Loyalty to realtor? (for sale, broker, new home)

[luckless]

I'm currently looking at houses with a realtor but find that I provide most of the leads on houses we look at. I'll be looking at a couple fsbo's this weekend. Do I "owe" this realtor anything if I happen to buy the fsbo?

[Elizabeth_G]

Did you sign a buyers agency agreement and if so, what does it state?

[luckless]

I haven't signed anything.

[Back Again]

As a Realtor, Ill answer this.
　
With you being a buyer, you never owe anything to the Realtor (Unless you go behind the their back and make a deal on a home they showed you just to get a lower price)
　
With that said, and since a lot of FSBOs will work with a Buyer's agent, why not run the past your agent first. Like I said, using a buyer's agent will cost your nothing, BUT could save you a lot.
　
One question I hear a lot from home buyer’s is "Won’t using a Buyer’s Agent cost me more money in the long run"?
　
As new home buyers, let me explain how this all works, incase you do not understand, as a lot people do not.
　
If you just drive around and call an agent off of a sign from in front of a home with a For Sale Sign on it, that agent represents the Sellers and will be looking out for the Seller’s best interest - hence the term Selling Agent or Listing Agent.
　
NOTE: If you do do this, make sure you enter into a Limited Consensual Dual Agent agreement and not just a Transaction Broker Agreement - Explained on the bottom.
　
A Buyer’s Agent will be looking out for YOUR best interest.
　
How do they get paid? – Good question, as most people also do not understand this.
　
No sale, no pay! They do not get paid by the Buyers, nor do they truly get paid by the Sellers. They get paid by what the Seller’s Agent is willing to share with the Buyer’s Agent (Disclosed in a section of the MLS that only other Realtors can see) of what he or she is getting paid by the home’s owner.
　
Won’t using a Buyer’s Agent change the price we are going to pay? – The answer is NO and here’s why.
　
A Seller’s Agent makes a deal with the Sellers to list, market and sell the home for a percentage of the sale’s price, let say 6%. The Sellers are going to pay 6% no matter if a Buyer’s Agent is used or not. What it comes down to is, will the Seller’s Agent keep all 6% by selling the home to a Buyer that has no representation, or keep only some of it by sharing it with a Buyer’s Agent? Seller’s Agents do this to get more people to look at the home and get it sold faster.
　
A Limited Consensual Dual Agent will work for both the buyer and the seller and is loyal to both. The ONLY thing a Limited Consensual Dual Agent can not do, is tell the bottom line to either party, which a Single Agent would not know anyway.
　
A Transaction Broker will just assist either the Buyer or Seller, depending on who they have the agreement with, with the sale or purchase of a home. They still need to provide you with honest service and act in good faith, exercise reasonable care and skill, keep confidential any information gained in confidence, unless disclosure is required by law or duty to a client, Present all written offers promptly yo the Seller and answer all your questions completely and accurately. NOTE: "unless disclosure is required by law or duty to a client" If this agent is a Single Agent to the Seller or Buyer and only a Transaction Broker to you, ANYTHING you tell them, can be relayed back to the party they represent.
　
I hope this all makes sense and helps you.

[luckless]

That makes perfect sense. I would never try to negotiate around the agent on a house they had show me or led me to. I will continue to look with the agent for all houses I find via MLS, Trulia, Zillow etc and FSBO's I find. I just hope to find the right house and hopefully this agent can represent my interests. If It happens to be a FSBO that does not want to work with a agent... I guess it's time to treat the agent to a nice gift card instead of a commission.

[Back Again]

Originally Posted by luckless

That makes perfect sense. I would never try to negotiate around the agent on a house they had show me or led me to. I will continue to look with the agent for all houses I find via MLS, Trulia, Zillow etc and FSBO's I find. I just hope to find the right house and hopefully this agent can represent my interests. If It happens to be a FSBO that does not want to work with a agent... I guess it's time to treat the agent to a nice gift card instead of a commission.

If you find a FSBO that will not work with an agent, most agents WILL step aside and let you out of any Buyer's agreement you have with them for that home.