IL Real Estate study plan

Define agency relationships under Illinois law, including client versus customer and the timing of when an agency relationship is created.

List and explain each fiduciary duty (care, obedience, loyalty, disclosure, accounting, confidentiality) with one Illinois-specific example per duty.

Differentiate designated agency, dual agency, and no-agency (transactional) brokerage, and state the written disclosure Illinois requires in each case.

Trace the duties a sponsoring broker owes to both broker and licensee, including supervision and escrow handling.

Classify property as real versus personal, and convert items using the tests for fixtures and trade fixtures.

Distinguish freehold estates from leasehold estates and identify which ownership forms are survivorship versus tenancy-in-common.

Explain easements, licenses, encroachments, liens, and deed restrictions, and identify which encumbrances run with the land.

Describe Illinois co-ownership rules, including how marital property and joint tenancy severance affect title.

Outline the physical, economic, and legal characteristics of land (immobility, indestructibility, situs, bundle of rights).

Identify the essential elements of a valid real estate contract and the writing requirements that apply in Illinois.

Sequence the steps of an Illinois residential transaction from offer through closing, including attorney review and inspection periods.

Match each required Illinois disclosure (residential property disclosure, radon, lead-based paint, heating cost) to the point in the transaction it must be delivered.

Explain remedies for breach, including earnest money disposition, specific performance, and liquidated damages clauses.

Distinguish the promissory note from the mortgage or deed of trust, and state the function of each.

Compare conventional, FHA, VA, and Illinois housing-agency loan programs on down payment, insurance, and eligibility.

Compute qualifying ratios, loan-to-value, and monthly PITI for at least five practice scenarios.

Summarize RESPA/Regulation X and TRID disclosure timing, plus the main Illinois rules on escrow, prepayment, and foreclosure.

Identify the parties and steps in an Illinois judicial foreclosure, including redemption rights.

Apply the sales comparison approach, including selecting and adjusting comparable properties and reconciling the value range.

Contrast the cost approach and income approach (gross rent multiplier and capitalization) and state when each is most reliable.

Distinguish market value, market price, assessed value, and insured value in a comparative market analysis.

Compare general warranty, special warranty, bargain-and-sale, and quitclaim deeds on the covenants conveyed.

Sequence the steps of a voluntary sale versus adverse possession, and explain recording, constructive notice, and title insurance in Illinois.

Describe Illinois short-sale and foreclosure deed considerations, including the statutory redemption period.

Outline the Illinois Real Estate License Act structure: licensing tiers, sponsorship requirements, and IDFPR authority.

State pre-license, post-license, and continuing education hour requirements and the deadlines that apply.

Explain escrow, advertising, and unlicensed-assistance rules, plus the activities that require a license versus those that do not.

List the grounds for discipline and the range of penalties the Department may impose, including civil penalties and license actions.

Summarize licensee duties in handling client funds and records retention.

Apply the protected classes under federal fair housing law and the additional classes covered by Illinois and local ordinances.

Identify prohibited advertising and marketing practices, including linguistic and targeting issues, and rewrite three flawed ads correctly.

Explain reasonable accommodation and modification obligations and give two examples of each.

Describe Illinois consumer protection and disclosure obligations, including advertising rules and the handling of buyer and seller complaints.

Re-test the agency and fiduciary content from Week 1 and correct every missed item on the spot.

Take two full-length timed practice exams under test conditions and log every missed item by domain.

Re-drill the two weakest domains until each reaches 85% or better on a fresh question set.

Recite from memory the fiduciary duties, required Illinois disclosures, deed types, and financing formulas without notes.

Build a final one-page pre-exam review sheet and confirm exam-day logistics and ID requirements.