Real Estate Agent Responsibilities

by Andrew Murray on January 25, 2012

You are entitled to — and should expect — competent service from your agent Now that you have been introduced to different types of relationships buyers and sellers can engage in with a real estate agent, it is helpful to understand the associated responsibilities.

 

For your real estate agent, these responsibilities depend on the relationship agreed upon. The most extensive and involved relationship, in terms of responsibilities, is an agency/client relationship. Here’s what you should expect:

 

Undivided loyalty

 

The agent must act solely in your best interests, must always put your interests above their own and above the interests of other parties. This means, among other things, avoiding conflicts of interest and protecting your negotiating position at all times.

 

Confidentiality

 

The agent has a duty to keep your confidences. Confidential information includes any information concerning you, the property or the transaction that has not required by law to be disclosed, but which, if disclosed, could be used by another party to your disadvantage. It is important to note that the duty of confidentiality continues even after the agency relationship ends.

 

Full disclosure

 

The agent must inform you of all known facts that might affect your relationship or influence your decision in a real estate transaction. This includes any conflicts of interest the agent might have in the course of providing services to you.

 

The agent should not decide whether the information is important to you and is obligated to disclose all relevant information. An exception to full disclosure to you is confidential information your agent may have gathered from a past client in a previous agency relationship, unless the previous client agrees in writing.

 

Obedience

 

As long as instructions are reasonable and ordinary under the circumstances, the agent must obey all of your lawful instructions. If you ask the agent to do something unlawful, the agent would be obliged to refuse and consider terminating the relationship and existing service agreement.

 

Reasonable care and skill

 

The agent must exercise reasonable care and skill in performing all assigned duties. The agent is expected to meet the standard of care that a reasonable and competent industry member would exercise in a similar situation.

 

Full accounting

 

The agent must account for all money and property placed in his or her hands while acting on your behalf. As licensed professionals, real estate industry members are further bound by statutory obligations that are set out in the real estate trading act and commission by-law.

 

These obligations reinforce the common law duties described above. You are entitled to — and should expect — competent service from your agent, knowing that the brokerage and its representatives are bound by the law to be honest in every real estate transaction.

 

It is important for buyers and sellers to be aware of these obligations so they can make informed decisions. The surest path to success is to ask questions and be sure you are satisfied with the answers before you enter into a relationship with a specific brokerage.

 

The Nova Scotia Association of REALTORS® represents more than 1,700 brokers, salespeople and affiliate members throughout the province. REALTOR® is a trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who are members of The Canadian Real Estate Association and, as such, subscribe to a high standard of professional service and a strict code of ethics.

 

Posted by Halifax Real Estate – A modern Approach

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Halifax Real Estate – A Modern Approach, celebrates its first anniversary with EXIT Realty Professionals

by Andrew Murray on December 2, 2011

Branding

Branding is the key to survival in the business world. Whether it’s a message, a look or a feeling. Renewal is an important part of that branding. Without a sense of renewal or adaptation, any business owner or business leader begins to reek of stagnancy.

Re branding

It is for this reason that I am, again, engaging another photographer to create a new line of real estate photos for my audience. I jokingly admit that I have lost both weight and hair in the last year, it is important to convey to clients and the general public that your brand is ever changing and constantly adapting. Therefore, I have employed Andrew Shalin, a stellar local photographer, to partake in my rebranding for Modern Approach Real Estate.

Constantly changing

Though it may seem trivial, social media and our modern world are constantly changing and adapting. Something as simple as a photograph goes a long way to convey that I am actually still alive and well, trading in the purchase and sale of property and sending that message to others. The most important aspect of my engaging Andrew to do my rebranding, is that he is 100% local.

Giving back

I could go to Walmart, I could go to Sears, I could get another tacky shot of me sitting in a chair smiling to people I don’t know. But I won’t. The symbolism of this, is that I give back to the community in the same way that I take. I use the money made from real estate and give it back to local Haligonian businesses. I am proud of this. I am looking forward to working with Andrew in the next two weeks to come up with a new image, a new brand, that will make a difference in the world of Halifax Real Estate. Halifax Real Estate – A Modern Approach  

