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Buying A Home --
Understanding Agency
First Time
Buyers
Understanding
Agency
Whether you're looking for a new home
or are getting ready to sell your present home,
today's fast-changing real estate market offers
many choices for working with a real estate company
to accomplish your goals. That's why it's important
to understand how agency- the relationship between
you, and your agent - Ron Breese -really
works.
Beginning July 1, 1995, the North Carolina
Real Estate Commission has mandated that a real
estate agent must disclose to you in writing who
the agent works for in the real estate transaction.
ALL N.C. REAL ESTATE LICENSEES must comply.
Agency is a long-established legal obligation
upon which all agent and client relationships are
based. Legally an agent is a person who acts on
behalf of another person- their client. If the agent
is acting as an exclusive seller's agent, the client
is the seller. If the agent is acting as an exclusive
buyer's agent, the client is the buyer. Agency creates
"fiduciary duties" between these parties.
Those duties are as follows:
Loyalty- to act in your best interests
to the exclusion of all other interest.
Obedience- to obey promptly and
efficiently all lawful instruction of the client.
Reasonable Care & Diligence-
to work with you in pursuing any questions you have
regarding your purchase or sale and to disclose
all material facts about the home.
Accounting- to account for all
monies or paperwork promptly in the transaction.
Disclosure- to keep the client
fully informed at all times of all facts the broker
obtains that affect the transaction.
Exclusive Seller Agency
When you list your home for sale, you
employ the real estate company as your "seller's
representative" to act exclusively on your
behalf and in your best interests. You will sign
a listing agreement which will outline the duties
of your agent and their company, how long the contract
will be in effect, under what conditions a commission
will be earned, to whom, those fees will be paid-to
a seller's agent, buyer's agent, or both. When you
list your home for sale, Ron Breese will represent
you and your interests.
Exclusive Buyer Agency
When you want to purchase a home you
may want an exclusive buyer agency- your agent and
their company represents you exclusively instead
of the seller. The buyer agreement states the obligation
of the buyer and the buyer's
agent, the duration of the contract, under what
conditions a fee will be paid, and by whom.
Dual or Limited Agency
An agent can only serve as dual agent
with informed consent. The possibility of this dual
agency must be agreed to prior to the seller listing
their home for sale and before the buyer signs a
buyer agency contract. This enables the company
to show and sell their "in house" listings.
When the buyer wants to purchase that "in house"
listing, dual agency must be consented to again
in writing prior to writing the contract. The seller
must consent again as well prior to reviewing and
negotiating the received offer.
The reason for the consent is because
the agent and their company that was an exclusive
representative of the seller and an exclusive representative
of the buyer, now is acting as a representative
of both. A dual agent has a limited range of fiduciary
duties to the buyer and the seller. A dual agent
is limited on the duty of loyalty and in the disclosure
of confidential information. The dual agent provides
the services necessary to complete the "in
house" sale and treat all parties to the transaction
honestly. When dual agency occurs, the real estate
company and other agents shall:
Disclose to the buyer all
material facts about the physical condition of the
property.
Assist in property inspections
required by the buyer
Be bound to the original
fiduciary duties in the agency agreement with the
exception of undivided loyalty and full disclosure.
Diligently facilitate the
sale of the property after the purchase agreement
or sales contract has been accepted.
When dual agency occur, Ron Breese shall not disclose:
The motivation of the seller
to sell or the buyer to buy
Price and terms either
party may offer or accept other than those in the
listing contract or purchase agreement
The negotiating strategy
of either party or any confidential information
that would jeopardize the position of either party-
unless express written permission has been given
by the buyer/seller.
Your real estate company is ethically required
to disclose to you their policy on agency. Ask questions.
You should know the reputation of your realtor.
Deal with someone you trust. You should expect to
receive honest treatment regardless of your agency
relationship.
CONTINUE
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