- Official section
- National VII.B: Environmental and Government Disclosures
- Broker weight
- 7% of the national broker portion
- Expected scored items
- Property Disclosures accounts for about 7 of 100 items
Property Disclosures topic guide
Environmental and government disclosures
Environmental questions become manageable when you stop treating every hazard as the same kind of rule. Lead, radon, flood mapping, asbestos, tanks, contamination, and violation notices each have their own evidence, timing, and professional lane.
Last updated: August 1, 2026
What does this exam area cover?
Short answer: Identify the property, transaction, hazard, governing rule, required document, delivery deadline, known reports, investigation right, and correct professional. Disclosure does not necessarily require testing or cleanup, and a clean-looking property does not prove that no issue exists. Brokers communicate known facts and required notices accurately without diagnosing hazards or guaranteeing regulatory compliance.
The national outline effective June 24, 2026 tests environmental and government disclosures. Federal law controls lead-based-paint notice for most pre-1978 target housing. Illinois law separately addresses radon and seller disclosure of known residential conditions. Commercial and contaminated-property transactions often require broader environmental and legal due diligence.
What is on the official outline?
- Topic
- Lead-based-paint disclosure
- What to know
- Most pre-1978 target housing, sale, lease, seller, lessor, agent, approved pamphlet, known lead-based paint, known lead hazard, available record, common area, warning statement, acknowledgment, contract language, timing, buyer evaluation, waiver, retention, and exemption
- Best exam move
- Look first at construction date and transaction type, then confirm disclosure, records, warning language, acknowledgments, and the buyer's evaluation opportunity before obligation.
- Topic
- Lead inspection and renovation
- What to know
- Paint inspection, risk assessment, deteriorated paint, dust, soil, water line, lead service line, certified professional, sampling, report, 10-day opportunity, negotiated period, written waiver, repair, renovation, contractor, dust control, and separate RRP requirements
- Best exam move
- Do not confuse the sale disclosure rule with a professional lead evaluation or renovation-safety rules.
- Topic
- Illinois radon notice
- What to know
- Illinois Radon Awareness Act, approved pamphlet, disclosure form, residential sale, timing, known elevated concentration, test result, record, seller acknowledgment, buyer acknowledgment, agent acknowledgment, exemption, no duty to test, and no duty to mitigate
- Best exam move
- Remember the form and pamphlet before contract obligation, while separating disclosure from optional testing and mitigation.
- Topic
- Radon testing and mitigation
- What to know
- Colorless gas, indoor concentration, picocuries per liter, action level, short-term test, closed-house condition, licensed measurement professional, device, placement, interference, result, mitigation, licensed mitigator, post-mitigation test, and record
- Best exam move
- Use Illinois-approved protocols and licensed professionals rather than reading a test result as a broker guarantee.
- Topic
- Asbestos and suspect materials
- What to know
- Pipe insulation, boiler insulation, floor tile, ceiling texture, siding, roofing, damaged material, friable condition, planned disturbance, inspection, accredited professional, sampling, encapsulation, enclosure, removal, disposal, renovation, and air monitoring
- Best exam move
- Age or appearance is a red flag, not laboratory identification. Avoid disturbing material and refer evaluation or handling.
- Topic
- Moisture and mold
- What to know
- Leak, seepage, flood, condensation, humidity, visible growth, odor, hidden area, water stain, HVAC, sampling limitation, source control, repair, cleanup, qualified contractor, health concern, prior remediation, and recurring condition
- Best exam move
- Describe the moisture and observed condition, obtain the history, and use inspection or professional evaluation instead of making a health diagnosis.
- Topic
- Underground tanks and petroleum releases
- What to know
- Heating-oil tank, gasoline tank, registered tank, unregistered tank, abandoned tank, fill pipe, vent pipe, stain, odor, reported release, leaking UST database, Illinois EPA file, OSFM record, corrective action, eligibility, No Further Remediation Letter, lien, and cleanup cost
- Best exam move
- A removed tank does not prove that no release occurred. Review both tank and cleanup records with environmental and legal professionals.
