Raise this with your agent
- A buyer’s agent can be paid by the seller and still represent only you.
- Dual agency needs the knowledge and consent of both buyer and seller.
- Your contract or a separate form should confirm who represents whom.
Key takeaways
- Ask every agent, at the first meeting, whom they will represent.
- Being paid by the seller does not, by itself, make a buyer’s agent the seller’s agent.
- One agent for both sides is allowed in some states, but only with both parties’ consent, and the agent’s role narrows.
- Rules differ by state, so read the agency disclosure form your agent gives you.
Most buyers assume the agent driving them to showings is on their side. Often that is true, but not always. The agent at an open house often works for the seller, and in some deals one agent or one brokerage ends up working for both sides. Knowing who represents whom tells you what you can safely say out loud.
Three ways an agent can stand
Seller’s agent
California’s required agency disclosure, set out in Civil Code section 2079.16, describes a seller’s agent under a listing agreement as acting for the seller only, with a fiduciary duty of utmost care, integrity, honesty and loyalty to the seller. Texas’s notice adds that the seller’s agent must pass on to the seller material information it learns, including information disclosed by the buyer or the buyer’s agent. Anything you tell the listing agent about your budget can reach the seller.
Buyer’s agent
A buyer’s agent works for you, usually under a written representation agreement, and owes you the same loyalty. California’s form makes one point especially clearly: a buyer’s agent is not the seller’s agent even if, by agreement, part or all of their pay comes from the seller. How your agent is paid and whom they represent are separate questions. See Buyer Agreements and Agent Pay Explained for how pay is set.
Agent for both sides
In California this is called dual agency. It is legal only with the knowledge and consent of both seller and buyer. In Texas the role is called an intermediary, and the broker must first get a written agreement from each party that states who will pay the broker and sets out the intermediary’s obligations in bold or underlined print. Some states use other names or limit the practice, so ask how it works where you are buying.
What a dual agent may not reveal
Both states protect the same core information. Without permission, the agent may not tell the seller that you would pay more than your written offer, and may not tell you that the seller would take less than the asking price. California’s form also lists other confidential facts such as either side’s financial position, motivations and bargaining position. Texas requires the intermediary to treat both parties impartially and fairly.
That protection has a cost. An agent who must stay impartial cannot push hard for you on price, which is often the main reason buyers hire an agent in the first place. In Texas, with both parties’ written consent, the broker may appoint a different agent from the same brokerage to each side, so each of you has someone to give advice and carry out instructions.
Questions to ask before you agree
- If I want to see one of your own listings, what happens to our relationship?
- Would you, or someone else in your office, act for me in that deal?
- What exactly will you stop doing for me if you represent both sides?
- Does your pay change if you represent both sides?
- Can I decline dual agency and still work with you on other homes?
You can say no. If you do not want one agent working both sides, say so in writing at the start, and ask how the agreement handles it. Our list of Questions to Ask a Buyer’s Agent Before You Sign has more to raise at the interview.
Showings without representation
An agent can sometimes show you a home without representing you. Texas allows it when the broker has not agreed to represent you, is not acting as your agent, and does not give you opinions or advice. Even then, Texas requires a written agreement before the showing, and it may not be exclusive and may last no more than 14 days. If an agent shows you a house but says they do not represent you, treat everything you say as if the seller could hear it.
Read the confirmation in your contract
California’s form tells buyers that the purchase agreement or a separate document will confirm which agent represents you and whether that representation is exclusive or dual. Check that line before you sign. It also reminds buyers that an agent’s duties do not relieve you of protecting your own interests, and that legal or tax questions belong with a qualified professional.
Tip: You may receive the same disclosure form more than once, from each agent you deal with. Read it each time; the relationship it describes can be different.