Who Does The Agent Really Represent?

We Work Hard to Represent your Interests

By Tennessee Law, We Must Have An Agency Agreement And It Must Be In Writing!

Tennessee Real Estate Commission 62-13-401

“A real estate licensee may provide real estate services to any party in a prospective transaction with or without an agency relationship to one (1) or more parties to the transaction. Until such time as a licensee enters into a specific written agreement to establish an agency relationship with one (1) or more parties to a transaction, such licensee shall be considered a facilitator and shall not be considered an agent or advocate of any party to the transaction. An agency agreement shall not be assumed, implied, or created without a written bilateral agreement that establishes the terms and conditions of such agency or subagency relationship”

What do all these terms mean?

Designated Agency
Whenever the agents for the seller and buyer work for the same firm, the both become “Dual Agents”. Neither you nor the seller are fully represented. “Designated Agency” is a form of dual agency. Consider if you were going to court to settle a legal matter…….Would you want the same attorney or attorney firm that’s representing the other party to also represent you? Tennessee law says that when you, the homebuyer, purchase a home from the agent that has it listed……that agent must revert to a “facilitator” status. This means that they are not representing either side. Only handling the paperwork. This can be a dangerous situation. Both the buyer and seller can easily become “customers”.

Buyer’s Agent
This is an agent retained by the buyer to represent their interests. This can be an agent that also lists property. And it’s fine unless you, the homebuyer, decides to purchase a home that this agent has listed. Then the conflict of interest is staring you in the face. You will either have to sign an agreement that the agent will be a “facilitator” as described above……or the company broker can “designate” another agent to work with you. But in this case, the files are in the same office……and there is always the possibility of “talk during the coffee breaks. This can dramatically erode your negotiating power! This is a gray area where again you can easily become a “customer”.

Exclusive Buyer’s Agent
An agent that does not take listings…..nor works for a firm that takes listings. There is no conflict of interest because they only represent the homebuyer. Since they don’t have any listings, there is no possibility that they will try to only show you their or their company’s listings, which is common because they receive both sides of the commission if they sell their own listing, and usually a bonus if they sell a company listing. This is the only form of agency that guarantees 100% representation and loyalty to the buyer. You are always a “client” in this relationship.

It’s up to you to decide which Realtor you want to use!

• An agent that represents the seller?

• An agent that tries to represent both you and the seller?

• An Exclusive Buyer’s Agent that represents ONLY YOU?

Click here for a copy of our agency agreement. Every real estate office has one, but we choose to post ours online for you to read at your convenience. Please read carefully and be sure to let us know about any questions you might have.  It is a STATE LAW that we must have a signed agency agreement in our files before we can do work or represent you in any way.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions you have.