Toronto Commercial Real Estate Broker

A real estate company may be your agent – if you have clearly established an agency relationship with that company. But often, you may assume such an obligation exists when it does not.

We believe it is important that the people they work with understand when an agency relationship exists and when it does not — and understand what it means.

Occasionally a real estate company will be the agent of both the buyer and the seller. The buyer and seller must consent to this arrangement in their listing and buyer agency agreements. Under this “dual agency” arrangement, the company must do what is best for both the buyer and the seller.

Since the company’s loyalty is divided between the buyer and the seller who have conflicting interests, it is absolutely essential that a dual agency relationship be established in a written agency agreement. This agreement specifically describes the rights and duties of everyone involved and any limitations to those rights and duties.

Who's working for you?It is important that you understand who the REALTOR is working for. For example, both the seller and the buyer may have their own agent which means they each have a REALTOR who is working for them.

Or, some buyers choose to contact the seller's agent directly. Under this arrangement the REALTOR is working for the seller, and must do what is best for the seller, but may provide many valuable services to the buyer.

A REALTOR working with a buyer may even be a “sub-agent” of the seller. Under sub-agency, both the listing agent and the co-operating agent must do what is best for the seller even though the sub-agent may provide many valuable services to the buyer.

Want a broker who works for you the tenant?