Real estate agencies often do a lot of work behind the scenes that buyers and sellers don’t see. When you list your house, sell it, transfer it, and buy a new one, there are contracts and other paperwork that the real estate agent has to take care of.
There are a lot of responsibilities and duties required of real estate companies by federal and state law, and non-compliance can lead to fines and other more serious penalties. Your local real estate firm should have a list of these duties in a visible location for clients to see. Here are some of the duties and responsibilities of real estate companies:
Licenses
Real estate agents need to be appropriately licensed and trained to be legally recognized in the real estate industry. Not being trained and licensed can be in contravention of the laws around fair housing and environmental regulations, and can lead to the agent and the agency being fined.
Practicing as a real estate agent or joining a real estate company requires specially regulated licenses and registrations to ensure the consumer is protected. It is the duty of the real estate company to ensure all agents are appropriately trained either before being hired or before being allowed to work independently.
Brokers and sellers working together
An agent and a broker will frequently work together. When agents and brokers co-operate their efforts to sell a house, they will work together on listing the home, sharing the listings, sharing commissions, advising the private home seller, and supervising showing the house.
These are a few of the duties expected of brokers and sellers in relation to the selling customer. The customer’s best interests are always to be accounted for while the brokers and agents also offer honest advice and transparent agreements. The agents and brokers are expected to facilitate the legal and contractual aspects of the property’s sale.
Brokers working with buyers
Some brokers and agents will work with buyers to help them find their ideal home. When a buyer seeks out an agent or broker to help them purchase their ideal home, the buyer should look for a contractor poster to ensure the agent is compliant with state and federal regulations.
The agent is expected to help buyers locate an appropriate property within their desired price range, co-ordinate property viewings, and field the contractual aspects of the purchase agreement.
Essentially, the agent acts as a mediator between the buyer and seller, using their license and qualifications as a resource to ensure that the contracts and agreements protect both buyer and seller in the agreement.
Supervising broker
Sometimes a real estate agent company will be under the supervision of a broker. In this instance, the agents handle most of the brokerage responsibilities while having the broker on call to assist with aspects of agreements that can’t be completed by the lower-licensed agents.
The brokers will step in to ensure all agents are licensed and trained, provide training, are responsible for ensuring compliance and appropriate behavior of agents, and provide a website for marketing. Thus, the broker takes care of the legal aspects of the agency while the agents deal with customers.
Mediating
It is the job of the real estate agents employed by real estate companies to act as a mediator. When buyers and sellers approach real estate companies requesting their services, the agents need to connect the right buyer to the right seller.
This connecting buyer to the seller is not as simple as taking the buyer to the seller’s house. Rather, the agents need to co-ordinate appropriate viewing meetings and then field the price negotiations and purchase agreements. The legal documents are to be drawn up and witnessed by the estate agent company.
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