LESLIE MONACO REAL ESTATE

Real Estate Term of the Day: Duel Agency

DUEL AGENCY – the situation in which an agent represents more than one party to a transaction (Barron’s Dictionary of Real Estate Terms)

The State of Colorado does not allow the practice of duel agency.  According to Senate Bill 02-196, Section 6: A broker shall not establish due agency with any seller, landlord, buyer, or tenant.  However, Colorado does allow for the use of “Transaction Brokers” status that  means a broker who assists one or more parties throughout a contemplated real estate transaction with communication, interposition, advisement, negotiation, contract terms, and the closing of such real estate transaction without being an agent or advocate for the interests of any party to such transaction. Upon agreement in writing pursuant  or a written disclosure pursuant, a transaction-broker may become a single agent.

Furthermore, BROKERS in the State of Colorado must provide a written disclosure to a potential customer to identify who the agent represents and how they represent them.  The form used for this is the Brokerage Disclosure to Buyer (Tenant).  A broker shall be considered a transaction-broker unless a single agency relationship is established through a written agreement between the broker and the party or parties to be represented by such broker.

See an interactive map of the U.S. that highlights the variety of approaches states have used to define the relationships of real estate agents and brokers with buyers and sellers.

For more discussion on the practice of Duel Agency, see the recent Inman blog titled: “No consensus on real estate duel agency, double-ending“