- Topic
- Commercial contamination and CERCLA
- What to know
- Historic industrial use, dry cleaner, gas station, manufacturing, dumping, adjoining site, hazardous substance, release, threatened release, brownfield, Superfund, strict liability, environmental professional, Phase I, All Appropriate Inquiries, Phase II, cleanup, continuing obligation, and land-use restriction
- Best exam move
- Order environmental due diligence before acquisition when ownership could create liability or the history raises contamination risk.
- Topic
- Flood, drainage, and disaster records
- What to know
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center, Flood Insurance Rate Map, special flood hazard area, floodway, base flood, prior flooding, insurance claim, disaster assistance, elevation certificate, local floodplain rule, lender requirement, separate flood insurance, drainage, and map amendment
- Best exam move
- Compare seller knowledge, official mapping, local rules, elevation evidence, lender requirements, and insurance availability instead of relying on one source.
- Topic
- Mine subsidence and ground stability
- What to know
- Underground mine, mine map, sag, pit, settlement, earth movement, structural crack, claim, investigation, Illinois DNR, Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund, coverage, waiver, prior repair, monitored movement, and disclosure report
- Best exam move
- Treat location, observed movement, prior claim, and seller knowledge as separate facts requiring technical and insurance review.
- Topic
- Government notices and property records
- What to know
- Code violation, environmental notice, stop-work order, cleanup order, condemnation, unsafe structure, open permit, zoning violation, health order, fire order, special assessment, remediation document, institutional control, recorded restriction, database, agency file, correction evidence, and release letter
- Best exam move
- Read the actual document, identify its issuer, confirm current status, and avoid treating a verbal summary as closure.
- Topic
- Broker process and documentation
- What to know
- Property history, seller questionnaire, disclosure form, known report, public database, advertisement, client instruction, specialist referral, inspection contingency, environmental contingency, attorney review, lender, insurer, notice, acknowledgment, delivery proof, deadline, record retention, and sponsoring broker
- Best exam move
- Match each concern to its required document and investigation route, then preserve proof of delivery and the client's choice.
Which distinctions produce the most mistakes?
- Terms
- Disclosure vs. testing
- Difference
- Disclosure communicates required information, knowledge, and records. Testing measures or samples a condition under an appropriate protocol.
- Question cue
- Tell what is known versus investigate what is present.
- Terms
- Testing vs. mitigation
- Difference
- Testing identifies or measures a concern. Mitigation or remediation reduces, contains, removes, or manages it.
- Question cue
- Find the condition versus address the condition.
- Terms
- Lead pamphlet vs. lead disclosure form
- Difference
- The pamphlet provides general hazard education. The transaction disclosure communicates property-specific knowledge, records, warning language, and acknowledgments.
- Question cue
- General education versus property-specific certification.
- Terms
- Lead disclosure vs. 10-day evaluation opportunity
- Difference
- Disclosure delivers information and records. The evaluation period gives a buyer time to obtain an inspection or risk assessment, subject to written agreement or waiver.
- Question cue
- Receive information versus investigate the housing.
- Terms
- Radon disclosure vs. radon mitigation
- Difference
- Illinois disclosure communicates the warning and known records. Mitigation is licensed technical work to reduce elevated levels.
- Question cue
- Required notice versus corrective system.
- Terms
- Phase I vs. Phase II environmental assessment
- Difference
- A Phase I evaluates records, history, observations, and recognized environmental concerns. A Phase II generally uses sampling or testing to investigate identified concerns.
- Question cue
- Inquiry and professional opinion versus physical investigation data.
- Terms
- Tank removal vs. cleanup closure
- Difference
- Removal addresses the tank. A regulatory closure document addresses corrective-action status under the applicable program.
- Question cue
- Container gone versus release resolved to agency standards.
- Terms
- Flood map vs. flood history
- Difference
- A flood map shows modeled hazard zones. Property history concerns actual water events, claims, drainage, and repairs.
- Question cue
- Mapped risk versus experienced event.
- Terms
- Government database hit vs. final conclusion
- Difference
- A database entry is a screening lead. The underlying agency file, location accuracy, status, technical work, and legal review determine significance.
- Question cue
- Reason to investigate versus proof of current liability.
The NOTICE method for environmental questions
- Name the hazard. Classify lead, radon, asbestos, moisture, tank, contamination, flood, mine, waste, violation, or another concern.
- Outline the governing layer. Identify federal, Illinois, local, private, lender, insurer, or contract requirements without blending them together.
