What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Roadmap post | 182 of 500 |
|---|---|
| Official syllabus topic | Valuation and Market Analysis: Value, Price, and Cost |
| 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 |
| 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 | Market value | Market price | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Opinion of the most probable price under stated market conditions | Actual amount paid in a transaction | Expenditure to create, acquire, or reproduce an asset |
| Perspective | Market-supported estimate | Historical transaction fact | Production or acquisition measure |
| Can differ because | Assumptions and effective date | Motivation, financing, relationship, or unusual terms | Labor, materials, entrepreneurial incentive, timing, and obsolescence |
| Exam clue | Should sell | Did sell | Spent to build or acquire |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. A seller under severe time pressure accepts $410,000 for a property appraised at $440,000 after $470,000 of construction cost.
Reason it through. The transaction amount is price, the appraisal is an opinion of value, and the production expenditure is cost.
Answer. $410,000 is market price, $440,000 is the value opinion, and $470,000 is cost.
Common exam traps
- Using price and value as exact synonyms
- Assuming cost creates equal value
- Ignoring transaction conditions
- Confusing assessed value with market value
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 1Which term describes the actual amount paid in a completed transaction?
- A. Market value
- B. Replacement cost
- C. Market price
- D. Assessed value
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. Market price
Market price is correct. Market value is an opinion tied to defined market conditions and an effective date. Market price is the amount actually paid. Cost is the amount required to create or acquire an asset. A property can cost $500,000 to build, sell for $460,000, and have a supported market value different from both. The rejected choices are Market value; Replacement cost; Assessed value. Each misses the legal category or controlling fact stated in the rule.
Question 2A seller under severe time pressure accepts $410,000 for a property appraised at $440,000 after $470,000 of construction cost.
- A. All three figures are market value.
- B. Construction cost is always the property's market price.
- C. The accepted price proves every appraisal wrong.
- D. $410,000 is market price, $440,000 is the value opinion, and $470,000 is cost.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: D. $410,000 is market price, $440,000 is the value opinion, and $470,000 is cost.
The transaction amount is price, the appraisal is an opinion of value, and the production expenditure is cost. Therefore, $410,000 is market price, $440,000 is the value opinion, and $470,000 is cost. The other choices fail because they replace those controlling facts with a neighboring concept or an unsupported absolute rule.
Question 3What should a candidate identify first when comparing Market Value Versus Market Price Versus Cost?
- A. Look for the verb: should sell for, did sell for, or cost to create or acquire.
- B. The option with the longest definition, without classifying the facts.
- C. A memorized Georgia rule, even when the question asks for a national concept.
- D. The answer that sounds most favorable to the buyer, regardless of the document or event.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. Look for the verb: should sell for, did sell for, or cost to create or acquire.
Look for the verb: should sell for, did sell for, or cost to create or acquire. That sequence identifies the legal category before the label. Choosing by definition length ignores the facts, importing a Georgia rule can answer the wrong jurisdictional question, and favoring one party substitutes sympathy for classification.
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 Appraisal Versus CMA Versus BPO Versus AVM. Continue to roadmap comparison 183.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Valuation and Market Analysis hub.