Single agent relationships: duties and disclosure

Florida single agency

A single agent represents either the buyer or the seller as a fiduciary, not both in the same transaction. That represented party is the principal. Florida presumes transaction brokerage unless single agency or no brokerage relationship is established in writing.

Nine duties

Under section 475.278(3), a single agent owes the principal:

Dealing honestly and fairly.
Loyalty.
Confidentiality.
Obedience.
Full disclosure.
Accounting for all funds.
Skill, care, and diligence in the transaction.
Timely presentation of all offers and counteroffers, unless a party previously directs otherwise in writing.
Disclosure of all known facts materially affecting the value of residential real property that are not readily observable.

Loyalty means serving the principal's interests; confidentiality protects the principal's confidential information; obedience concerns lawful instructions; full disclosure keeps the principal informed. For example, a seller's confidential bargaining position is different from a known hidden structural defect materially affecting value. Confidentiality does not excuse withholding the required property disclosure. The statute's list does not impose a separate duty to investigate for unknown defects.

Written notice and timing

The SINGLE AGENT NOTICE fully describes the duties in the statutory form, identifies the real estate entity and associates, and includes date and signature lines. It may stand alone or appear within a listing or representation agreement. Provide it before or at entry into the listing or representation agreement, or before showing property, whichever occurs first. A showing before the agreement moves the disclosure deadline forward.

If incorporated into another document, the notice must be conspicuous and in type at least as large as the other provisions. Its first statutory sentence must be uppercase and bold.

Three boxes show Florida single agency. First, provide the written duties notice before or at the agreement or before showing property, whichever occurs first. Second, the single agent owes nine statutory duties as fiduciary for one party. Third, an optional transition to transaction brokerage requires prior written consent and changes the role to limited representation. Florida prohibits dual agency. — Disclose duties on time; obtain written consent before a transition.

Changing relationships

Florida prohibits disclosed and nondisclosed dual agency. A single agent may transition to transaction brokerage only after obtaining the principal's written consent using the prescribed transition disclosure. Transaction brokerage provides limited, nonfiduciary representation; the parties give up undivided loyalty.

These disclosure requirements apply to residential sales as defined by the statute, subject to its listed exceptions. Residential sales include improved property of four units or fewer, unimproved residential property intended for four units or fewer, and agricultural property of ten acres or fewer. Do not assume the same disclosure requirement applies to every real estate encounter.