Sentence Correction

This is my first post in this forum so I hope I am posting in the right category. Which one of the below is correct?
A) These three basic situations have been listed below:
B) These three basic situations are listed below:
Similarly
A) Pictures of the house have been attached to this report.
B) Pictures of the house are attached to this report.

If they can both be correct, can you help me explain why: because B never seems logical to me, yet I see it used in some texts. Than you in advance.

IMHO, one way to look at it:

Have/has + been -> Used when some action was completed in the past and is still relevant in the present. Or still continues into the present.

For example, I have been doing my exercises.

In your second sentence comparison, since the pictures have already been attached at some point in the past, and are still relevant to the report/conversation, B seems to be wrong.

Are -> When we are talking strictly about the present. Mostly when providing factual 'existence'.

Were/Was -> About the past. Exception-> wishful thinking, for example, I wish I were humerous.

Also, I think you should be comparing "Have/has been" with "Are being/Were being".

Plus, voice matters. GMAT prefers active voice over passive voice.

If you provide a source of the sentences you've mentioned, things would become much clearer because the GMAT tests limited grammar. There are a billion different things that it does not test, mainly because in a business environment communicating ideas matters more than how correct your english is while giving a presentation. I've used B on many presentations, and no one ever stopped me in the middle because of that.

ahmetunver wrote:This is my first post in this forum so I hope I am posting in the right category. Which one of the below is correct?
A) These three basic situations have been listed below:
B) These three basic situations are listed below:
Similarly
A) Pictures of the house have been attached to this report.
B) Pictures of the house are attached to this report.

If they can both be correct, can you help me explain why: because B never seems logical to me, yet I see it used in some texts. Than you in advance.

Seems to me that once they have been listed or attached, they are listed or attached.

"Is anything attached to this report?" "Yes, pictures of the house are attached to this report."

Three basic situations have been listed below.
Here, the past participle (listed) serves as a part of a present perfect verb (have been listed).
The intent is to express an ACTION that has been performed upon the subject.
What ACTION has been performed upon three basic situations?
They HAVE BEEN LISTED below.

Three basic situations are listed below.
Here, the past participle (listed) seems to serve not as a verb but as an ADJECTIVE describing the subject (situations).
The intent is to express the NATURE of the subject.
What KIND of situations?
Situations LISTED BELOW.

Pictures of the house have been attached to this report.
Here, the past participle (attached) serves as a part of a present perfect verb (have been attached).
The intent is to express an ACTION that has been performed upon the subject.
What ACTION has been performed upon pictures of the house?
They HAVE BEEN ATTACHED to this report.

Pictures of the house are attached to this report.
Here, the past participle (attached) seems to serve not as a verb but as an ADJECTIVE describing the subject (pictures).
The intent is to express the NATURE of the subject.
What KIND of pictures?
Pictures ATTACHED TO THIS REPORT.

The A sentences emphasize the ACTION that has been performed upon the subject.
The B sentences emphasize the NATURE of the subject.
Both versions are fine.
For the purposes of the GMAT, any difference in meaning is irrelevant.

Thank you GMATGuruNY, Murray and digvijyak so much for your answers with amazing detail and full of examples! It is clear for me now. Great support!