Saskatchewan Real Estate Broker Exam cheat sheet

The Real Estate Act (Saskatchewan) is administered by the Saskatchewan Real Estate Commission (SREC); the Act is the statute, the Regulations set operational detail, and the Bylaws govern Commission procedure and fees.

Registration categories under the Act include broker, associate broker, salesperson, and branch manager; a salesperson may only trade in real estate under the supervision of a registered broker.

The Act requires every brokerage to maintain a registered office in Saskatchewan and to notify SREC of any change of office location or business name.

Trading in real estate without registration is an offence under the Act; penalties include fines and prohibition from future registration.

The Commission may suspend, cancel, or refuse registration, and may impose conditions; a person may appeal a Commission decision to the Saskatchewan Real Estate Commission appeal process and further to the courts on questions of law.

Brokers must report to SREC within the prescribed time any change in the composition of the brokerage, including the addition or departure of a broker or associate broker.

Bylaws set the continuing education requirement; registrants must complete the Commission-mandated education within each licensing cycle to maintain registration.

Registrants must produce records and respond to Commission inquiries; failure to cooperate with an investigation is itself a disciplinary matter under the Act.

Agency is a fiduciary relationship created when a client authorizes a brokerage to act on the client's behalf; the brokerage, not the individual salesperson, is the legal agent.

Core fiduciary duties owed to a client: loyalty, obedience to lawful instructions, disclosure of material information, confidentiality, accounting, and reasonable care and skill.

Agency can arise by express written agreement, by implication from conduct, or by operation of law (e.g., ratification); Saskatchewan requires written agency agreements for designated agency relationships.

The agency relationship begins when the parties agree and the required written agreement is signed, not when the first showing occurs.

An agency agreement must state the type of agency, the term, the fee or how it is calculated, and the duties of the brokerage; it must be signed by the client and the brokerage.

Confidentiality survives termination of the agency agreement for information acquired during the agency.

A salesperson cannot be an agent in their own right; all agency obligations flow through the brokerage, which is responsible for the acts of its associates.

When acting for a buyer, the brokerage owes the same fiduciary duties as when acting for a seller; the duties do not vary with the side of the transaction.

Dual agency exists when the same brokerage represents both buyer and seller (or both landlord and tenant) in the same transaction; it requires the informed written consent of both clients.

Saskatchewan uses designated agency: the brokerage may designate one or more associates to act for one client and a different associate to act for the other, with the brokerage itself in a limited role.

Before entering a dual agency, the brokerage must disclose in writing the conflict, the limits on loyalty and confidentiality, and the fact that neither client will receive undivided loyalty.

In a designated agency, confidential information held by the associate acting for one client must not be shared with the associate acting for the other client.

A salesperson who has a personal interest in a transaction, or who is related to a party, must disclose that interest in writing to all parties.

Customer (non-client) relationships carry honesty and disclosure of material facts but not fiduciary duties such as full confidentiality or undivided loyalty.

If a conflict cannot be managed with informed consent, the brokerage must decline or terminate the representation rather than proceed.

Material facts - latent defects, stigmatized-property issues as required by law, and known defects affecting value - must be disclosed to all parties regardless of agency type.

A valid contract requires offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, legality, and mutual intention to be bound; real estate contracts must also satisfy the Statute of Frauds (writing, signed by the party to be charged).

An offer is effective when communicated to the offeree; acceptance is effective only when communicated to the offeror.

A counter-offer terminates the original offer; the original offer cannot later be accepted unless revived.

Consideration must be sufficient but need not be adequate; a nominal deposit can support a contract, though it affects remedies.

Conditions precedent (e.g., financing, inspection, sale of buyer's property) must be satisfied or waived by the stated deadline or the contract lapses.

Time is generally of the essence in real estate contracts; missing a deadline can constitute breach.

Misrepresentation - a false statement of fact that induces the contract - may give rise to rescission or damages; remedies differ for fraudulent, negligent, and innocent misrepresentation.

Contracts may be discharged by performance, agreement, frustration, or breach; remedies include damages, specific performance, and rescission.

Saskatchewan residential transactions commonly use the standard form Industry Standard Offer to Purchase; the form must be completed with all schedules, addenda, and disclosures attached.

The offer must identify the parties, the property (legal description and civic address), the purchase price, the deposit, the possession date, the adjustment date, and any conditions.

A deposit is held in trust by the listing brokerage; it is credited to the purchase price on completion and is generally forfeited if the buyer defaults, subject to the contract terms.

