What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Official syllabus topic | Valuation and Market Analysis: Principles of Value; Conformity |
|---|---|
| Official PSI area | Valuation and Market Analysis |
| Published weight | 8% of the 100-question national portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 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 | Progression | Regression |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Lower-valued property among higher-valued properties | Higher-valued property among lower-valued properties |
| Influence | Surroundings tend to support subject value upward | Surroundings tend to limit subject value |
| Related principle | Conformity and neighborhood influence | Conformity and neighborhood influence |
| Exam image | Modest home on a premium block | Luxury home in a modest tract |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. An extensively upgraded home is located among smaller homes with much lower sale prices.
Reason it through. The subject is the higher-value outlier and buyers may resist paying the full improvement cost in that location.
Answer. Regression is the relevant principle.
Common exam traps
- Reversing the two directions
- Assuming cost equals added value
- Treating the principle as a fixed adjustment
- Ignoring comparable evidence
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 1An owner spends heavily upgrading a home in a neighborhood of much smaller, lower-priced homes. Buyers will not pay the full cost of the upgrades there. Which principle explains this?
- A. Regression
- B. Progression
- C. Plottage
- D. Anticipation
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. Regression
Regression is the downward pull on a higher-valued property surrounded by lower-valued ones. The upgraded home is the outlier, so its surroundings limit what buyers will pay. Progression can look relevant because the home was improved, but progression describes a lower-valued home helped by pricier neighbors.
Question 2A modest two-bedroom home sits on a street of large, expensive homes. Market sales show it sells for more than similar homes in plainer areas. Which principle explains this?
- A. Regression
- B. Progression
- C. Assemblage
- D. Functional obsolescence
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. Progression
Progression is the upward influence on a lower-valued property surrounded by higher-valued properties. The modest home benefits from its premium setting, as the sales evidence shows. Regression is the plausible reversal, since it describes the opposite case of an over-improved home among cheaper ones.
Question 3An agent says a small home on a street of larger homes should get an automatic 10 percent upward adjustment for progression. What is wrong with this approach?
- A. Progression describes a smaller home losing value, not gaining
- B. Progression applies only when adjoining parcels are combined
- C. Market evidence must show the effect, not a fixed percentage
- D. Progression applies only to homes that were recently renovated
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. Market evidence must show the effect, not a fixed percentage
Progression and regression name a direction of neighborhood influence, but neither supplies an automatic percentage. Local comparable sales must show whether and how much the setting affects value. Reversing the definitions is the mistake, and combining parcels describes assemblage and plottage instead.
Ready to move on?
You have this distinction down when all of these are 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 key fact.
- Explain the rule or fact that makes each distractor wrong.
- Answer all three original questions correctly in mixed practice on a later day.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Assemblage Versus Plottage. Next, assemblage versus plottage covers another valuation pair candidates mix up: combining parcels is the act, and any added value from the larger site is plottage, which, like progression, the market has to show.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Valuation and Market Analysis hub.