As your Buyer Representative, you can rest assured that Donna will protect your interests and keep you informed every step of the way. Driven by honesty, integrity, experience and knowledge of the local real estate market, Donna prides herself in offering her Buyers the utmost in service and representation. If you're looking to buy a home, make sure you get the representation you deserve and call Donna today!

The Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) and the Realtors Association of Hamilton Burlington both recommend that Buyer Representation Agreements be signed as early as possible when working with a Realtor®. This important document not only indicates that only one brokerage will be representing you as a buyer during the course of your home search, it also discloses to you the amount of remuneration (ie commission, flat fee) that the Brokerage will be receiving and under what circumstances they're entitled to receive it. (ie. successful completion of a transaction) It also explains to you who's responsible for paying. (ie. Listing Brokerage, you directly, etc)

This contract also outlines the fiduciary duties owed to you by an Agent. The question is...exactly what are fiduciary duties?

Fiduciary Duties means : A legal obligation of one party to act in the best interest of another. The obligated party is typically a fiduciary, that is, someone entrusted with the care of money or property. Also called fiduciary obligation. In the case of Real Estate, a Realtor® takes on a legal obligation to act in the best interest of Seller when they enter into a Listing Agreement with the Seller, and the Buyer when they have a Buyer Representation Agreement signed.

Agent's Fiduciary Duties: Disclosure, Loyalty, Confidentiality, Accountability, Obedience

What this really means in a nutshell, is when you enter into a Buyer Representation Agreement, your interests must be # 1 with the Realtor® representing you. It is a contract and once signed, you should rest assured that the Brokerage and their sales representative are making your home buying needs a priority.

Alternative to Buyer Representation: Customer service

If for some reason, you as a Buyer don't feel comfortable entering into a contractual arrangement with a Brokerage for Buyer Representation, you must still be treated fairly and honestly by a Realtor®. This falls into the category of "Customer" service. It in no way sacrifices any level of professionalism or level of ethical conduct that you can expect to receive from a professional, licensed real estate salesperson or broker.

Regardless of the kind of representation you choose, it must be agreed upon between you and the Brokerage at the earliest opportunity.

Multiple Representation:

In Ontario, Agency rests with the Brokerage, meaning that large franchises that employ hundreds of sales representatives are frequently faced with one of their representatives having a listing and another one of their reps having the buyer. The rep's may not even know each other, however, if they both for the same Brokerage, there's "Multiple Representation".

When this happens, both the Buyer and Seller have to agree to the Multiple Representation.

Code of Ethics

REALTORS believe it is important that the people they work with understand their agency relationship. That's why agency disclosure is included in a self-imposed Code of Ethics which is administered by the Real Estate Council of Ontario. The Code requires REALTORS to disclose in writing the nature of the services they are providing, and encourages REALTORS to obtain written acknowledgement of that disclosure. The Code also requires REALTORS to enter into a written agency agreement with any sellers or buyers they are representing.