Why the listing agent may be the only person who can't help

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Real Estate Secret Revealed: The name on the sign may be the only person who can’t help you

by Matt Difanis, REALTOR®
posted March 6, 2001

Virtually all home buyers in the Champaign County area have picked up copies of the free real estate advertisement magazines that are distributed in stores and in real estate offices throughout the area. I have often encountered buyers who have spent hours scouring the advertisements in search of that one perfect property. Similarly, some buyers drive through their desired neighborhoods several times each week, looking for newly listed properties. In both cases, the ads or signs instruct the buyer to call the listing agent for information.

While this seems to make sense to naļve buyers, it is often a tremendous waste of time, and it is ultimately not in the buyer’s best interests. If you are a buyer who makes such calls, the agent whose name is on the sign or in the ad is usually the only agent in the entire area who cannot represent your best interests should you choose to purchase that property. This is because the listing agent is already engaged in a fiduciary relationship with the seller. Thus, the listing agent has a legal obligation to exclusively represent the sellers’ best interests, which means selling the house at the highest possible price and at terms most favorable to the seller.

So how does a buyer get a REALTOR® on his or her side? Select a REALTOR® who is a member of the local MLS in the area in which that buyer is looking for a home, but who is not the listing agent for any of the homes in which you might be interested. In this area, the local MLS is the Champaign County Association of REALTORS®, which covers the following geographic areas:

All of Champaign County
Almost all of Piatt County (just west of Champaign County)
The western edge of Vermillion County
Most of Douglas County
Most of Ford County
Some properties for sale in other Central Illinois counties

Lest you worry that an agent other than the listing agent cannot provide you with complete information, keep in mind that any MLS member agent can access detailed information about any property listed for sale with any REALTOR® in the area. If you require more information than the MLS listing provides, you can always ask your buyer agent to make a few calls on your behalf to track down additional details.

Even though the seller generally pays the commission for both the listing agent and for the agent who represents the buyer, Illinois state law provides for buyer agency, which stipulates that an agent who represents a buyer (even in the absence of a written buyer agency agreement) is obligated to act in the best interests of the buyer, regardless of the source of that agent’s compensation. Acting in the best interests of the buyer includes maintaining strict confidentiality of any information that the buyer shared in confidence with his or her buyer agent.

Selecting a REALTOR® who can work exclusively for you may seem like a challenge, since the agents you see first are likely to be the same individuals who are listing properties that you like. Ask friends for personal recommendations, or surf the Web in search for a REALTOR® with whom you are impressed. The payoff is tremendous—having a REALTOR® who works only for you!

For more information about the workings of buyer agency, see my frequently asked buyer questions.

Real Estate Secret Revealed: The name on the sign may be the only person who can’t help you

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