Property Management for the Illinois broker exam

Calculating effective rent

A 12-month lease states $1,800 monthly rent and gives one full month free. Ignore all other charges.

1. Eleven paid months at $1,800 total $19,800.
2. The benefit is spread across the full 12-month term.
3. $19,800 divided by 12 equals $1,650.

Answer: The effective monthly rent for this comparison is $1,650.

Handling screening-report adverse action

A manager requires a larger deposit solely because a tenant screening report shows an unresolved eviction record.

1. A larger deposit is a less favorable term.
2. The decision was based on a consumer report.
3. The FCRA adverse-action requirements apply even though the applicant was not fully denied.
4. This identifies the FCRA notice trigger only. The record’s accuracy and the legality of the proposed deposit or screening decision must be evaluated separately.

Answer: Provide the required adverse-action notice; do not treat the notice as approval of the underlying decision.

Separating assistance animals from pets

A tenant requests an exception to a no-pets policy for an animal connected to a disability.

1. The request concerns a rule change, not ordinary pet permission.
2. A disability-related exception is evaluated as a reasonable accommodation.
3. The manager should use the fair housing process rather than automatically charge a pet fee or deny by breed.

Answer: Evaluate the request promptly under the reasonable-accommodation framework.

Adjusting a rent comparable

The subject unit includes utilities and parking. The closest advertised comparable has the same face rent but tenants pay both items separately.

1. The face rents are not economically equivalent.
2. Utilities and parking affect what the tenant receives for the rent.
3. The evidence must be adjusted or normalized before comparison.

Answer: Do not treat the identical asking rents as identical effective market evidence.

The report was not the main reason

A manager denies a rental after considering both income information and a consumer report from a reporting agency. The report contributed, but the manager calls income the main reason.

1. The report need not be the primary reason.
2. The FCRA trigger includes a decision based in whole or part on the report.
3. Provide the required information and evaluate the lawfulness of the criteria separately.

Answer: The report’s contribution can trigger notice even when another reason mattered more.

Separate the tenant’s share

Assume an otherwise lawful, applicable minimum-income test of three times the tenant-paid portion. Monthly rent is $1,800 and the verified subsidy covers $1,200.

1. The tenant-paid portion is $600.
2. Under the stipulated test, 3 × $600 = $1,800.
3. Do not apply this test to the full subsidized rent or claim every three-times rule is required or lawful.

Answer: The stipulated income comparison is $1,800, subject to all actual applicable criteria and protections.

A policy change is not a ramp

In covered housing, a tenant with a disability requests a reserved space as an exception to first-come parking. A separate tenant requests installation of a ramp.

1. The parking-policy change is an accommodation question.
2. The ramp is a physical-modification question.
3. Coverage, necessity, reasonableness, funding and any lawful conditions still matter; a request is not automatically approved or denied.

Answer: Use the right framework for each request rather than applying identical cost or documentation rules.

The lease packet in October 2026

A landlord or agent enters a written Illinois residential renewal in October 2026 and assumes the Summary of Rights for Safer Homes Act applies only to brand-new tenants.

1. Section 20 covers a new rental or renewal.
2. Attach the summary as the first page of the written residential lease.
3. Obtain each tenant’s acknowledgment at the bottom of each summary page.
4. Do not confuse the summary Act 752 with the separate Safe Homes Act 750.

Answer: Use the required summary and acknowledgments for the stipulated written renewal.

The future date is still future

An October 2026 checklist presents the identified rental-fee reform in Public Act 104-479 as already effective because the original Act said July 2026.

1. Read the later date amendment, Public Act 104-514.
2. It changed the operative date to January 1, 2027.
3. That does not mean all current fees are lawful or that existing state and local requirements disappear.

Answer: Distinguish the enacted future reform from the rules operative in October 2026.

Rent, a credit and a deposit

Assume twelve months at $1,800, one full month free, no other charges and a separate refundable $1,800 security deposit. The manager subtracts the deposit as a second rent concession.

1. The rent-only total remains 11 × $1,800 = $19,800.
2. The rent-only effective monthly comparison is $1,650.
3. The separate refundable security is not a second rent credit or earned rent on the stipulated facts.

Answer: Keep the deposit separate from the rent-only concession calculation.

State the measure before comparing the rent

Assume twelve months at $2,400, a $1,200 rent credit, mandatory parking of $100 each month and a separate refundable $2,400 deposit. Ignore other charges.

1. Rent after the credit totals $28,800 - $1,200 = $27,600, or $2,300 per month.
2. Parking adds $1,200 over the term. Rent plus parking therefore averages $2,400 per month.
3. The separate refundable deposit is excluded from both stated comparisons.
4. These are defined classroom measures, not a prediction of collected cash, net operating income or the deposit’s eventual disposition.

Answer: Use $2,300 for the stated rent-only comparison and $2,400 for the stated rent-plus-parking comparison.

Default does not create unlimited management authority

A tenant owes rent. The owner directs the manager to change the locks that afternoon and keep the entire deposit, without reviewing the applicable process or deposit basis.

1. The debt, possession procedure and deposit disposition are different questions.
2. An owner’s instruction or management agreement does not replace applicable tenant protections and lawful process.
3. Review the actual lease, notices, jurisdiction and legal remedies rather than improvising a lockout or automatic forfeiture.
4. This does not mean a tenant may remain indefinitely without rent or that every deduction is forbidden.

Answer: Use the proper process and evidence for each issue, with appropriate legal advice for the actual transaction.

