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You can expect unswerving loyalty to you but this loyalty is subject to legislation such as the Consumers Guarantees Act and the Fair Trading Act.
From the moment you sign, an agency agreement exists between you and Abuzz Real Estate Limited. According to your Common Law rights and relevant legislation you can expect the following from my company and me:
No conflicts of interest.
If one of our consultants or employees (or a close family member including their parents, husband, children or business partners) would like to buy your property we must disclose this to you and we must get a registered valuation at the consultants cost, to inform you of the market value (This is required by the Real Estate Agents Act). This is to prevent insider trading especially where your asking price could be lower than market value. If you sign the agreement, we must provide the valuation within 14 days (if not already done) or the contract is voidable at your option. If you’ve dealt with someone else and this has happened, your property has already changed hands and the requirements mentioned above were not met, you should speak to your solicitor immediately as you are entitled to a refund of the commission and cancellation of the agreement.
Due skill and care – and more
What is the normal practice? The law requires minimum standards, but I believe in providing more. The ‘norm’ is laid down in the Real Estate Agents Act, the Code of Ethics and Rules of Practise and in other legislation. The norm is a minimum for the real estate industry as a whole and it regulates maters such as advise as to the manner of sale, representations made in advertising, verbally or by conduct, drafting the Sales and Purchase agreement and the collection of the deposit. If you are going to be satisfied with the minimum norm as specified above you can employ any agent/consultant to work for you. If you expect more, contact us today as we have the knowledge, skills and expertise to provide outstanding service.
What can I ask of you?
The tasks must be reasonable but the type of tasks will depend on your agreement with the agent.
General listing
If you appoint an agent under a general authority (listing) then the agent/consultant is under no obligation to actively market your property and you don’t have a remedy. You’ll want to see some action and results, but general listings are a recipe for disaster. We don’t like loose, open-ended contracts – they don’t achieve what you or I want out of the relationship.
Sole agency
If you sign a sole agency I’m accountable and must do my best to sell your property. What does this mean? When you sign up with Lindsay Dove and me you will have a guideline of my responsibilities and it will be easy to check. Whoever you work with, you need to be sure you know exactly what services you are going to get. Ask “How are they going to promote my property?” If the consultant/agent doesn’t do as they promised, they are in breach of their duties and you might have some remedies available to you.
No delegation of your authority
When you contract with our company we cannot delegate your listing to another company. There are rules to make sure that, if you list with one company then change your mind, the first authority will be cancelled. Be sure to check when you list, that you know what the contract allows for if you want to opt out. Some real estate companies have a clause holding you responsible for commission sometimes even 6 months after the signing the agreement. If this is the case and you want to get out, speak to your solicitor before you do anything!
If you are in the process of signing up, you can change such a stipulation in an agreement to 10 days after written notice that you are ending the agency agreement. The choice is yours… you don’t have to be held hostage to people who can’t deliver on their promises.
Maintain confidentiality
Your reasons for selling is your private business and the only reason buyers ask your reasons for selling is that they hope to find a bargain because you are desperate to sell. Agents/consultants need your consent to disclose any of your private information.
Full disclosure
If a buyer says they could pay more for the property than the written offer, it must be disclosed to you.
If you don’t want to sell to a certain group or class of buyers, we must inform you when the prospective buyer is from that class or category. We must also disclose to you what the buyers said about the quality and value of your home, even if it is sometimes not what you want to hear.
Also we cannot act for interested buyers under another agreement where the buyer is paying my commission, without your consent.
If Abuzz, is getting a fee for referring a buyer to a mortgage broker, we must disclose this. Read agreements carefully, because you might otherwise give consent to this without realising it. Unless it has been pointed out to you and you have knowingly given consent, it is highly unlikely that you provided “genuine consent” in this regard.
Agent to keep proper accounts
You can expect a detialed statement indicating the deposit and other monies received and disbursed on your behalf.
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