What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Roadmap post | 220 of 500 |
|---|---|
| Official syllabus topic | Practice of Real Estate: Federal Antitrust and Competition |
| Official PSI area | Practice of Real Estate |
| Published weight | 12% of the 100-question national portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
| Content checked through | August 2, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes a weight for the complete official area, not a guaranteed count for this individual comparison. Use the source, document, actor, event, and timing stated in the question before applying a memorized definition.
Side-by-side comparison
Read across each row. The terms are deliberately compared on identical dimensions so the difference remains clear when the exam hides the vocabulary inside a scenario.
| Decision dimension | Price fixing | Market allocation | Group boycott |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agreement | Competitors agree on price, commission, fee, discount, or pricing method | Competitors divide customers, territories, property types, or business | Competitors agree not to deal with a person or business, or only on coordinated terms |
| Exam clue | Standard commission or fee schedule | You take north county; we take south county | Everyone refuses to work with a discount brokerage |
| Lawful contrast | Each firm sets terms independently | Each firm competes wherever it chooses | Each firm makes an independent dealing decision |
| Required core | Concerted competitor conduct | Concerted competitor conduct | Concerted conduct with anticompetitive purpose or effect under governing law |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. Competing brokers agree that none will list a home for less than a 6 percent commission.
Reason it through. The firms are competitors and have coordinated the price of brokerage services rather than setting terms independently.
Answer. The agreement is price fixing.
Common exam traps
- Assuming traditional commission language makes coordination lawful
- Calling independent matching an agreement without evidence
- Confusing customer division with price fixing
- Saying every unilateral refusal is a group boycott
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These are original instructional questions mapped to the July 1, 2026 PSI outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1Competitors agree that each will serve a different county. What is the central violation?
- A. Market allocation
- B. Independent competition
- C. Reasonable accommodation
- D. Blockbusting
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. Market allocation
Market allocation is correct. Price fixing is a competitor agreement about prices, commissions, fees, discounts, or pricing methods. Market allocation divides customers, territories, or business. A group boycott is coordinated refusal to deal. Independent business decisions are not agreements, and competitors must set commissions and service terms independently. The remaining options, Independent competition; Reasonable accommodation; Blockbusting, do not match the controlling category or fact.
Question 2Competing brokers agree that none will list a home for less than a 6 percent commission.
- A. It is lawful because 6 percent is traditional.
- B. The agreement is price fixing.
- C. It is market allocation because homes are involved.
- D. It is only a boycott because some sellers may refuse.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. The agreement is price fixing.
The firms are competitors and have coordinated the price of brokerage services rather than setting terms independently. The supported conclusion is: The agreement is price fixing. The other choices replace those controlling facts with a neighboring concept or an unsupported absolute rule.
Question 3What should a candidate identify first when comparing Price Fixing Versus Market Allocation Versus Group Boycott?
- A. The option with the longest definition, without classifying the facts.
- B. A memorized Georgia rule, even when the question asks for a national concept.
- C. Find the agreement first, identify what competitors coordinated, and classify whether it controls price, divides the market, or organizes a refusal to deal.
- D. The answer that sounds most favorable to one party, regardless of the document or event.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. Find the agreement first, identify what competitors coordinated, and classify whether it controls price, divides the market, or organizes a refusal to deal.
Find the agreement first, identify what competitors coordinated, and classify whether it controls price, divides the market, or organizes a refusal to deal. That sequence identifies the legal category before the label. Definition length ignores the facts, jurisdiction confusion answers a different question, and sympathy cannot replace the document, event, calculation, or governing rule.
Mastery tracking
Mark this distinction mastered only when every statement is true.
- Define every compared term without using the other term as the definition.
- Rebuild the comparison table from memory.
- State the decision rule and Georgia distinction without notes.
- Solve the worked example after changing one controlling fact.
- Explain why every trap and distractor is tempting but wrong.
- Answer all three original questions correctly in mixed practice on a later day.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Seller Net Versus Buyer Funds Needed at Closing. Continue to roadmap comparison 221.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Practice of Real Estate hub.