10 exam-style questions with answers and explanations, straight from our 1,030-question bank. Tap an answer to check yourself. When you're ready, take the scored version in the free practice test.
The PPS exam has 50 questions and runs 4 hours.
These 10 free PPS questions are organized by exam domain, so you can see how each part of the Personal Property Specialist blueprint is tested. Reveal the answer and explanation under each question.
An injection-molding machine comparable sold for $96,000 in an arm's-length transaction. Its price includes a dryer with a supported contributory value of $8,000; the subject has no dryer. The subject's better mechanical condition supports a $6,000 adjustment. Both machines are evaluated on the same installed basis, and no other adjustments are needed. What does this sale indicate for the subject?
Correct answer: B - $94,000
An equipment lessor has stabilized annual net income of $90,000 after allowable operating expenses but before property tax. Comparable equipment supports a tax-exclusive overall capitalization rate of 10%, including appropriate capital recapture. The jurisdiction assesses equipment at 50% of market value and levies 40 mills on assessed value. There are no exemptions. Which value follows from consistent tax-loaded capitalization?
Correct answer: B - $750,000
A restaurant-equipment calculation applies a composite factor that already includes cost trending and normal depreciation, then applies an age-based percent-good factor again. No additional loss is supported. The calculation should be corrected by:
Correct answer: D - Removing the separate percent-good multiplication while retaining the composite valuation factor.
A tenant records a permanent building-wide heating system and a removable dust collector as leasehold improvements. The collector serves only the tenant's woodworking machines. Governing law classifies permanent building-service systems as real property and removable production equipment as personal property, even when bolted down. Which classification follows that law rather than the tenant's accounting label?
Correct answer: A - Heating system: real property. Dust collector: personal property.
An equipment sales study is evaluated against a statutory assessment level of 40% of market value. The median assessment-to-sale ratios are: All classes combined: 0.40 Warehouse equipment: 0.28 Office furniture: 0.40 Precision machinery: 0.56 Each sample is adequate and representative, with sales verified and appropriately adjusted. An analyst says the pooled result confirms uniform assessment. Which conclusion is warranted?
Correct answer: C - The overall level is on target, but the class results indicate unequal relative assessment levels.
A manufacturer's personal-property return agrees with its fixed-asset ledger. An auditor has also located a sample of the listed machines on the factory floor. Concern remains that equipment charged to expense never entered either record. Which test best addresses that remaining risk?
Correct answer: C - Trace selected machines from the factory floor to the reported asset listing.
The same forklift serial number appears on a lessor's equipment return and a lessee's right-of-use asset schedule. The contract leaves title with the lessor. Applicable law assesses tangible equipment once, to its owner at its operating situs, and excludes the contractual right of use from taxation. The lessor is headquartered in County A; the forklift operates permanently in County B. How should the two filings be resolved?
Correct answer: C - Assess the forklift to the lessor in County B.
A glass-bottle production line still meets its rated speed and quality specifications. A modern equivalent would not materially reduce its unit operating costs. Nevertheless, equipment resale prices and orders across the regional glass-container industry have declined for three years as customers switch to other packaging. Which explanation best fits the line's loss in value?
Correct answer: D - External obsolescence, because a sustained change in product demand has reduced the equipment's market appeal.
During a hydraulic-press inspection, a plant escort presses the emergency-stop button and opens an interlocked gate. The escort then invites the appraiser beneath the raised ram to read an identification plate. The appraiser is not authorized to operate or service the press, and no energy-isolation procedure has been verified. What is the appropriate response before approaching the plate?
Correct answer: D - Stay outside; have authorized staff obtain the information under verified lockout and stored-energy control.
On March 31, a standby generator is known to have a cracked engine block. To compare repair alternatives, a client requests its value as though the repairs were already complete on that same date. The appraiser has adequate evidence to develop a credible repaired-condition value. Under USPAP, how must that valuation premise be identified?
Correct answer: C - As a hypothetical condition, because the repaired state contradicts the generator's known condition on March 31.
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