Agency Terms

Seller's Agent -- When you sign a listing agreement with a real estate broker you are typically signing an agency agreement that makes that broker and all sales associates affiliated with the broker your legal agents. In a designated agency the broker would name one or more sale associates as your legal agent. The seller's agent is a limited as opposed to general agent. In other words, the listing or other agreement with the broker gives the selling agent certain authority to act on your behalf in the marketing and sale of the property. However, the selling agent does not have general powers to act on your behalf such as the power to enter into a binding contract for the sale of your real estate. In the marketing of your real estate, the seller's agent will be acting in the seller's best interest.

Dual Agency -- In this type of situation, both the seller and buyer in a transaction are represented by the same legal agent. Thus, fiduciary duties are owed to both parties. The law has stated that this is not legally possible without the consent of the buyer and seller. Thus, your consent will have to be secured to allow for this type of situation to exist. If a disclosed dual agency actually exists, the role of the sales associate will be somewhat limited and the buyer and seller will act at times on their own behalf in negotiations for the sale or purchase of the property.

Agency -- This is a framework that has developed in the law to allow individuals to act through another person or representative. This particularly occurs in commercial transactions. Examples might include hiring an attorney to represent you in a business transaction, working with a stock broker to purchase stocks or other investments, or working with a real estate broker to buy or sell real estate. Your legal agent may have unlimited or limited powers on your behalf. Your legal agent owes you fiduciary duties such as the duties of loyalty, accounting, and disclosure. In the purchase or sale of real estate you have several different options.

Designated Agency -- This arrangement with a real estate brokerage company will result in one or more sales associates being designated as your legal agent. You can enter into this arrangement either as a seller or buyer. Other sales associates in the real estate brokerage firm may be the legal agents of other buyers and sellers and may be the legal agent of the party who buys your property or from whom you buy property. The only individuals owing you fiduciary duties are those designated as your legal agent and not the real estate brokerage company itself or all other sales associates with that company. A real estate brokerage company will generally offer this service in order to provide representation for both buyers and seller.

Buyer Working with Broker -- Traditionally, buyers of residential real estate have worked with a real estate broker or a sales associate on a non-agency basis. In other words, the sales associate you work with is acting as the legal agent of the seller and not as the buyer's legal agent. The sales associate or broker has a responsibility to deal with the buyer in a fair and honest manner, but does not have fiduciary duties to the buyer. The buyer has access to listings available to the sales associate through the multiple listing service and will receive other services from the sales associate such as financing information, determining the range of prices at which a buyer can purchase and assistance in facilitating the closing. The sales associate will try to provide the best quality services to the buyer consistent with their duties to the seller.

Buyer's Agent -- A buyer may ask a real estate brokerage company to act as the buyer's legal agent in the process of purchasing real estate. This can be done by designating one or more sales associates as your legal agent in a written agreement with the broker or by entering into an agency agreement with the real estate broker which would provide that the broker and all sales associates affiliated with the broker would be acting as legal agents of the buyer. The authority of your legal agent to act on your behalf would be limited to those powers granted in the written agreement. In the purchase of real estate the buyer's agent will be acting in the buyer's best interest.