Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Agency role in bringing transaction together?
A seller called to tell me her property was privately for sale. She gave me a price and would not sign a listing, however. I started telling Buyers I could trust. 1) An agent called me, said he represented the Seller and sent me a formal confirmation of commissions to cooperating Brokers from any sale I brought in for 2.5%. I confirmed this with the Seller and she said she felt obligated to use that agent to represent her; he doesn't have an exclus listing, just a 5% agreement. I provided the name of the Buyer ''Dan'' and the agent initialed on the cooperating agreement. I am set with 2.5% on my side upon COE. 2) Prior to knowing there was an extra agent involved on the seller's side, I described the property to an agent who reps Dan. She wants to get paid too. The Seller won't pay her a 3% commission, I tried. The Seller said, if any commission is going to be paid to another agent, get it from the Buyer. So I told the agent to get a Buyer Broker agreement with her Buyer. She did, and he will pay her separately when they put in their offer. My role in this sounds like a subagency of the Seller's agent. How would I disclose this on the agency relationship forms? Or, would I be termed a facilitator, a term used in some states?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Agency role in bringing transaction together?
Are you a salesperson or a broker? If the former, ask the broker you work under. If you have a broker's license and don't know, I'd suggest calling the DRE and getting assistance from one of their experts. If that still doesn't work, contact an attorney (I would be available to assist) so all the facts can be gone over in an interview. Otherwise, the proper outcome here is murky.
Re: Agency role in bringing transaction together?
I'm just thinking out loud here, you're being paid by the seller as if you're the buyer's agent, but it seems like you're actually acting as the seller's agent, or as you termed it a sub-agent. If the listing was non-exclusive, wouldn't the seller's agent normally be the odd man out (but I guess the seller's wishes control in that respect). This might be headed to litigation. I'd be willing to consult with you further, to really sort these issues out.
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