alternative fine based on twice the gain or twice the loss can exceed the stated dollar maximum.
How often must a telemarketer check the National Do Not Call Registry?
To meet the FTC safe-harbor framework, the call list must use a registry version downloaded no more than 31 days before the call. The business also needs written procedures, training, monitoring, access controls, and its own suppression list.
Does an established business relationship override a direct do-not-call request?
No. A consumer's company-specific request not to receive calls from that seller or telemarketer must be honored even when an established business relationship would otherwise support an exception.
Are these questions copied from PSI?
No. Every practice item is original and aligned to the public practice-of-real-estate outline.
Primary sources
- PSI Illinois Candidate Information Booklet dated June 24, 2026
- Internal Revenue Service, licensed real estate agents as statutory nonemployees
- Illinois Real Estate License Act of 2000
- U.S. Department of Justice, antitrust laws and competition
- U.S. Department of Justice, Sherman Act
- Federal Trade Commission, guide to antitrust laws
- Federal Trade Commission, Telemarketing Sales Rule compliance
- Federal Trade Commission, National Do Not Call Registry for telemarketers
- Federal Communications Commission, robocall and text guidance
The current official outline controls the tested scope. Statutes, regulations, and official agency materials control when a general study rule and a jurisdiction-specific rule differ.