What is the exam-ready answer?
| Official syllabus topic | Leases and Leasehold Estates |
|---|---|
| Official PSI area | Contracts |
| Published area weight | 19% of the 100-question national portion |
| Exam portion | National salesperson portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes the weight for the complete content area, not a fixed question count for this lesson. Learn the rule well enough to apply it when PSI changes names, numbers, or parties in a new scenario.
The lesson
These ideas work together. On the exam, the wrong answers usually describe a nearby concept, so learn where each one stops.
Leasehold estates
Classify by duration and termination method. Despite its name, an estate for years can last any definite period, including days or months.
Lease terms
A lease addresses premises, duration, rent, deposits, maintenance, repairs, utilities, permitted use, entry, insurance, default, renewal, and surrender.
Assignment and sublease
An assignment transfers the tenant's remaining leasehold interest, while a sublease transfers less than the full remaining interest. Original-party liability depends on consent, release, and law.
Property types
Residential, commercial, percentage, ground, net, and gross leases allocate rent and operating costs differently. Federal and state rules can add mandatory protections.
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. A tenant with ten months left transfers the entire remaining term to a new occupant but receives no release from the landlord.
Reason it through. The tenant transferred all remaining leasehold time, which is an assignment, but no fact releases the original tenant.
Answer. It is an assignment, and the original tenant may remain liable.
Common exam traps
- Assuming estate for years must last years
- Calling every transfer a sublease
- Assuming assignment releases the tenant
- Confusing possession with title
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These questions were written for instruction and mapped to the current outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1A tenant signs a lease for a vacation cottage running from June 1 through August 31. What leasehold estate is this?
- A. Periodic tenancy
- B. Tenancy at will
- C. Estate for years
- D. Tenancy at sufferance
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. Estate for years
An estate for years is any tenancy with a definite beginning and end date, however short. The name misleads candidates into choosing periodic tenancy, which renews for successive periods instead of ending on a fixed date.
Question 2After a one-year lease expires, the tenant stays on without the landlord's consent, and the landlord has not accepted any further rent. What does the tenant hold?
- A. Tenancy at sufferance
- B. Periodic tenancy
- C. Estate for years
- D. Tenancy at will
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. Tenancy at sufferance
A tenancy at sufferance arises when someone who entered lawfully stays after the right to possession ends, without the landlord's consent. Periodic tenancy is wrong because it needs the landlord's agreement to a continuing arrangement, which is missing here.
Question 3With eight months left on a lease, a tenant lets a friend occupy the unit for the next three months and plans to move back in. The landlord gives no release. What is the transfer, and who stays liable to the landlord?
- A. An assignment, and only the friend is liable
- B. A sublease, and the original tenant stays liable
- C. A novation, and the landlord looks to the friend
- D. A sublease, and the original tenant is released
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. A sublease, and the original tenant stays liable
Transferring less than the full remaining term is a sublease, and without a release the original tenant remains liable on the lease. Calling it an assignment is the common error, since an assignment transfers the entire remaining term.
Ready to move on?
You are ready for the next lesson when all of these are true.
- Explain Leases and Leasehold Estates in one clear answer without notes.
- Separate Leasehold estates from Lease terms using a fresh example.
- Apply the decision rule to a new fact pattern and name the fact that controls the result.
- State the Georgia-specific point or explain why the national rule applies unchanged.
- Answer every practice question and explain the rule each rejected option misapplies.
- Revisit this topic later in mixed practice without category labels.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Agency relationships and fiduciary duties. The agency and fiduciary duties article pulls the agency lessons together with a set of check-yourself questions on who the client is and what each duty forbids, which is the same analysis a property manager applies when acting for a landlord.
Return to the Contracts hub to see every official branch and the complete lesson sequence for this content area.