Free Maryland Fair Housing Practice Test — LicenseIQ

Question 1

Which ad phrase is most likely to violate fair housing advertising rules?

Accepted Answer

References that exclude or prefer protected classes, such as familial status ('no kids'), are discriminatory. Describe the property, not the desired buyer or tenant.

Question 2

A listing where the seller may sell themselves without owing commission, but only the listing broker among agents is protected, is:

Accepted Answer

In an exclusive agency listing, the seller pays no commission on a self-sale, but the listing broker is protected if any broker sells it. (Reclassified to section 6 / CORE.)

Question 3

The Equal Credit Opportunity Act prohibits lenders from discriminating on the basis of all of the following EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

ECOA protects race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age and receipt of public assistance. Creditworthiness factors such as credit history may be considered.

Question 4

Which Article of the NAR Code of Ethics requires REALTORS not to deny equal professional services or discriminate on protected characteristics?

Accepted Answer

Article 10 addresses equal professional services and fair housing. Article 1 covers duties to clients, Article 3 cooperation and Article 17 arbitration.

Question 5

Refusing to rent to a family with children generally violates which protected class?

Accepted Answer

Familial status (households with children under 18, pregnant women) is protected under the federal Fair Housing Act. Marital status is protected under NJ LAD but not federal law.

Question 6

The federal Fair Housing Act (1968) protects all of the following EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

Federal protected classes: race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status - not occupation.

Question 7

Under Maryland license law, a licensee must comply with fair housing laws at which levels?

Accepted Answer

BOP §17-532 requires compliance with federal, state, and local fair housing laws. Some Maryland counties add classes beyond state law.

Question 8

A homeowner sells her single-family house through a listing broker and tells the broker not to show it to families with children. Under Maryland fair housing law:

Accepted Answer

§20-704(a)(1) exempts a single-family sale only if made without a broker, agent, or dealer and without a discriminatory ad. Familial status is protected under §20-705.

Question 9

Which class is protected under Maryland's fair housing law but NOT under the federal Fair Housing Act?

Accepted Answer

State Gov't §20-705 adds marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, source of income, and military status to the federal classes. Familial status, disability, and national origin are federal classes too.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT a protected class listed in Maryland's housing discrimination statute (State Gov't §20-705)?

Accepted Answer

Age is not on the §20-705 list. Military status, gender identity, and marital status are. Senior housing appears only as an exemption to familial status rules.

Question 11

Inducing owners to sell by suggesting people of a protected class are moving in is:

Accepted Answer

Blockbusting (panic peddling) is illegal under the Fair Housing Act.

Question 12

A developer's ads for a new subdivision always show only people of one race. This may be:

Accepted Answer

Consistently depicting only one race, sex or family type can indicate a preference and violate fair housing advertising rules.

Question 13

A building has a no-pets policy. An applicant who is blind has a guide dog. The property manager must:

Accepted Answer

Fair housing law requires reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities, including service animals despite no-pet rules.

Question 14

A person who believes she suffered housing discrimination under the federal Fair Housing Act may file a complaint with HUD within:

Accepted Answer

HUD complaints must be filed within one year; a federal civil suit may be filed within two years.

Question 15

A landlord tells a Maryland licensee, 'Advertise my unit, but no housing vouchers.' The licensee should:

Accepted Answer

Source of income is protected under §20-705. A landlord may still verify ability to pay in a commercially reasonable, nondiscriminatory way (§20-704(d)). Hiding the restriction from the ad does not make it lawful.

Question 16

Which is permitted under Maryland's source-of-income protections?

Accepted Answer

§20-704(d) allows commercially reasonable, nondiscriminatory verification of ability to pay and refusing income from criminal activity. Treating lawful income sources differently is prohibited.

Question 17

A religious organization operating housing for non-commercial purposes may give preference to members of its own religion, but it may NOT:

Accepted Answer

Religious organizations and private clubs have partial exemptions, but cannot discriminate on other protected classes, and the religion itself cannot restrict membership by race, color or national origin.

Question 18

The 'Mrs. Murphy' exemption under the federal Fair Housing Act applies to an owner who:

Accepted Answer

The exemption covers owner-occupied 1-4 unit buildings rented without a broker and never permits discriminatory advertising.

