Buyer Agreements: What You're Signing Before You Tour a Home
You found a house online, you want to see it this weekend, and before the showing the agent sends over a document and asks you to sign it. That document is a buyer agreement, and it can feel like a formality standing between you and the front door. It isn't. A written buyer agreement sets out what your agent will do for you, for how long, and how they'll be paid — and most of those terms are open to discussion before you sign.
If you're still deciding who to work with, start with what to look for when choosing a real estate agent — the agreement is easier to negotiate once you know who you want on your side.
What Is a Buyer Agreement?
A written buyer agreement — you may also see it called a buyer representation agreement or a buyer-broker agreement — is a contract between you and a real estate agent, or more precisely, in many states, the agent's brokerage. The consumer guide to written buyer agreements from the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) describes it as a document that outlines the services you'll receive and the compensation terms. In plain terms, it answers three questions: What will this person do for me? How long am I committed? And how, and by whom, are they paid?
Why You're Asked to Sign Before Touring a Home
Since August 17, 2024, under practice changes from NAR's settlement of broker-commission litigation, participants in MLSs affiliated with NAR who work with buyers must have a written agreement in place before touring a home with that buyer. An MLS, or multiple listing service, is the shared database agents use to list and find homes. According to NAR, the requirement covers both in-person tours and live virtual tours.
A few things the requirement doesn't cover, per NAR: you don't need an agreement to visit an open house on your own, and you don't need one just to ask an agent about their services.
State law adds another layer. Some states have their own written-agreement rules, and some have changed them since the settlement. Texas is one example: according to the Texas Real Estate Commission, changes effective January 1, 2026, require a license holder to have a written agreement with a residential buyer before showing property, and they allow a showing-only "non-representation" agreement that can't limit you to one agent and can last no more than 14 days. Other states handle this differently, and the rules keep evolving, so ask your agent which requirements apply where you're buying.
What's Typically Inside a Buyer Agreement
Forms differ by state and brokerage, but most agreements address the same core terms. NAR's overview of written buyer agreements lists the compensation disclosures these agreements must include and notes that NAR doesn't dictate the type of relationship or the length of the agreement.
- Services. What the agent will do — for example, search for homes, schedule showings, prepare market comparisons, write and negotiate offers, and help coordinate deadlines through closing. The more specific the list, the easier it is to know what you're paying for.
- Duration. A start date and an end date. The term is negotiable, and NAR's materials give examples as short as one day or one house.
- Scope. Which properties the agreement covers — a single address, a short list, a town, a county, or a whole region — and sometimes which property types.
- Whether you can work with other agents. Some agreements commit you to one brokerage for the term (often labeled "exclusive"); others let you work with more than one agent at the same time ("non-exclusive").
- Compensation. The amount or rate the brokerage will receive, or exactly how it will be determined. Under NAR's MLS policy, it has to be objectively ascertainable — a flat fee, a percentage of the price, or an hourly rate, for example — and not open-ended or a range. NAR has said language like "whatever the seller is offering" doesn't meet that standard.
- Payments from other sources. How a seller's or listing broker's payment is handled. The same policy requires the agreement to state that the agent can't receive more, from any source, than the amount or rate agreed to with you.
- Required disclosures. A conspicuous statement that broker commissions are not set by law and are fully negotiable, plus anything your state requires.
- Termination. How and when either side can end the agreement, and whether any obligations continue afterward.
If a form uses language you don't understand, ask your agent to explain it before you sign — and if the answer doesn't settle it, a real estate attorney licensed in your state can review it. Your contract's wording controls, not anyone's summary of it.
How Your Buyer's Agent Gets Paid
There's no standard or legally set fee for buyer's agents. Compensation is negotiated between you and your agent's brokerage, and the agreement records what you agreed to. How that amount actually gets paid can vary:
- You pay directly. You may pay some or all of the agreed amount, often at closing. Paying your agent yourself adds to the cash you'll need at closing, and some loan programs have rules on how buyer-paid agent fees are handled, so ask your loan officer.
- The seller pays as part of your offer. NAR's guidance says buyer broker compensation can be negotiated as a term of your purchase offer. You might ask the seller to pay your agent or to contribute toward your costs; the seller can agree, decline, or counter. For how sellers weigh these requests, see seller concessions from the seller's side.
- The seller or listing broker offers it separately. Offers of compensation to buyer's agents can no longer be posted on NAR-affiliated MLSs, but according to NAR, sellers and listing brokers can still make them off the MLS. Your agent can ask the listing side whether one exists.
The buyer agreement is the one place in your home search where you get to decide what you're paying for before anyone gets paid.
The point that ties these together: if the seller or listing broker pays less than the agreed amount, your agreement determines who covers the difference — and depending on its wording, that may be you. That section is worth reading twice.