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Bringing In the Ships

by Andrew Murray on November 7, 2011

It’s amazing how just when a city and region is considered down and out, we get an announcement that is going to radically change the face of Halifax for at least the next twenty years. For those of you who don’t know (which is, I suspect, a great few), Irving Shipyard in Halifax won the largest portion of a federal contract to build warships for the Royal Canadian Navy. A ship building program of this size hasn’t taken place in Canada since the 40’s. What this means for Halifax, in terms of business, accumulation of wealth and way of life, is massive. Obviously, the population is going to increase slightly due to increased work in the city, whether from the rural areas of the province, or other provinces in the country. With the contract will come their pay cheques. With their pay comes either renting dwellings which are currently high in demand (means new ones need to be built to meet that demand – great for new construction), or new and old homes will be purchased. Of all the areas in the city that is going to be impacted by this contract the most, it will be North End Halifax. Situated just within walking distance of the shipyards themselves, these relatively inexpensive homes have been on the upswing and the area has progressively increased in value over the course of the last ten years. With it being the closest to the shipyards themselves, these properties will be in heavy demand, and with demand comes higher prices. If you are currently thinking about purchasing your first home or condo, I highly recommend buying it in North End Halifax. The reason is simple – the money hasn’t arrived yet, and neither have any of the new workers with their new incomes. Buy in this area now, sit on it for a year or two, and you will be in very good shape when you’re ready to sell. Visit my Halifax Real Estate – A modern Approach website!

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EXIT Realty Professionals – The Benefits

by Andrew Murray on September 7, 2011

So, I’ve been in the real estate industry for a year now. I have had numerous clients, a great deal of closings and have been approached by many other brokerages to join their team. But in order to understand why I chose to work with EXIT Realty Professionals and, more importantly, choose to stay, I need to break it down in a nutshell.

How it happened

When I first got my license, I went around and approach several offices, as was expected of me, to sign me up and work with them as a licensed agent. I went to Prudential, Royal LePage, Remax and more. They were a tad callous, brief and far too formal for me to feel like I would fit in. But then came a phone call from my mother of all people. She had been speaking with a property lawyer, Cameron Rhindress, and he had nothing but good things to say about EXIT Realty and, more specifically, EXIT Realty Professionals in Sackville.

It all added up

I made an appointment, sat down with Broker Sue Grace and owner Dave Grace, and was hooked, not only on the EXIT ‘formula,’ but also on the type of people they were and the environment in their office. Surrounded by professionalism with oodles of friendliness made the office feel like a place of work and also a hang out spot with other agents who were to become my friends. I signed up that day.

Great for new agents or pros

For anyone thinking of getting into the Real Estate business, here is why I recommend EXIT Realty Professionals, above other brokerages and EXIT offices as well, to you:
  • A great office environment.
  • An AMAZING lead generating system (I have so far gotten 2 buyer and one listing lead within three months).
  • Access to a high traffic kiosk at the Sackville Superstore that generates at least 6 leads a week for agents who take shifts there.
  • Free training with experienced agents and free sales training via EXIT Realty Corp. International.

Now, you tell me. As a new agent, without all these resources and friendly guiding owners and Brokers – do you really think you’re going to do well in your first year in Real Estate in HRM? I wouldn’t know – because I made the right decision.

Halifax Real Estate – A Modern Approach

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Fall Market Prediction

by Andrew Murray on August 31, 2011

I’ve been thinking pretty heavily about why this Summer has been so busy in the Halifax Real Estate industry. Traditionally, the Spring market has always been the busiest. But coupled with extremely bad weather, with over 30 days of straight rain, the traffic floundered and the sales dropped significantly. Those who didn’t buy or sell in the Spring, therefore, trickled at an usual volume into a normally quiet Summer market. But what about the Fall?

Spring market spill-over

The Fall market is traditionally the second busiest time for Real Estate Transactions. Summer vacations are over, people are settling in and pondering moves, whether downsizing or upgrading. But what about all the people who didn’t buy or sell during the Spring? What if the majority of these people decided to go on vacation rather than get involved in the purchase of property? I predict that these people will trickle into the Fall market just as others trickled into the Summer market.

A record fall market?

With the Fall being a traditionally busy time period anyway, I confidently predict that the Fall market, with its influx of Buyers and Sellers who had no luck or interest in the Spring, will lead to an absolute explosion in Real Estate transactions and other retail related businesses as a result. Hang on! It’s going to be a bumpy ride! :) Halifax Real Estate – A Modern Approach  

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