As of June 15, 2018 there are new rules in BC for real estate agents, to ensure consumers have a better understanding of what it means to be a client or an unrepresented party in a real estate transaction, and whether their information is treated as confidential or not. Also, under the new rules, realtors can no longer act as agent for both the seller and the buyer in the same transaction (dual agency).
Please read the following information before contacting me with any real estate related question if you are not currently my client.
What to Expect as a Client
When you become the client of a real estate professional, they owe you special legal duties as your agent:
- Loyalty: they must put your interests first, even before their own.
- Avoid conflicts of interest: they must avoid any situation that would affect their duty to act in your best interests.
- Fully disclose relevant information: they must give you all the facts they know that might affect your decisions.
- Protect your confidentiality: they must not reveal your private information without your permission, such as: • your reasons for buying/selling/leasing/renting • the minimum/maximum price you are seeking • any preferred terms and conditions you may want to include in a contract.
What to Expect as an Unrepresented Party
If you choose not to have a real estate professional represent you, you are an unrepresented party. You are not entitled to the special legal duties a client receives.
- No loyalty: the real estate professionals involved in the transaction are representing clients with competing interests to yours. They must be loyal to their clients, not you.
- No duty to avoid conflicts: no real estate professional is acting in your interests.
- No full disclosure: the real estate professionals involved in the transaction do not have a duty to give you all relevant information.
- No confidentiality: the real estate professionals involved in the transaction must share any information you tell them with their client.