Financing adds one more wrinkle. Loan programs limit how much a seller or other interested party can contribute toward a buyer's costs, and they have their own rules for how seller-paid agent compensation is treated — Fannie Mae's rules on interested party contributions are one example. Before you write an offer that asks the seller to cover your agent's fee or your costs, ask your loan officer how your loan program would treat it. Requirements vary by lender, program, and borrower, and change over time.
Touring-Only and Limited Buyer Agreements
Not every agreement has to be a months-long commitment. Depending on your state and the brokerage, you may be offered — or be able to ask for — something narrower:
- A short-term agreement that covers a single day or weekend of showings
- An agreement limited to one property or a short list of addresses
- An agreement that lets you tour with more than one agent at the same time
- In some states, a showing-only arrangement in which the agent doesn't represent you, such as the Texas non-representation agreement described above
Limited agreements come with trade-offs. Under a showing-only arrangement, the agent may not be able to advise you or negotiate for you; in Texas, TREC says a license holder under a non-representation agreement can't provide opinions or advice about the property or perform other brokerage services for the buyer. If you later want full representation, you'd typically sign a broader agreement.
What Most Buyers Get Wrong: It's a Negotiation, Not a Formality
The most common mistake is treating the agreement like the terms-of-service box on an app: scroll, sign, move on. That instinct is understandable when the showing is in an hour. It makes less sense for a contract that may set your agent's pay, the length of your commitment, and what you'd owe if your plans change.
NAR's consumer guidance is direct on this point: the services, the length of the agreement, and the compensation are negotiable. That doesn't mean every agent will agree to every change, and it doesn't mean a smaller fee is automatically the better deal. The terms most likely to matter later often aren't the fee at all — they're the length, the geography, and what you'd owe if you part ways mid-search.
Reasonable things to discuss include a shorter initial term with an option to extend, a narrower geographic area, a clearer list of services, and a plain-language explanation of what happens if you part ways. You and your agent can also agree to change terms later, though the agreement and your state's law may govern how.
Buyer Agreement Clauses to Read Carefully
- Automatic renewal. Does the agreement extend on its own unless you cancel? If so, note the deadline and how notice has to be given.
- Broad geography. An agreement covering an entire region can reach homes you find on your own, in places you never discussed with the agent.
- Fees if you buy without the agent. Some agreements say compensation is owed if you buy a covered property during the term, even through another agent or directly from a seller. Some also extend that obligation for a period after the agreement ends if you buy a home the agent showed you. Know whether yours does, and for how long.
- Cancellation terms. Can you end the agreement early? Does it take written notice? Is there a fee? NAR notes that agreements may have specific conditions for exiting them.
- Representing both sides. What happens if you want to buy a home your agent's brokerage has listed? Rules on representing both buyer and seller vary widely by state, so ask how your agreement and your state handle it.
Questions to Ask Before You Sign a Buyer Agreement
- Which specific services are included, and is anything billed separately?
- How is your compensation calculated, and when is it paid?
- If the seller or listing broker pays less than that amount, what would I owe? If they offer more, how is the difference handled?
- How long does the agreement last, and does it renew automatically?
- Which properties and areas does it cover?
- How do I end the agreement if it isn't working, and would I owe anything afterward?
- Can we start with a shorter or more limited agreement?
Write down the answers, and ask for any changes to be made in the agreement itself. A verbal understanding that contradicts the written terms is hard to rely on later. For a view of where this step fits in the larger process, see how to buy a home, step by step.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to sign a buyer agreement to see a house?
Usually, if you're touring with an agent. When an agent who participates in an NAR-affiliated MLS is working with you as a buyer, NAR's policy calls for a written agreement before the tour, in person or by live video. You don't need one to visit an open house on your own, and some states add their own rules.
What if the seller won't pay my buyer's agent?
Your agreement determines who covers the difference, and depending on its wording, that may be you. You can ask the seller to pay some or all of it as a term of your offer, and the seller can agree, decline, or counter. If you're financing, ask your loan officer first how your loan program treats seller-paid compensation.
Can I cancel a buyer agreement?
It depends on the agreement and your state's law. Some agreements allow either side to end them with written notice; others limit early termination or keep certain obligations in place afterward. You and your agent can also agree to change or end it. Read the termination section before you sign.
The Bottom Line
A buyer agreement is the first contract of your home search, not a formality on the way to a showing. Read it, ask who is expected to pay your agent and what you'd owe if no one else covers it, and negotiate the term, area, and services before the first tour, not after.
This article is for general educational purposes only and is not legal, tax, financial, or insurance advice. Laws, program rules, costs, and practices vary by state, locality, and situation and can change. Buyer agreement rules and forms differ by state and brokerage, and your agreement's language controls. For questions about a specific agreement, talk with your real estate agent and a real estate attorney licensed in your state; for how seller-paid compensation or concessions could affect your financing, consult a licensed loan officer. Loan terms and availability vary by lender and borrower.