- Time the disclosure. Determine what must be delivered before offer, before acceptance, before contract obligation, during due diligence, or before closing.
- Inventory knowledge and records. Gather reports, test results, repairs, claims, notices, maps, agency files, permits, closure letters, and recorded controls.
- Call the right professional. Use a licensed or qualified inspector, assessor, environmental professional, engineer, attorney, agency, lender, insurer, or contractor.
- Evaluate the client's contract rights. Protect inspection, lead, radon, environmental, attorney-review, financing, insurance, title, notice, and termination deadlines.
- Evidence every delivery and decision. Retain the signed forms, acknowledgments, provided reports, referral, notice, amendment, waiver, and client instruction.
- Concern
- Most pre-1978 housing
- Core document or source
- Federal lead pamphlet and disclosure
- Separate investigation
- Lead inspection or risk assessment
- Concern
- Illinois residential sale
- Core document or source
- Radon pamphlet and Illinois radon form
- Separate investigation
- Licensed radon measurement
- Concern
- Known residential defects
- Core document or source
- Illinois seller disclosure report
- Separate investigation
- Inspection and specialist reports
- Concern
- Suspect asbestos material
- Core document or source
- Seller knowledge and available records
- Separate investigation
- Accredited inspection and sampling
- Concern
- Former gas station
- Core document or source
- Agency files and Phase I assessment
- Separate investigation
- Phase II sampling if warranted
- Concern
- Removed underground tank
- Core document or source
- OSFM and Illinois EPA records
- Separate investigation
- Release status and closure review
- Concern
- Flood concern
- Core document or source
- FEMA map and local floodplain records
- Separate investigation
- Elevation, insurance, lender, and history review
- Concern
- Possible mine subsidence
- Core document or source
- Mine maps, seller history, claims, DNR information
- Separate investigation
- Engineering and insurance review
How do the rules work in scenarios?
The lead form arrives after the buyer signs
Scenario: A buyer signs a contract for a 1925 house. The next day, the listing broker sends the federal lead pamphlet and disclosure form and asks the buyer to acknowledge receipt.
- Most pre-1978 housing is target housing unless an exemption applies.
- The required activities generally occur before the purchaser is obligated, and late disclosure calls for legal and broker review rather than simple backdating.
Answer: Escalate immediately to the sponsoring broker and the parties' attorneys, provide the complete information accurately, and do not alter dates or imply that a late signature cures every consequence.
The seller never tested for radon
Scenario: An Illinois seller says there are no radon records because the home was never tested. The buyer asks whether the seller must install a mitigation system before closing.
- The Illinois Act requires the approved pamphlet and disclosure for a covered sale and communication of specified knowledge and records.
- It does not create a general duty to test or mitigate, while the contract may give the buyer testing and negotiation rights.
Answer: Deliver the required materials, preserve the buyer's test decision and deadline, and avoid inventing a statutory mitigation requirement.
The tank was removed, but the file remains open
Scenario: A commercial seller provides a tank-removal invoice. The Illinois EPA database identifies a reported release, and no No Further Remediation Letter appears in the file supplied to the buyer.
- Tank removal and corrective-action closure are different events.
- A purchase may carry cleanup, lender, redevelopment, insurance, and liability consequences requiring environmental and legal review.
Answer: Obtain the agency file and environmental professional's assessment before the due-diligence deadline. Do not describe the site as clean based on the invoice.
A dry basement is inside a mapped flood zone
Scenario: The seller reports no known flooding, but FEMA mapping places part of the property in a Special Flood Hazard Area and the lender asks for flood insurance.
- No known prior event does not erase modeled flood risk or lender requirements.
- Map location, building elevation, local regulation, coverage, cost, and any map amendment must be evaluated through their proper sources.
Answer: Provide the seller's statement accurately while the buyer confirms mapping, lender, elevation, local, and insurance facts before waiving the applicable contingency.
What are the common exam traps?
- Trap
- Federal lead disclosure applies to every property built before 1978 without exception.
- Correction
- The rule covers most pre-1978 target housing but lists transaction and housing exemptions that must be checked.
- Trap
- Lead disclosure requires every seller to test and remove lead paint.
- Correction
- The disclosure rule communicates known information and records and provides an evaluation opportunity; testing and hazard reduction are separate questions.
