REALTOR® Magazine Online: What a Dual Agent Can and Can't Do for a Client

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Fifteen Benefits of
Working with a
Buyer’s Representative
  Advanced tip

Understanding Agency
  Broker tip

Contract Terms for Buyer’s Representatives

Qualifying the Buyer
  Advanced tip

How Well Do You Listen?
  Advanced tip

Who Are Today’s Buyers?   Advanced tip
   Advanced tip

Advanced: Psychographics
—Understanding
Buyer Motivation

Prospecting for Buyers

Working with
Internet-Empowered
Buyers

Servicing the Buyer
  Advanced tips

Closing the Deal
  Advanced tip

Due Diligence and Disclosure
  Advanced tip

Staying Safe While Showing Homes
  Broker tip

When to Call It Quits

Quiz: Buyer’s Representation

Bright Ideas: Working With Buyers

Code of Ethics: Working with Buyers

More Resources: Working with Buyers

Vendor Resources: Working with Buyers

UNDERSTANDING AGENCY

What a Dual Agent Can and Can't Do for a Client

Can:

Provide information about the property to the buyer.
Disclose all latent material defects.
Help the buyer compare financing alternatives.
Provide information on comparable properties so that both parties may make educated decisions on the price.

Can't

Disclose confidential information about either client without permission.
Recommend or suggest a price to either the buyer or the seller.
Disclose the lowest price the seller will take for the property or the seller’s financial position without permission
Disclose the highest price the buyer will pay for the property or the buyer’s financial position without permission.

The Pros and Cons of Non-Agency Relationships

Pros:

More flexibility in working with buyers and sellers.
Nonadversarial atmosphere for negotiations.
Less responsibility for licensee because fiduciary duties of the agent are eliminated.
No vicarious liability for consumers.

Cons:

Potential liability.
Conduct could unintentionally create apparent agency relationship.
Possibly more complex disclosure of relationship.

For the Broker:
Creating a Company Policy on Agency

Having a company policy on brokerage relationships is an excellent way to guide salespeople as to proper disclosure. A policy also protects practitioners by reducing their risk of noncompliance with state laws and regulations covering brokerage relationships.

To create a policy:

Review the types of brokerage relationships with consumers allowed in your state.

Identify and review the pros and cons of each type of relationship.

Select the types of relationship(s) best for your company.

Draft a company policy that explains all allowed practices the company will follow and outlines the procedures associates should follow and the documentation they should secure.

Implement training to help ensure that the policy is always upheld--Excerpted from Don’t Risk It: A Broker’s Guide to Risk Management, 2nd Edition, published by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS^®.

Buyer Agency Contracts >

Note: This information provides general legal information and should not be relied upon as legal guidance. Before acting, both the relevant laws and legal counsel should be consulted. This information should not be construed as specific legal advice nor as an opinion on particular facts, cases, or situations.

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