Question 19

Maryland's familial status protections do not apply to qualifying housing for older persons, which includes housing intended and operated for occupancy by at least one person of what age in each unit?

Accepted Answer

§20-704(c) covers housing for persons 62 or older, or housing intended and operated for at least one occupant 55 or older per unit.

Question 20

Directing buyers toward or away from neighborhoods based on protected class is:

Accepted Answer

Steering is illegally guiding people to or from areas based on a protected characteristic. Blockbusting induces panic selling; redlining is a lending practice.

Question 21

An owner lives in one unit of a building and rents out the other four apartments. Under Maryland law, the owner-occupied exemption could permit discrimination based on:

Accepted Answer

§20-704(a)(2) exempts owner-occupied buildings with not more than five rental units, but only as to sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, military status, and voucher-based source of income. It never covers race, religion, or disability.

Question 22

The Maryland owner-occupied apartment exemption applies to a dwelling that contains how many rental units?

Accepted Answer

§20-704(a)(2)(ii) covers renting an apartment in a dwelling with not more than five rental units where the owner lives. Federal law's comparable exemption is four units, a common source of confusion.

Question 23

A lender's refusal to make loans in certain neighborhoods based on demographics is:

Accepted Answer

Redlining is denying loans or services to areas based on protected characteristics rather than the borrower's qualifications.

Question 24

Under the Housing for Older Persons Act, a '55 and older' community generally requires that:

Accepted Answer

55+ housing requires at least 80% of occupied units to have one resident 55+; 62+ housing requires all residents to be 62+. The exemption applies only to familial status.

Question 25

A private individual selling her own single-family home may be exempt from the federal Fair Housing Act if she owns no more than three homes and:

Accepted Answer

The single-family owner exemption requires no broker and no discriminatory advertising. Race discrimination is never exempt under the 1866 Civil Rights Act.

Maryland real estate fair housing practice test

1. Which ad phrase is most likely to violate fair housing advertising rules?

2. A listing where the seller may sell themselves without owing commission, but only the listing broker among agents is protected, is:

3. The Equal Credit Opportunity Act prohibits lenders from discriminating on the basis of all of the following EXCEPT:

4. Which Article of the NAR Code of Ethics requires REALTORS not to deny equal professional services or discriminate on protected characteristics?

5. Refusing to rent to a family with children generally violates which protected class?

6. The federal Fair Housing Act (1968) protects all of the following EXCEPT:

7. Under Maryland license law, a licensee must comply with fair housing laws at which levels?

8. A homeowner sells her single-family house through a listing broker and tells the broker not to show it to families with children. Under Maryland fair housing law:

9. Which class is protected under Maryland's fair housing law but NOT under the federal Fair Housing Act?

10. Which of the following is NOT a protected class listed in Maryland's housing discrimination statute (State Gov't §20-705)?

11. Inducing owners to sell by suggesting people of a protected class are moving in is:

12. A developer's ads for a new subdivision always show only people of one race. This may be:

13. A building has a no-pets policy. An applicant who is blind has a guide dog. The property manager must:

14. A person who believes she suffered housing discrimination under the federal Fair Housing Act may file a complaint with HUD within:

15. A landlord tells a Maryland licensee, 'Advertise my unit, but no housing vouchers.' The licensee should:

16. Which is permitted under Maryland's source-of-income protections?

17. A religious organization operating housing for non-commercial purposes may give preference to members of its own religion, but it may NOT:

18. The 'Mrs. Murphy' exemption under the federal Fair Housing Act applies to an owner who:

19. Maryland's familial status protections do not apply to qualifying housing for older persons, which includes housing intended and operated for occupancy by at least one person of what age in each unit?

20. Directing buyers toward or away from neighborhoods based on protected class is:

21. An owner lives in one unit of a building and rents out the other four apartments. Under Maryland law, the owner-occupied exemption could permit discrimination based on:

22. The Maryland owner-occupied apartment exemption applies to a dwelling that contains how many rental units?

23. A lender's refusal to make loans in certain neighborhoods based on demographics is:

24. Under the Housing for Older Persons Act, a '55 and older' community generally requires that:

25. A private individual selling her own single-family home may be exempt from the federal Fair Housing Act if she owns no more than three homes and:

Sources