IREB - Illinois Real Estate Broker Examination

Question 1: Under the federal Fair Housing Act as amended in 1988, certain classes are protected against housing discrimination by landlords, brokers, lenders, and other housing providers. Which of the following BEST identifies a class protected under the federal Fair Housing Act?

Marital status of the household members

Source of income including Section 8 vouchers

Familial status including children under eighteen

Age of the applicants if over forty years

Question 2: The Civil Rights Act of 1866 provides protection against racial discrimination in property transactions that goes beyond the federal Fair Housing Act in one key respect. Which of the following BEST identifies this distinguishing feature?

Covers all dwellings without any exemptions

Includes punitive damages of treble amount

Provides criminal sanctions up to imprisonment

Allows complaints only through HUD administrative process

Question 3: Under the Mrs. Murphy exemption from the federal Fair Housing Act, owner-occupied housing of four or fewer units may be exempt from certain Fair Housing protections. Which of the following BEST describes a condition required for the exemption to apply?

Owner is over the age of sixty-two with reduced income

Owner provides written disclosure to all tenant applicants

Owner has at least five years of management experience

Owner does not use real estate brokerage services or discriminatory ads

Question 4: A senior housing community in suburban Chicago restricts occupancy to persons sixty-two and older. The federal Housing for Older Persons Act provides an exemption from certain Fair Housing protections for qualifying senior housing. Which of the following BEST describes the exemption HOPA provides?

Exempt from all Fair Housing requirements entirely

Exempt from familial status protection only

Exempt from race discrimination prohibition

Exempt only with state regulator approval

Question 5: Disability is a protected class under the federal Fair Housing Act. A landlord receives a tenant's request to allow a service dog despite a building-wide no-pets policy. Which of the following BEST describes the landlord's obligation?

Must allow the service dog as reasonable accommodation

Must charge a pet deposit before allowing the animal

May deny if other tenants object to the animal

May require certification by a state agency only

Question 6: Effective January 1, 2023, the Illinois Human Rights Act added source of income to its protected classes under 775 ILCS 5/1-103(O-5). Which of the following BEST describes what source of income includes for housing discrimination purposes?

Only Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers

Only government assistance programs administered federally

Section 8 vouchers, Social Security, child support, and other lawful sources

Income from employment regardless of source

Question 7: The Illinois Human Rights Act protects against age discrimination in certain contexts. Which of the following BEST identifies the protected age group under the Illinois Human Rights Act for most housing purposes?

All persons regardless of age

Persons over the age of eighteen

Persons under twenty-five years of age

Persons forty years of age and older

Question 8: The Illinois Department of Human Rights administers the Illinois Human Rights Act and investigates complaints of discrimination. Which of the following BEST describes the statute of limitations for filing a housing discrimination complaint with the IDHR?

Three hundred days from the discriminatory act

Ninety days from the discriminatory act

Thirty days from the discriminatory act

Two years from the discriminatory act

Question 9: The Cook County Just Housing Amendment, effective in 2019, regulates how landlords may screen tenant applicants using criminal background information. Which of the following BEST describes a key requirement of the Just Housing Amendment?

Permits blanket bans on applicants with any conviction

Requires individualized assessment with three-year look-back limit

Prohibits all criminal background screening of any kind

Applies only to government-subsidized housing units

Question 10: Sexual orientation and gender identity were added to the Illinois Human Rights Act's protected classes before being recognized under federal Fair Housing law. Which of the following BEST describes the federal status of these protections following 2021 HUD guidance?

Federal protection limited to employment under Title VII

Only sexual orientation protected federally; gender identity remains state-only

Both protected under federal Fair Housing Act as sex discrimination

Both excluded from federal Fair Housing Act protection

Question 11: A real estate licensee shows minority buyers properties only in minority-majority neighborhoods and steers white buyers away from those same areas. Which of the following BEST identifies this prohibited practice under federal Fair Housing law?

Steering based on protected characteristics

Blockbusting by inducing panic sales

Redlining of geographic areas by lenders

Disparate impact through neutral policies

Question 12: A real estate licensee approaches owners in a Chicago neighborhood telling them that minority families are moving in and they should sell now before property values drop. Which of the following BEST identifies this prohibited practice?

Steering buyers toward minority neighborhoods

Blockbusting or panic peddling

Redlining by mortgage lenders

Tying arrangement in commercial deals

Question 13: A mortgage lender consistently denies loan applications from a particular Chicago zip code with high minority population, even when individual applicants meet underwriting standards. Which of the following BEST identifies this prohibited practice?

Blockbusting in residential neighborhoods

Steering buyers to specific areas

Redlining of geographic area by lender

Spot zoning of single parcel

Question 14: A landlord applies a minimum credit score of seven hundred for all rental applications. The policy has the practical effect of excluding a higher proportion of applicants from certain protected classes than from others. Which of the following BEST identifies the framework analyzing this policy under federal Fair Housing law?

Disparate treatment requiring direct evidence

Religious organization exemption

Mrs. Murphy exemption from coverage

Disparate impact through facially neutral policy

Question 15: Retaliation against persons who exercise Fair Housing rights or assist others in doing so is prohibited under the federal Fair Housing Act. Which of the following BEST identifies the specific section of the Act addressing retaliation?

Section 3604(e) banning blockbusting

Section 3617 prohibiting retaliation

Section 3607(a) creating religious exemption

Section 3603(b) Mrs. Murphy exemption

Question 16: Two competing real estate brokers in Chicago meet at an industry event and casually discuss their typical commission rates, then agree to maintain those rates rather than competing on price. Which of the following BEST identifies the antitrust violation?

Price fixing among competitors as per se violation

Tying arrangement under rule of reason

Permitted industry coordination among brokers

Vertical restraint by listing exclusivity

Question 17: Two real estate firms in Aurora agree that they will not cooperate with a particular discount broker in their market and will refuse to cooperate on transactions involving that broker. Which of the following BEST identifies this practice under antitrust law?

Permitted competitive response to competition

Price fixing as horizontal restraint

Group boycott as per se Sherman Act violation

Tying arrangement requiring rule of reason

Question 18: Two real estate firms in the Chicago metropolitan area agree that one will operate exclusively in the north suburbs and the other exclusively in the south suburbs, each refraining from competing in the other's area. Which of the following BEST identifies this violation?

Tying arrangement on geographic basis

Vertical restraint with rule of reason

Permitted geographic specialization choice

Market allocation as per se Sherman Act violation

Question 19: The NAR Sitzer-Burnett antitrust settlement effective August 17, 2024 changed how cooperative broker compensation is offered and disclosed in residential real estate transactions. Which of the following BEST describes a key change implemented by the settlement?

Buyer broker compensation now banned in all transactions

Cooperative compensation may no longer appear on the MLS

Listing agreements no longer required by NAR rules

Antitrust laws repealed for real estate brokerages

Question 20: The Sherman Antitrust Act prescribes substantial penalties for violations. Which of the following BEST describes the civil damages remedy available to private plaintiffs harmed by antitrust violations under federal law?

Compensatory damages only without enhancement

Liquidated damages set by federal regulation

Treble damages plus reasonable attorney fees

Restitution limited to overpayment amount

IREB Illinois Real Estate Broker Examination - Set 5 - Part 1