- Trap
- The buyer always has exactly 10 days and cannot change it.
- Correction
- The standard opportunity is 10 days, but the parties may agree in writing to another period and a buyer may waive it in writing.
- Trap
- Illinois radon disclosure proves the house is safe.
- Correction
- The form communicates warnings and knowledge. Only proper measurement supplies a current concentration result.
- Trap
- A broker can identify asbestos by looking at a tile.
- Correction
- Appearance may raise suspicion, but identification and sampling belong to qualified professionals.
- Trap
- A mold air sample is always the only useful first step.
- Correction
- EPA emphasizes moisture control and notes that visual assessment and water history often guide the response; professional scope depends on the facts.
- Trap
- A tank-removal receipt proves there was no release.
- Correction
- Tank work and contamination status require separate records and, where warranted, environmental investigation.
- Trap
- A Phase I guarantees that no contamination exists.
- Correction
- A Phase I is a defined inquiry with opinions, limitations, data gaps, and possible recommendations, not a universal guarantee.
- Trap
- A property outside a mapped high-risk flood zone cannot flood.
- Correction
- Mapped zones express modeled hazard, not a promise that water cannot affect other property.
- Trap
- A government notice can be summarized from memory and discarded.
- Correction
- The actual notice, issuer, property, violation, dates, orders, status, and correction evidence should be reviewed and retained as appropriate.
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. Before a buyer is obligated to purchase most housing built before 1978, what must the seller generally provide under the federal lead rule?
- Only a verbal statement that the paint looks sound
- The approved pamphlet, known information, available reports, and required warning and acknowledgment language
- A guarantee that no lead exists
- A mandatory full abatement certificate for every home
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
The federal rule focuses on timely information, records, warnings, certifications, and the buyer's evaluation opportunity.
2. Under the Illinois Radon Awareness Act, which statement is most accurate for a covered residential sale?
- The seller must always test and mitigate before listing
- The seller provides the approved pamphlet and disclosure, but the Act does not generally require testing or mitigation
- Radon applies only to commercial warehouses
- The agent may fabricate a test result when none exists
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
Illinois requires the specified education and disclosure materials while expressly separating that duty from mandatory testing or mitigation.
3. A Phase I environmental site assessment primarily does which of the following?
- Guarantees a site is contamination-free
- Evaluates environmental conditions through records, history, observation, and professional inquiry
- Replaces title insurance
- Sets the property's assessed value
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
All Appropriate Inquiries evaluates present and past property conditions and potential releases under a defined professional process.
4. A seller produces proof that an underground tank was removed, but a reported release remains in the Illinois EPA record. What should the buyer investigate?
- Only the tank's former color
- Corrective-action status, agency files, environmental findings, and any closure document
- Only the tax rate
- Nothing, because tank removal proves cleanup
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
Removal of equipment does not establish that a release was fully investigated or closed under the applicable program.
5. Which statement correctly distinguishes a disclosure from a test?
- Disclosure communicates required knowledge and records; testing investigates or measures a condition
- They are always identical
- Testing is performed only by brokers
- Disclosure guarantees future environmental conditions
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A
Keeping notice, investigation, and remediation separate is the key to this exam topic.
How should you study this area?
- Session
- 1. Build the hazard map
- Focus
- Lead, radon, asbestos, mold, tanks, petroleum, hazardous substances, flood, mine subsidence, violations, and environmental records
- Proof you are ready
- Match twenty signals to the proper source or professional.
- Session
- 2. Master federal lead timing
- Focus
- Pre-1978 target housing, exemptions, pamphlet, knowledge, records, warning statement, acknowledgment, contract timing, 10-day evaluation, negotiated period, and waiver
- Proof you are ready
- Reconstruct the sale workflow from memory in the correct order.
- Session
- 3. Master Illinois radon
- Focus
- Covered sale, pamphlet, form, known result, record, acknowledgments, timing, testing, licensed professional, mitigation, and exemptions
- Proof you are ready
- Correct ten statements that confuse disclosure, testing, and mitigation.
- Session
- 4. Read environmental files
- Focus
- Historic use, database, agency file, tank record, release, Phase I, Phase II, No Further Remediation Letter, cleanup lien, institutional control, and continuing obligation
- Proof you are ready
- Identify the missing record in twelve commercial scenarios.
