Before you look and Most Importantly, Before you BUY

There’s much you can do in advance when preparing to acquire property in a distant location. I have compiled some useful information that will make your property buying experience much more profitable, comforting and enjoyable. 

The SC Real Estate License Law, in section 40-57-139 (A) (1) and (2), requires a real estate licensee to provide you with the Agency Law brochure and a meaningful explanation of agency relationships offered by the licensee’s Company. This must be done at the first practical opportunity when you and the licensee have substantive contact.

A real estate Company and its associated licensees can provide buyers and sellers valuable real estate services, whether in the form of basic customer services, or through client-level agency representation. The services you can expect will depend upon the legal relationship you establish with the Company. It is extremely important for you to discuss the following information with the real estate licensee and agree if in your business relationship you will be a customer or a client.

South Carolina license law defines customers as buyers or sellers who choose NOT to establish an agency relationship. The law requires real estate licensees to perform the following basic duties when dealing with any real estate buyer or seller as customers:

• Present all offers in a timely manner
• Account for money or other property received on your behalf
• Provide an explanation of the scope of services to be provided
• Be fair and honest and provide accurate information
• Disclose “adverse material facts” about the property or the transaction which are within the licensee’s knowledge

Unless or until you enter into a written agreement with the Company for agency representation, you are considered a “Customer” of the Company, and the Company will NOT act as your agent. As a Customer, you should NOT expect the Company or its licensees to promote your best interest, or to keep your bargaining information confidential.

Customer-level service does not require a written agreement; therefore, you are not committed to the Agent or Company in any way. 

Clients receive more services than customers. If client status is offered by the real estate Company, you can become a client by entering into a written agency agreement requiring the Company and its associated licensees to act as an agent on your behalf and promote your best interests.

A seller becomes a client of a real estate Company by signing a formal listing agreement with the Company. For a seller to become a client, this agreement must be in writing and must clearly establish the terms of the agreement and the obligations of both the seller and the Company which becomes the agent for the seller. 

A buyer becomes a client of a real estate Company by signing a formal buyer agency agreement with the Company. For a buyer to become a client, this agreement must be in writing and must clearly establish the terms of the agreement and the obligations of both the buyer and the Company which becomes the agent for the buyer. If you enter into a written agency agreement, as a Client, you can expect the real estate Company to provide the following client-level services:

• Obedience
• Loyalty
• Disclosure
• Confidentiality
• Accounting
• Reasonable care and skill
Advice
• Counsel
• Assistance with negotiations

Agency Relationships in South Carolina

Agency Relationships in North Carolina

Exclusive Right to Buy – Buyer Agency Contract

(Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view agency documents. Available for free download here.) 

NOW THAT YOU UNDERSTAND AGENCY RELATIONSHIP IN SOUTH CAROLINA...

You’ve flown in for the weekend from out of town to an area that you’ve never seen before. Would you buy a car from the first Sales Exec you met, who doesn’t work for you, without visiting competing dealerships and looking at other makes and models?? Remember, knowledge is power. The more knowledge you have (gained by working with an Independent Buyers Agent), the greater the chances are of making a well informed purchase decision. An Independent Buyers Agent can begin working with you before you come to the area. By hiring an Independent Buyers Agent (an agent who has fiduciary responsibility to you), you’ll receive the big picture; in depth information about the area, distance to urban centers, education, the competing developments, the community, the residents, the climate, etc, etc, etc. Once you arrive, you’ll be shown more than one development and you’ll be better equipped to make an informed evaluation and purchase decision. Don’t experience “buyer’s remorse”. Imagine how you’d feel if, after you’ve purchased (and spent hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions), you find out there’s another property, perhaps a resale home or home site, at a more attractive price, just around the corner. What if you found out there’s an entirely different community just down the lake that is better suited for your lifestyle? An Independent Buyer’s Agent will take the time to show you all your options – you’ll be very glad you hired one.