South Dakota Real Estate Practice Exam
A free practice test for the South Dakota salesperson exam, for the weeks before your test date, with an explanation on every answer. Score yourself against South Dakota's real 75% pass line before you book.
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A South Dakota applicant pays the license application fee with a check returned for insufficient funds. How may the Commission treat that fact?
This practice exam is a study aid, not the real exam. Our questions are written by us to match the published content outline. They are not actual exam questions, no score here predicts a pass, and this site is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by PSI, Pearson VUE, ARELLO, any state real estate commission, or any government agency. Your state commission and your candidate handbook are the only authoritative sources.
South Dakota real estate exam at a glance
| National questions | 90 scoredsource |
|---|---|
| State-law questions | 52 scoredsource |
| Passing score | 75%source |
| Time limit | 4 hours 30 minutessource |
| Exam fee | $294.00 per attemptsource |
| Test provider | PSIsource |
| Pre-licence education | 116 hourssource |
Figures verified against official sources on . Exam fees and rules change. Check the linked source before you book.
10 sample questions, with answers explained
Every question above with its correct answer and the reasoning behind it. Read the explanations for the ones you answered correctly too. A lucky guess and knowing the rule look identical on a score report. These are sample questions from our larger bank.
1. A South Dakota applicant pays the license application fee with a check returned for insufficient funds. How may the Commission treat that fact?
Why: The denial provision expressly reaches an insufficient-funds check for the application, as well as specified checks during the preceding calendar year. It is not limited to criminal convictions.
2. A South Dakota buyer signs a purchase offer. What must the licensee promptly provide to that buyer?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-71(19) requires promptly giving the purchaser a copy of the offer. The duty does not begin only after the transaction closes.
3. Buyer and seller have made no different agreement in a South Dakota cobrokered sale. Where must earnest money be held?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-76 requires a broker trust account unless buyer and seller agree otherwise. The cooperating arrangement does not itself permit operating-account use.
4. A South Dakota inactive licensee wants to negotiate a new sale before reactivation. What applies?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-9 prohibits chapter activities while inactive before reactivation. Deferred payment or a buyer waiver does not activate the license.
5. South Dakota's Recovery Fund ends the year below $100,000. Which statutory response is triggered?
Why: The fund-balance provision requires an assessment set by the Commission when the year-end balance falls below $100,000. It does not impose a market commission rate or cancel all licenses.
6. A South Dakota buyer-agency agreement automatically renews when its stated term ends. What does the statute provide?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-130 prohibits automatic renewal in buyer, seller and lessee agency agreements. A definite term cannot be replaced by that continuation clause.
7. A South Dakota listing pays the licensee all sale proceeds above the seller's stated price. How is that arrangement treated?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-71(26) prohibits taking a net listing based on proceeds above the agreed price. Seller agreement does not create an exception.
8. What maximum monetary disciplinary penalty does SDCL 36-21A-68 authorize, apart from its other sanctions?
Why: The statute authorizes a monetary penalty up to $2,500 together with specified other sanctions. That limit is not the same as a client damages award.
9. When must a South Dakota licensee submit the biennial renewal application in the year the license expires?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-61 sets November 30 for the renewal application and December 31 expiration if unrenewed. The expiration date is not the application deadline.
10. In a South Dakota cooperative sale, which broker must furnish the seller's closing statement?
Why: SDCL 36-21A-75 assigns the seller's statement to the listing broker and the buyer's statement to the selling broker. The two responsibilities are separately identified.