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Saturday, April 26th, 2008Understanding Agency relationship is imperative when choosing a realtor. Many states have enacted agency disclosure laws to ease the confusion of who represents who and New Jersey is one of them. Furthermore, it is the responsibility of your salesperson to explain what type of relationship you have with him/her and the real estate company he/she represents. You will most probably be required to sign a Consumer Information Statement on Real Estate Relationships to acknowledge you have received the statement and understand it. In most cases it is already incorporated into a Listing Agreement and a Contract to Purchase Agreement. The Consumer Information Statement is not a contract itself…it is purely for informational purposes only.
- Seller’s agent also known as “listing agent” represents the seller/seller’s in a relationship brought about by a listing contract. The seller’s agent although many times work with buyers has fiduciary duties to the seller only including reasonable care, full disclosure, confidentiality and undivided loyalty.
- Buyer’s agent sometimes referred to as “selling agents” work with buyers only and has fiduciary duties including reasonable care, full disclosure, confidentiality and undivided loyalty to the buyer.
- Disclosed dual agent works for both buyer and seller and is legal in most states but all parties involved must give their informed consent in writing. The fiduciary duties of the disclosed dual agent are limited due to potential conflicts of interest and this agent must never put one party’s interests above the others.