1. A manager rejects an applicant because of information in a tenant screening report. Which federal requirement is most directly triggered?

1. A reporting-agency decision approving the denial
2. Automatic disclosure of every applicant’s report to other applicants
3. An automatic sixty-day delay in the rental decision
4. Adverse-action notice

2. In covered housing, which disability-related request is best classified as a reasonable accommodation?

1. Widening a bathroom doorway
2. Changing a first-come parking rule to reserve an accessible space
3. Constructing a ramp at the entrance
4. Installing a tenant-funded grab bar

3. A 10-month lease charges $2,000 per month but gives a $2,000 concession. Ignoring other charges, what is the effective monthly rent?

1. $1,600
2. $1,800
3. $2,200
4. $2,000

4. Which factor should a manager consider when comparing two rental units with the same asking rent?

1. The applicant's religion
2. The owner's protected-class preference
3. Utilities and concessions
4. A stereotype about families

5. For a covered rental subject to familial-status protection with no applicable exemption, an owner instructs the manager not to rent to households with children under 18. What should the manager do?

1. Use the rule only in oral conversations
2. Follow the instruction because the owner controls the property
3. Raise the deposit only for those households
4. Refuse the instruction because familial status is federally protected

6. A consumer report contributed only partly to a rental denial. Which statement is correct?

1. The landlord must always wait 60 days before deciding
2. The whole-or-part contribution can trigger the adverse-action notice
3. No notice is required unless it was the sole reason
4. The reporting agency must decide the rental outcome

7. How do the general FCRA notice format and additional credit-score-use information differ?

1. Every rental decision always requires an employment pre-adverse packet
2. A credit score used for denial removes all notice duties
3. Every part may always be oral only
4. General notice may be oral, written or electronic; covered credit-score use adds written or electronic score information

8. What does the applicant’s 60-day free-report request right mean?

1. The applicant automatically wins any dispute
2. Every reinvestigation must take exactly 60 days
3. The landlord must hold the apartment for 60 days
4. The applicant may request the free CRA disclosure within the stated period after receipt of the notification

9. Assume an otherwise lawful 3-times tenant-share income test, rent $1,800 and a $1,200 subsidy. What is the stipulated income comparison?

1. $1,800
2. $3,600
3. $600
4. $5,400

10. Which description best distinguishes covered housing from a public-facing leasing office?

1. Federal assistance is irrelevant to physical-modification responsibilities
2. Every private apartment unit automatically is a TitleIII public accommodation
3. FHA housing duties, ADA public-access duties and applicable federally assisted recipient duties must be identified separately
4. Only the ADA can ever apply to either

11. Does the current Illinois Security Deposit Return Act retain its former five-unit coverage threshold?

1. Yes, it always excludes smaller properties
2. No; separate interest and local rules still have their own coverage
3. Yes, unless rent is paid electronically
4. No, because deposits automatically become earned rent

12. For a written Illinois residential new lease or renewal in October 2026, what does Section 20 of the Summary of Rights for Safer Homes Act require?

1. Only a copy at move-out
2. The summary as the first lease page and each tenant’s acknowledgment at the bottom of each summary page
3. Only a copy for the first tenant named
4. Only an oral summary if requested

13. As of October 2026, how should the identified rental-fee reform delayed by Public Act 104-514 be described?

1. A repeal of every current local fee rule
2. Permission for every fee until 2027
3. Enacted with an operative date of January 1, 2027
4. Already operative solely because the original Act said July 2026

14. A tenant defaults on rent. Does the management agreement alone authorize changing the locks to remove the tenant?

1. Yes, if the deposit is insufficient
2. No; lawful possession procedures and actual applicable rights must be followed
3. Yes, after an oral demand of any length
4. Yes, whenever the owner demands it

15. In a rent-only comparison, what is the role of a separate refundable security deposit?

1. It is automatically an additional rent concession
2. It is automatically earned rent
3. It replaces the full lease term in the denominator
4. It remains separate security on the stipulated facts, rather than a second rent credit

16. Does calling someone a property manager alone decide whether an Illinois real estate license is required?

1. No; examine actual conduct, compensation, the person served and any applicable statutory exemption
2. Yes, an owner’s instruction always supplies the license
3. Yes, the job title always supplies an exemption
4. No, because every owner managing personal property must always obtain a broker license

17. A screening criterion is written and applied uniformly. What must still be examined?

1. Only the applicant’s willingness to waive rights
2. Applicable discrimination rules, effects, justification and required accommodations
3. Only the owner’s preference
4. Nothing; uniform wording always proves legality

18. Which date comparison is correct for the identified Illinois requirements as of October 2026?

1. Both are postponed until January 2027
2. Enactment alone makes every future rule current
3. The lease-summary duty began January 1, 2026; the identified delayed fee reform is operative January 1, 2027
4. Both automatically began on the original July 2026 fee date

19. Assume twelve months at $2,400, a $1,200 rent credit and mandatory parking of $100 every month. Ignoring other amounts, what is the average monthly tenant outlay for rent and parking together?

1. $2,500
2. $2,200
3. $2,300
4. $2,400

20. Which statement belongs in the general FCRA adverse-action notice about the reporting agency?

1. It made the rental decision and must reverse it on request
2. It must hold the apartment while the applicant disputes the report
3. It guarantees the landlord’s screening criteria are lawful
4. It did not make the unfavorable decision and cannot provide the specific reasons for that decision