Know Who Your Agent Represents

[ THE BLACKSTONE TEAM ] STATEMENT ON THE PRACTICE OF DUAL FACILITATION / DOUBLE-ENDING 

Do You Know Who Your Agent Represents?  

[THE BLACKSTONE TEAM] Does Not practice Dual Facilitation.  Also referred to as Double-Ending, Dual Facilitation is the practice of one agent managing the relationship with both sellers and buyers in a single real estate transaction.  Most buyers and sellers don’t care about the nuances of real estate representation and who gets paid what and how.  But here’s why you should. 

Real estate commissions are typically split in half—between the sellers’ agent and the buyers’ agent, between their respective broker agencies.

If there is no buyers’ agent, and the sellers’ agent manages both sides of the transaction, they will earn the entire commission for his/her company.  You can see why most agents and companies are big fans of Dual Facilitation/Double-Ending deals and why they might check their ethics and local law at the door.

Here are the standard scenarios where Dual Facilitation/Double-Ending might occur:

1. When the listing agent is already working with a buyer who is interested in one of their listings,
2. When an unrepresented buyer walks into an open house and is interest in the listing, and
3. When a buyer believes he/she will either receive preferential treatment or a better deal if they are unrepresented.

The most common occurrence in our marketplace is the first, when listings never hit the open market and never find their true market value, because the sellers’ agent has convinced his/her client to accept an offer from his/her buyer.

Whatever the scenario, the sellers’ agent and his/her company earning more money (Double) by “representing” both sides of the deal is obviously fraught with risk.  In our professional opinion, this is not a good business practice—for buyers or sellers.  The relationship between a sellers’ agent and buyers’ agent and their respective clients should be sacred.  Fiduciary responsibility should be to one side—and one side only.  But why?

Double-ending is legal in Rhode Island.  But given that there’s too much room for acts of self-service, for massaging laws, ethics, facts and advice for personal gain, we are making a stand.

As a matter of practice, [THE BLACKSTONE TEAM] will not practice Dual Facilitation or Double-End real estate transactions.  We hope that our fellow realtor community will follow suit.  Before signing any listing contracts, ask your agent their position on this important issue.

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