Seller Agent Buyer Agreement

Question: Our real estate agent refused to enter into a buyer’s agreement because she was the listing agent. Can we use another agent to make an offer?

My wife and I viewed several houses in Berrien County with a Real Estate Agent about 1 month ago. Since several of the houses we looked at were her listings she declined to enter into a buyer's agreement. We decided to put an offer on a house that was not her listing. We asked her to sign a buyer's agreement, and we would sign as well, but she refused. In the end we were not able to reach an agreement with the seller so we did not purchase the property. Without the agreement we did not feel comfortable talking strategy with her since she could tell the other party everything we were saying. We are now working with a new agent. If we want to make another offer on this 1st house, do we need to use the original agent?

Answer: You are working in the sometimes confused world of "real estate agency". They generally have an agreement with each other through the agent's membership in the local Board of Realtors. I would recommend that you tell your current realtor that you want to make an offer on a house that the listing realtor previously showed to you. Let your current buyer's agent realtor know the facts and let the buyer's agent approach the listing agent with the dilemma. Usually, the realtors will work it out. However, I would not lose the opportunity to buy the home you want just because it is being sold by a seller's agent. Get yourself a good local real estate attorney to help you review the contract. The most important thing in the long run is to buy the home that you like and meets your needs. Do not feel you have to settle for something else just because of the listing arrangement. Let me know how it comes out.

Attorney: Mark Miller