Virginia (VA) Real Estate Exam Prep & Study Guide
What the Virginia (VA) exam actually asks, in the order worth studying it. The weightings below are not an estimate — they are each subject's share of the 2,338 Virginia questions in our bank.
Questions
120
Time limit
150 min
To pass
70%
Exam fee
$60
Source: VREB candidate handbook. Salesperson licence.
What to study first for the Virginia exam
Ordered by how many questions sit behind each subject. Studying front to back spends the same hours on a subject worth 6% as on one worth 15%.
- 115%359 questions
Practice of Real Estate
- 212%276 questions
Contracts
- 311%265 questions
Financing
- 411%248 questions
Property Ownership
- 510%226 questions
General Principles of Agency
- 69%203 questions
Real Estate Math
- 76%151 questions
Valuation Market Analysis
- 86%150 questions
Property Disclosures
Turn the plan into a score
The order above tells you where to start; the dashboard tells you when you're done — per-topic accuracy over the same Virginia bank, a readiness score against the pass mark, and a wrong-answer book that won't let a miss stay missed.
- Every topic above, tracked with live accuracy
- Virginia state portion and national portion scored separately
- Free tier: 20 questions a day, no card required
The Virginia state portion, subject by subject
VA-specific law is where out-of-state study material stops helping. These are the subjects our bank covers, with real questions under each.
General Principles of Agency
226 questions- Without prior permission, Quinn Brooks signs a small repair authorization on behalf of the owner. The owner later approv…
- A buyer under a buyer-representation agreement receives an earnest money refund after a failed deal. The agent deposits …
- A buyer representation agreement should specify:
- Jamie Cruz signs a listing agreement with broker Skyler Simmons. What role does Simmons's brokerage hold in the resultin…
Valuation Market Analysis
151 questions- In October 2026, appraiser Caleb Moore is reviewing an income statement for Oak Place. The property's NOI is $67,500, th…
- Under USPAP, what is the purpose of the Competency Rule?
- An example of functional obsolescence is:
- In August 2026, appraiser Omar Lewis is valuing a small retail strip. Potential gross income is $96,000, vacancy and col…
Property Disclosures
150 questions- A 1978 ranch home is on the market. During inspection, the buyer's environmental specialist samples the wall insulation …
- Which of the following is NOT a hidden condition?
- In a state that requires a written disclosure of a home's condition to the buyer, the disclosure form is filled out by:
- The purpose of the Closing Disclosure under TILA-RESPA is to:
Land Use Controls Regulations
133 questions- A homebuyer purchases a lot in a planned community. The deed references a recorded declaration of covenants, conditions,…
- A board of adjustment is reviewing an owner's request for relief from a zoning ordinance. All of the following are commo…
- A homeowner in an HOA community wants to install solar panels on her roof. The CC&Rs do not address solar panels. The HO…
- Permission to depart from a requirement of the zoning ordinance for a single parcel is obtained through a:
Transfer of Property
114 questions- Under TRID rules, the lender must deliver the Closing Disclosure to the borrower at least how many business days before …
- A deed is properly recorded in the county records before a later purchaser checks title. Even if the later purchaser nev…
- At closing, the seller's existing mortgage balance of $185,000 must be paid off from the sale proceeds. On the seller's …
- An attorney examining the abstract of title discovers a gap in the chain where a deed from 1952 does not match the grant…
Agency
82 questions- Virginia licensee Fiona represents seller Dan. During the listing period, Fiona learns through personal research that th…
- A Virginia licensee, Tom, is representing the seller of a residential property. Tom discovers that the basement has a re…
- A Virginia broker, Howard, operates a mid-size brokerage and has established a written designated agency policy disclose…
- Premier Properties, a Virginia brokerage, has established a designated agency arrangement for a transaction in which age…
Valuation
25 questions- A property in Arlington, Virginia has an assessed value of $600,000 and the local tax rate is $1.00 per $100 of assessed…
- Marcus is purchasing a home in Fairfax County, Virginia, for $450,000. The transaction involves both a deed of conveyanc…
- A Virginia real estate agent is working with a buyer who is purchasing a home from a seller who has been receiving an el…
- Under Virginia law, at what percentage of fair market value must localities assess real property for taxation?
Mandated Disclosures
25 questions- Maria is selling her single-family home in Richmond, Virginia. She is aware of a slow drain in the master bathroom but c…
- Agent Kevin, who recently transferred his license from a state that requires mandatory seller disclosure, is now working…
- Under the Virginia Condominium Act and the Virginia Property Owners' Association Act, which of the following statements …
- Agent Sandra is representing the seller of a residential property in Virginia Beach. The seller has opted to provide a d…
Counts are live from the Virginia question bank, which mixes the national portion with Virginia-specific law.