The seller's counter-offer must be in writing and signed; verbal counter-offers are unenforceable.

The buyer's conditions must include clear deadlines and the method of waiver or satisfaction; a condition not waived in writing by the deadline voids the contract.

Property disclosure: sellers must complete the required seller's disclosure statement where applicable; the buyer must be given the opportunity to review it before conditions are waived.

A service agreement (listing or buyer representation) must state the services provided, the term, the commission or fee, and the circumstances in which the fee is payable.

Commission is payable per the service agreement; a cooperating brokerage's share is set by the listing brokerage's offer of cooperation, not by the buyer's brokerage.

All money received on behalf of a client - deposits, rents, and other trust funds - must be deposited into the brokerage's trust account at a designated financial institution.

Trust accounts must be reconciled monthly; the brokerage must maintain records showing each client's trust balance at all times.

Trust funds must not be commingled with the brokerage's operating funds or used for brokerage expenses.

Commission may be withdrawn from trust only after the transaction closes or as authorized in writing by the client.

Interest earned on a trust account is handled as the trust agreement or the Act directs; the brokerage cannot keep trust interest for itself unless authorized.

A brokerage must keep records for the period prescribed by the Regulations (generally at least six years) and make them available to the Commission on request.

Shortages in the trust account must be reported to SREC and corrected immediately; misappropriation of trust funds is grounds for suspension or cancellation of registration.

When a transaction fails, the deposit must be returned or dealt with per the written agreement of the parties or a court order, not by unilateral decision of the brokerage.

Every brokerage must have a registered broker who is responsible for the supervision of the brokerage's associates and employees.

The broker must ensure associates are registered before they trade, are properly supervised, and complete required continuing education.

A brokerage must maintain a register of all associates, their registration status, and the date each began or ended association with the brokerage.

Advertising must identify the brokerage name; associates may not advertise in a way that suggests they are the brokerage.

The broker must review and retain copies of all trade records, including offers, counter-offers, and service agreements, for the prescribed retention period.

Branch offices must have a branch manager registered with SREC; the branch manager is responsible for the day-to-day supervision of that office.

A brokerage must maintain a written policies and procedures manual covering agency, trust handling, advertising, and complaint handling.

Changes in registration status - new associates, terminations, address changes - must be reported to SREC within the time set by the Bylaws.

Registrants must act with honesty, integrity, and good faith, and must not make false or misleading statements in advertising or dealing.

A registrant must not disclose confidential client information without consent, except as required by law or to prevent a crime.

Commissions and referral fees must be disclosed to the client; undisclosed referral fees or secret commissions are prohibited.

A registrant must not act for more than one party in a transaction without the informed written consent of all parties.

Complaints are investigated by the Commission; discipline may include a caution, fine, suspension, cancellation, or conditions on registration.

Registrants must cooperate fully with Commission investigations and produce records on request; failure to do so is a separate violation.

A registrant must not engage in conduct that is unbecoming or that would reasonably be regarded as discreditable to the profession.

Discipline decisions may be appealed; the appeal process and grounds are set out in the Act and Bylaws.

The Commission's discipline process typically begins with a written complaint, followed by investigation, and may proceed to a hearing before a discipline committee.

The discipline committee may impose penalties including fines, suspension, cancellation, and orders to complete education or pay costs.

A registrant facing discipline is entitled to notice of the allegations and an opportunity to respond.

The Commission may impose interim suspension where the public interest requires it pending a hearing.

Discipline records are maintained by the Commission and may be published in accordance with the Bylaws.

A registrant must not practise while suspended; trading while suspended is an offence under the Act.

Penalties are separate from civil liability; a disciplined registrant may still face a civil claim by an injured client.

Compliance with an order of the Commission is mandatory; failure to comply can lead to further discipline or court enforcement.

A registrant must provide competent service; incompetence or gross negligence in handling a transaction is a disciplinary matter.

A registrant must not pressure a client to sign a service agreement or an offer, and must not alter a signed document without the client's written consent.

A registrant must present all offers promptly and objectively; withholding an offer from a seller is a breach of duty.

A registrant must not accept compensation from more than one party without full written disclosure and consent.

A registrant must keep client property and funds secure and account for them on request.

A registrant must not use confidential information acquired in one transaction for personal benefit or for the benefit of another client.

A registrant must disclose any personal interest in a property or transaction, including a family relationship to a party.

A registrant must not engage in discriminatory practices; fair housing and human rights obligations apply to all dealings.