- Session
- 5. Handle physical and map signals
- Focus
- Damaged materials, moisture, odor, fill pipe, dry cleaner, flood zone, drainage, mine map, earth movement, notice, and specialist referral
- Proof you are ready
- Write neutral broker responses for fifteen red flags.
- Session
- 6. Apply NOTICE
- Focus
- Hazard, rule, timing, knowledge, records, professional, contract right, delivery proof, and client decision
- Proof you are ready
- Score at least 90% on fresh scenarios and explain each deadline.
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.
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Questions students ask about Environmental and Government Disclosures
What are environmental and government disclosures in real estate?
They are legally required notices, property-specific reports, public records, or known facts concerning environmental hazards and government action. The source and timing vary. Examples include federal lead-based-paint disclosure for most pre-1978 housing, the Illinois radon form and pamphlet, the Illinois residential disclosure report, flood maps, open violation notices, and records of reported contamination.
What must be given before the sale of most pre-1978 housing?
Before the buyer is obligated, the federal rule generally requires the approved lead-hazard pamphlet, disclosure of known lead-based paint and hazards, available records and reports, a lead warning statement and acknowledgments, and the buyer's opportunity to conduct a lead evaluation. Exemptions exist, so the transaction and property must be checked.
How long is the federal lead evaluation period?
A purchaser generally receives a 10-day opportunity to conduct a lead-based-paint inspection or risk assessment before becoming obligated, unless the parties agree in writing to a different period or the purchaser waives the opportunity in writing. The disclosure rule does not itself require the seller to test.
What does the Illinois Radon Awareness Act require in a home sale?
For covered residential sales, the seller provides the approved radon pamphlet and Illinois Disclosure of Information on Radon Hazards before the buyer is obligated under a contract. The seller provides known elevated test information and records in the seller's possession. The Act does not create a general seller duty to test or mitigate.
Is radon disclosure the same as a radon test?
No. Disclosure communicates required information and existing knowledge or records. Testing measures radon under a defined protocol. Mitigation reduces elevated concentrations. Each is a different step, and Illinois licenses radon measurement and mitigation professionals.
Does a seller have to remove all asbestos before selling?
Not as a universal federal sale rule. The Illinois residential report asks covered sellers about known unsafe asbestos concentrations or conditions. Condition and planned disturbance matter because damaged or disturbed asbestos-containing material can release fibers. Identification and handling should be left to qualified professionals, with applicable state, federal, and local requirements checked.
Is every environmental concern visible during a showing?
No. Radon has no visible signal, contamination may be underground, flood history may not be apparent in dry weather, and former industrial use may be discoverable only through records. A showing complements but never replaces disclosure documents, public-record review, inspections, testing, and environmental due diligence.
What is a Phase I environmental site assessment?
It is a professional investigation of environmental conditions and potential releases, commonly used for commercial or higher-risk property. EPA recognizes specified ASTM standards for All Appropriate Inquiries under CERCLA. A Phase I is not the same as sampling, cleanup, a property-condition inspection, or a guarantee that no contamination exists.
What should a broker do with a government violation notice?
Obtain and communicate the actual notice, avoid guessing at correction cost or legal effect, determine the responsible agency and status, protect contract deadlines, and direct the parties to legal and technical professionals. The Illinois residential disclosure form expressly asks about notice of uncorrected violations relating to the property.
Are these real PSI exam questions?
No. They are original practice questions aligned to the public Property Disclosures outline effective June 24, 2026.
Primary sources
- PSI Illinois Candidate Information Booklet dated June 24, 2026
- U.S. EPA and HUD Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule guidance
- Illinois Radon Awareness Act
- Illinois Emergency Management Agency real estate radon guidance and forms
- Illinois Residential Real Property Disclosure Act
- Illinois EPA guidance for buyers of property with a reported underground-tank release
- U.S. EPA All Appropriate Inquiries guidance
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center
- U.S. EPA guidance on asbestos in homes
- U.S. EPA guide to mold, moisture, and homes
- Illinois Department of Natural Resources mine-subsidence 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.
Editorial status
Checked against primary sources
The Pass Illinois editorial team last checked this guide on August 1, 2026. Every practice question is an original study item, and the source links above let you verify the rules that support the lesson.