Happy New Year! What was your New Year's resolution? I
have a few but one I intend to start working on right now is to make sure people who want to buy, sell, or rent a residential property understand what Agency is and how it can affect the home buying process.
In New York every person who has contact with a Real Estate Salesperson or Broker regarding buying, selling, or renting property must be informed of the various ways Licensed Real Estate Professionals can work with them. In fact the Real Estate Salesperson or Broker is required by law to provide a written disclosure which explains all of the types of Agency and to have the customer or client sign this form at the first contact. There are separate forms for real estate sales and real estate rentals.
I have been shocked this past year by the number of people who have either never seen the disclosure, let alone signed one or may have signed one but did not understand what they were signing. So when you meet with that Real Estate Agent for the first time make sure they explain who they are or hope to be working for and get the signed copy of that disclosure to hold along with your other paperwork. It is vital that each and every person understand that they have the right to have their own agent who is looking out for their best interests.
The first thing that you need to understand is the meaning of Agency. An Agent enters into a fiduciary relationship with the Client and owes that Client reasonable care, undivided loyalty, confidentiality,full disclosure,obedience and duty to account. The Agent must do everything that they legally and ethically can to promote the Client's cause. An Agent can also work with a person as a Customer. To a Customer the Agent owes the following: (a) exercise reasonable skill and care in per-formance of the agent’s duties; (b) deal honestly, fairly and in good faith; and (c) disclose all facts known to the agent materially affecting the value or desirability of property, except as otherwise provided by law. As you can see as a person with little or no Real Estate experience you should be looking for an Agent to work with you as a Client.
In New York State the options available to you when you work with Real Estate Professionals are to work with them as a Seller's or Landlord's Agent, as a Buyer's or Tenant's Agent, or in a Dual Agency relationship. I will review each of these types of Agency and how they effect the buyers and sellers or tenants and landlords in the world of NY Real Estate in a future post.
If you are looking for a house in the Greater Hudson Valley or Lower Catskill region of New York I would love to help you in your search. As a buyer's agent I can set up a search web page for you, arrange for tours of homes you would like to see, and look at the homes with an experienced eye while looking out for your best interests. Please let me know what you are looking for in terms of housing and budget and I will send you your personal web-based search organizer today. Looking forward to hearing from you and good luck with your search.
Comments(2)