The Term Dual Agency Explained

The Term Dual Agency Explained

There are two sides to everything: dark to light, morning to night, front to back. In real estate, there is buying and selling. With two parts of a transaction, that means there are two sides to be represented.

Which brings us to Dual Agency. 

Dual Agency occurs when both the buyer and seller are represented by the same real estate agent in the same transaction. 

How might this happen?

If you do not yet have an agent to help you with your real estate transaction and you’re house shopping on your own, you may find yourself calling the listing agent for a home that you are interested in. At this point, that agent could offer to represent you as well as the seller.
Or maybe you have signed buyer representation with an agent and that agent has been showing you property but you haven’t found the right one. Then your agent lists a home that you’re interested in. You ask to see it and want to make an offer. This agent will then need to discuss Dual Agency with you to explain how the negotiations will be handled.  Both the buyer and seller must agree to Dual Agency and they must sign the appropriate documentation acknowledging this before it can take place.

Dual Agency may cause some questions about the integrity of whose best interest the agent is representing. They should remain loyal to both parties, stating the facts only and not disclosing any information that could negatively affect the negotiations.

In some cases having a dual agent can get you to the closing table when that might not happen with two separate agents.  The dual agent knows both sides and what it will take to reach an agreement.

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