All about representation

Clients vs. Customers

Jessica Josenhans / Red Door Realty Lunenburg / REALTOR®

With real estate, there is a big difference when it comes to representation. You, the buyer/seller, needs to fully understand what it means to enter into a contract in which you are either the client or the customer.

A client has an agency agreement with a real estate representative and their brokerage, and this agency agreement means that the real estate representative MUST:

• protect and promote your best interests and negotiating power

• disclose all relevant facts

• obey your lawful instructions

• show the utmost loyalty to you

• act in your best interests

• maintain your confidence

• exercise reasonable care and skill

• be held accountable for all money and property placed in trust during a transaction

Clients are also owed:

• explanations for real estate terms and practices

• to be provided with forms and have them be fully explained

• the ability to identify and estimate service costs of other professionals involved in a transaction

• assistance with their negotiation

• offers and counter offers prepared at your discretion

• all offers presented promptly

• to be provided with true copies of all agreements

A customer is not in an agency agreement, and therefore is owed honest and accurate answers ONLY for the following:

• explanations regarding real estate terms and practices;

• providing and explaining forms

• identifying and estimating service costs of other professionals

• preparing offers and counter offers

• presenting all offers promptly

• giving true copies of all agreements

When dealing with a customer, the real estate representative MUST NOT:

• make any recommendation regarding the transaction

• assist you with negotiation

• inform you of their client’s top/bottom line

• disclose any confidential information about their client unless specifically authorized to do so
  

There is also a different type of agency relationship depending on what type of Brokerage you choose to go with, but I'll talk more about that distinction in another post.

For now, know that with Red Door Realty, which is the brokerage I trade in real estate on behalf of - is a 'Designated Agency' Brokerage. This means that you are working with me specifically as your agent, not all other agents of the brokerage which would be the case under 'Common Law'.

For more information, please check out:

https://nsrec.ns.ca/consumers/getting-started/agency-relationships#:~:text=If%20you%20are%20a%20client,if%20you%20are%20a%20client.

The linked article is maintained by the Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission, who is the regulator of the Nova Scotia real estate industry.

Don't hesitate to reach out with any further questions!

Jessica Josenhans / Red Door Realty Lunenburg / REALTOR®