NC Real Property Specialist study plan
NC Real Property Specialist · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Real Property Law and Principles
Define real versus personal property and classify at least 20 mixed items (fixtures, trade fixtures, emblements, growing crops) correctly in a written drill
Explain the bundle of rights and identify which sticks are severed by easement, lien, lease, and life estate
Distinguish the five tests courts use for fixtures and apply them to three fact patterns
Summarize NC recording and notice concepts well enough to explain why constructive notice binds a later buyer
Your checkpoint
A one-page classification chart plus 20-item self-quiz scored at 85% or better, with every miss rewritten as a corrected rule statement
Real Property Law and Principles & Ownership, Estates, and Interests in Land
Compare freehold estates (fee simple absolute, fee simple defeasible, life estate) and state what each conveys and how each ends
Map future interests (reversion, remainder, executory interest) onto three sample deed clauses
Illustrate co-ownership forms - tenancy in common, joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety - and identify how NC treats severance and creditor claims
Describe easements, licenses, and covenants and decide which run with the land in given scenarios
Your checkpoint
A 15-question estate-and-interest worksheet with written justifications for each answer, reviewed against your notes
Transfer of Title and Conveyancing & Contracts and Purchase Agreements
Sequence the steps of a NC residential closing from offer to recording, naming the document produced at each step
Identify the required elements of a valid real property sales contract and spot missing terms in three flawed drafts
Explain deed essentials (grantor, grantee, words of conveyance, legal description, consideration, signature, notarization) and the difference between general and special warranty deeds
Describe title search, title insurance commitments, and the role of the attorney in NC closings
Your checkpoint
A closing timeline diagram plus a checklist of contract and deed essentials used to critique two sample purchase agreements
Contracts and Purchase Agreements & Financing and Mortgages
Analyze contingencies (financing, inspection, appraisal, sale-of-home) and state what happens to earnest money when each fails
Distinguish contract remedies - specific performance, liquidated damages, rescission - and when each applies
Compare mortgage loan types (conventional, FHA, VA, USDA) on down payment, insurance, and eligibility rules
Compute monthly PITI for two scenarios and interpret LTV, DTI, and amortization effects on the payment
Your checkpoint
A loan-comparison table with two worked PITI calculations and a written explanation of earnest money disposition in three contingency scenarios
Financing and Mortgages & Valuation and Appraisal Principles
Explain the three approaches to value (sales comparison, cost, income) and choose the appropriate approach for five property types
Apply the sales comparison approach using adjustments to derive an indicated value for a sample subject property
Compute gross rent multiplier and direct capitalization value from given NOI and cap rate
Distinguish market value from price and identify which forces (physical, economic, governmental, social) drive each adjustment
Your checkpoint
A one-page appraisal problem set with a completed adjustment grid, a GRM calculation, and a cap-rate calculation, each showing the formula used
Agency and Brokerage Relationships & North Carolina Licensing Law and Rules
Differentiate the agency relationships recognized in NC and state the duties owed by agents to clients and to customers
Identify when agency is created, how dual agency is handled, and what triggers disclosure obligations
Outline the NC licensing structure: license categories, broker-in-charge responsibilities, and supervision rules
List prohibited conduct and advertising rules, and state the consequences of unlicensed activity
Your checkpoint
A two-column duties chart (client versus customer) plus a 20-question licensing-law quiz scored at 80% or better
North Carolina Licensing Law and Rules & Property Management and Leasing
Explain trust account and record-keeping requirements, including handling of earnest money and security deposits
Describe property management duties under NC lease law: habitability, deposit handling, and notice to enter
Distinguish lease types (gross, net, percentage) and identify landlord and tenant rights on default
Review continuing education, license renewal, and disciplinary process steps
Your checkpoint
A written scenario response covering three trust-account and deposit disputes, each with the controlling rule and the correct disposition of funds
Real Property Law and Principles & Transfer of Title and Conveyancing & Financing and Mortgages & Agency and Brokerage Relationships
Re-drill the highest-miss topics from weeks 1 through 7 and rewrite each missed rule in your own words
Complete two timed mixed-domain practice sets and log accuracy by domain
Build a one-page formula and definition sheet covering PITI, LTV, DTI, GRM, and capitalization
Simulate exam pacing: answer 100 mixed questions in the allotted time and review every error
Your checkpoint
A domain-accuracy log from two timed practice sets showing at least 75% overall and a completed formula sheet, with a written plan for any domain still below 70%
Milestones
Week 2: Score 80% or better on a self-made 25-question set covering domains 1 and 2, and explain fixtures, estates, and co-ownership aloud without notes
Week 4: Complete the closing timeline and two PITI calculations with no formula errors; score 75% or better on a 30-question set spanning domains 3 through 5
Week 6: Score 80% or better on a 25-question agency and licensing set and correctly state the duties owed to clients versus customers
Week 8: Achieve 75% or better overall on two timed 100-question mixed sets with no domain below 70%