The national portion, subject by subject
Shared with every other state exam, and usually the larger half of the paper.
Practice of Real Estate
359 questions- Sarah is a licensed Virginia real estate salesperson. She was recently convicted of embezzlement in a Virginia circuit c…
- A broker uses cloud-based transaction management software to store all transaction files, including contracts, disclosur…
- A Virginia broker is training new salespersons on fair housing compliance. She states: 'Under Virginia law, we have five…
- Two competing brokerages agree that each will refer commercial clients to the other and neither will compete for the oth…
Contracts
276 questions- Sandra agreed to sell her Fairfax County home to David for $575,000. After all contingencies were removed, Sandra receiv…
- After a property inspection reveals minor cosmetic issues, the buyer demands $20,000 in credits. The seller refuses, and…
- A buyer wants to demonstrate serious intent when submitting an offer. What financial deposit typically accompanies the o…
- Under a traditional contract for deed, what risk does the buyer face if the seller has an existing mortgage on the prope…
Financing
265 questions- A buyer wants to purchase a home but cannot qualify for a conventional loan. The seller agrees to carry the entire purch…
- During the annual escrow analysis on Priya's loan, the servicer wants to maintain an escrow cushion equal to three month…
- Before the scheduled foreclosure sale, Lena Howard pays the past-due installments, late fees, and allowed expenses so th…
- Lena Chen is buying a home for $350,000 and is making a 20% down payment. Her lender will charge 2 discount points on th…
Property Ownership
248 questions- A roofing contractor replaced shingles on a home for $18,400, but the owner refused to pay. After following the required…
- Sandra and her brother Joel own a Virginia investment property as joint tenants with right of survivorship. Without Sand…
- Emma owns only a life estate in a rural tract, with title to pass to her nephew at Emma's death. Without the nephew's co…
- Married couple James and Nina own their Virginia home as tenants by the entirety. James, without Nina's knowledge, execu…
Real Estate Math
203 questions- A county charges $40 to record the first page of a deed and $7 for each additional page. If a deed is 3 pages long, what…
- A property sells for $300,000 with a 6% commission split equally between the listing broker and the selling broker. The …
- A buyer is purchasing a property for $450,000 with an 80% LTV loan. Buyer closing costs are $9,500, the earnest money de…
- A transfer tax is charged at $1.00 per $500 of sale price (rounded up to the nearest $500). If the property sells for $3…
Leasing & Property Management
76 questions- A written apartment lease begins on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the following year with no need for notice to terminat…
- A property management agreement authorizes the manager to spend up to $500 on emergency repairs without prior owner appr…
- A property manager deposits tenant security deposits into the manager's personal checking account and uses the funds to …
- A residential tenant stops paying rent after the landlord ignores two months of written requests to repair a furnace tha…
Counts are live from the Virginia question bank, which mixes the national portion with Virginia-specific law.
Studying for the Virginia exam
How long should I study for the Virginia real estate exam?
Most candidates need four to eight weeks alongside a job. Working every Virginia question in our bank at a realistic 30 questions an hour is roughly 78 hours — but the useful measure is not hours, it is whether your practice scores sit above the pass mark on questions you have not seen before.
What is on the Virginia real estate exam?
Two portions. The national portion covers principles every state shares. The VA portion covers Virginia law — in our bank that is General Principles of Agency, Valuation Market Analysis, Property Disclosures, Land Use Controls Regulations and more.
Which Virginia topic should I study first?
Practice of Real Estate carries the most questions in our Virginia bank (359, about 15% of it), so it is the highest-leverage place to start. After that, work down the list below rather than studying front to back.
Is a Virginia exam prep course required?
Pre-licensing education is required by VREB; exam prep is not. They are different purchases and people often conflate them — the course satisfies the legal hours, prep is practice on questions. Check the current requirement in the VREB handbook before buying either.
Is Virginia real estate exam preparation different from a study guide?
Not in practice — exam prep, exam preparation and study guide all describe the same work: knowing what the VA exam weights heavily and practising those subjects until the wording stops surprising you. What matters is whether the material is ordered by how much of the exam each subject accounts for, which is how this page is laid out.
How many questions should I practise before the Virginia exam?
More than most people do. Candidates who pass tend to have worked through several hundred questions with explanations, not a few dozen; the difference shows up as recognising a rule quickly rather than reasoning it out under time pressure. Our own data says the same thing — the people who fail are almost never the people who practised a lot.
VA cheat sheet
The procedural rules that decide pass or fail, each with its source.
Virginia practice exam
Ten questions with explanations, free, no account.
Full-length mock exam
Timed and scored against the real pass mark.
Exam-day checklist
What to bring, what to expect, what disqualifies you.
