Attention Real Estate Consumers In Atlanta

Welcome to the real estate market. We are happy that you are considering buying, selling or leasing and as industry professionals, we want to help you.

Realtors, real estate agents and brokers work under “agency” relationship agreements with clients and customers. The shorthand explanation is that the agency agreement binds the real estate professional and the client/customer together in a mutually beneficial relationship.



You, as the client/customer, HIRE the real estate professional to work on your behalf. They are expected to locate properties that meet your criteria, arrange showings, gather pertinent information about the property, assist you in determining fair market value, help you to craft a legal, beneficial contract with the other party, assist you in the negotiations, ensure that inspections, financing, & closing take place according to the schedule outlined in the contract, and a myriad of other details that I will not take the time to itemize.

You as the client/customer, agree to allow the real estate professional to seek compensation in exchange for performing their services.

Once you engage the services of a real estate professional to assist you, there are a few things that you should know about what happens when you go outside of the agency agreement and speak directly to other agents on your own behalf:



1. you often reveal too much information about yourself and your financial standing to the agent who is representing the other party.
2. you compromise your negotiating position by revealing too much information
3. you jeopardize your real estate agent’s ability to adequately represent you in the transaction
4. you have engaged the services and the time of another agent who will likely not be compensated for assisting you
5. you have put at risk the compensation of the real estate professional that you engaged through an agency agreement

Most listing agents in Metro Atlanta do not offer compensation to co-operating agents who do not handle the transaction from start to finish. If I have a rental listing and the co-oping agent does not attend all showings, walk through, signing of the lease and delivery of the funds, I will not pay a co-op fee to that agent. The same can be said of for sale listings, my standard disclaimer is that if I show another agent’s client my listing, I will pay a drastically reduced commission to the co-oping agent.

As a real estate professional, I expect my clients to remain loyal and in compliance with our agency agreement. I respect the agreements that exist between other agents and their clients/customers. I always ask whether you are currently working with another agent, and if you are, I respectfully request that you contact your agent directly so that they may gather information on your behalf.

When you enter into an agency agreement with a real estate professional, please respect the time, effort, resources and expense that the agent has put to use on your behalf.

Real estate is our chosen profession and we love what we do, but the fact remains that this is our job and we expect and deserve to compensated for what we do.