Holiday Closure

The OREA office will close for the holidays at 12 p.m. Tuesday, December 24th.  Normal business hours will resume on Thursday, January 2nd.  Happy Holidays!

Holiday Closure

The OREA office will close for the holidays at 12 p.m. Tuesday, December 24th.  Normal business hours will resume on Thursday, January 2nd.  Happy Holidays!

February 6th - 2004

Non-exclusive agreement

The Buyer Customer Service Agreement is non-exclusive.

The Buyer Customer Service Agreement is non-exclusive. Therefore, while a Buyer Agency Agreement legally binds a buyer to a firm, as his/her agent, for a specified time period for a particular type of property and geographical area noted therein (provided that all conditions for a legally binding contract have been met), the Buyer Customer Service Agreement does not have that legal binding effect. This means that a buyer may enter into a Buyer Customer Service Agreement with more than one firm.

The “procurement rule” found in most boards’ MLS rules and regulations provides that it is unethical for a REALTOR to ignore the presence of an existing agency agreement or induce or attempt to induce a breach of such agency agreement with another firm and requires a REALTOR to take reasonable steps to determine whether a seller or buyer is subject to an existing agency agreement.  That still must be done before entering into a Buyer Customer Service Agreement with a potential buyer. However, REALTORS may ignore the existence of an existing Buyer Customer Service Agreement, since that agreement is non-exclusive and since that agreement is not an agency agreement. It is also not a “Representation Agreement” as defined in the RECO Code of Ethics since it is not an agreement to represent a Client; it is an agreement to provide service to a Customer.

Cautions

  1. Having established that the buyer is a Customer, not a Client, and confirming that by entering into the Buyer Customer Service Agreement, REALTORS should ensure that their words and actions towards or about the buyer do not lead to an implied agency relationship. Despite the clarity of the form, the sales representative or broker must not conduct themselves in such a manner that the buyer believes he/she is a Client.
  2. Before entering into a Buyer Customer Service Agreement, reasonable enquiries must be made of the potential buyer to make sure that he/she is not a party to a Buyer Agency Agreement with another firm. A warranty of the buyer to that effect is contained in the form.

A new Legal Pamphlet about this Buyer Customer Service Agreement can be found in the My OREA-Legal-Legal Pamphlets section of the OREA website, www.orea.com.

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VOWS: A cautionary tale Buyer Customer Service Agreement

For more information contact

Ontario Real Estate Association

Jean-Adrien Delicano

Senior Manager, Media Relations

JeanAdrienD@orea.com

416-445-9910 ext. 246

Ontario Real Estate Association
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The trademarks REALTOR®, REALTORS®, and the REALTOR® logo are controlled by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify real estate professionals who are members of CREA. The trademarks MLS®, Multiple Listing Service® and the associated logos are owned by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify the quality of services provided by real estate professionals who are members of CREA. Used under license.

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