You are buying a house. Jim is selling a house.

a. What traditionally occurs if you do not hire a real estate agent, but Jim does hire an agent? What is the relationship between Jim and his agent called? If you buy Jims house, who pays the real estate agents commission? Is the commission likely to be different than if you both had agents? If so, how would it be different?

b. You decide to go with an agent yourself as well. Can you and Jim have the same real estate agent? If so, what is this situation called? What special rules or considerations apply? What are some remedies to the conflict of interest for the real estate brokerage firm if the agent is the same for you and Jim?

c. Would you personally have any concerns if your agent is the same as the listing agent for the house you are considering (that is, Jims agent)? Why? Do you have any recourse; that is, is there anything you can do about this in this specific case?

2. Generally (new question, forget Jim), why might you come out better if you hire a brokerage firm to sell your home than sell it yourself? Mention associated costs that must be considered.

3. You are considering hiring a broker to sell your house. You are not sure if your broker is going to represent just you or also represents buyers of your property. What are two steps you should take to protect yourself? To aid you, this information is discussed on page 312 under Transaction Brokers in the Law of Agency section of Chapter 12.

4. You are a broker. You move into a new market and there is plenty of competition. You decide to try the single-rate approach and indicate you will serve as a buying or selling agent for any home real estate for a flat fee of $2,000 (no other commission). Is this a good idea? Why would it be a good idea and why might it not be a good idea?