The legal definition of an agency agreement is contained in Art. 1005 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. It is one of the consensual, mutual and compensated agreements. There are two parties to the transaction, one of which undertakes to act in the interests of the other. She becomes the agent, and the other is called the principal. One of two models for building relationships can be chosen - under agency or commission agreements.
The first option implies that the agent acts on behalf of his principal, and in those transactions that are completed and in which he takes part, he does not have a direct material interest. In the second case, the agent acts on his own behalf, but notifies third parties about in whose interests he carries out his activities. This scenario allows for the material interest of the agent, whose fee may increase due to the increase in the benefits of the principal.
In both cases, the agency agreement retains its legal independence. No matter what transactions the agent participates in, he remains only an agent, limited in his decision-making capabilities by the obligations that arise for him at the time of concluding an agreement with the principal.
Legal essence of the agency agreement
At its core, an agency agreement is closer to a service agreement, and its nature makes the subject of the agreement intermediary services. In paragraph 1 of Art. 1005 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that an agent has the right to perform legal and other actions for his principal. This means that he can convince someone, check the readiness of something and the conditions for fulfilling various contracts, contact experts, analyze and disseminate information. In other words, act as if he were the principal, but without having his material interests. Moreover, his actions can be physical, but in such cases they are of an auxiliary nature. So, if a law firm has found some documents that require examination, its employees can deliver them to the principal. From this, the agent does not become a delivery service, but the action is performed by him as part of the execution of the same agency agreement.
The agent's behavior cannot be directed against the interests of the principal. For example, if under an agency agreement someone must sell an apartment, then he is obliged to set the average market price and strive to ensure that the sale and purchase transaction is completed in such a way that any discounts do not go beyond its limits. The very fact that the apartment will be sold at a price below the market price, if this happens, will be grounds to believe that the agent and the buyer have entered into a conspiracy and are committing an offense. If this is proven, the court may declare the transaction invalid on the basis of Art. 179 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Clause 2 of this article will become relevant, which equates the concealment of certain circumstances to deception, and transactions made under the influence of deception are recognized by the courts as invalid.
The economic consequences of transactions relate only to the principal. Therefore, it is important to select only those agents whom the principals fully trust, and to enter into contracts with them correctly.
The legislation does not put forward any requirements for the preparation of agency agreements, therefore they are concluded according to the general rules governing all contractual relations in the Russian Federation. Obviously, the contract must stipulate the subject, subject and conditions, describe the duties and responsibilities of the parties, and ways to resolve disputes if they arise. The timing of its validity, which can be tied to the occurrence of some events, is also important. An important feature of an agency agreement is its continuing nature, compared to an assignment and a commission. It must be compiled in such a way that it is clear that it has time boundaries. For example, the formula “sell until you sell” indicates the presence of a clear time period. And the formula “try to sell, if it doesn’t work, then don’t sell” contains too vague indications of the nature of the relationship between persons and the responsibilities of the one who will sell not only to his actions, but also to the time at which the agreement will be relevant.
All this has a certain significance, since the form of the contract can be not only written, but also oral. But this does not mean that all people who were asked to do something, and did it in the interests of the person asking, acted as agents in the legal sense. The signs of an oral agreement of this type are compensation and clarity in indicating the nature of mediation and its goals.
The vast majority of agency agreements are in writing. Most often, the parties enter into agreements in such a way that they are permanent in nature and not related to the execution of one-time orders. For example, literary agents become intermediaries between writers and publishing houses, taking on responsibilities not only in managing the editing of works and their publication, but also in reaching bookstore shelves. They also organize meetings with readers and participation of writers in various conferences. And this can last forever as long as the writer and his agent are satisfied with everything.
The activities of some agents are specialized in nature and may affect public and state interests. In such cases, it is regulated by special legislation. It also indicates mandatory aspects that should be reflected in contracts. An example is the activity of a maritime agent, which is reflected in the Navigation Code.
Principles of work of a realtor
In this profession, there is no guarantee of obtaining a specific result from one’s work; it all depends on how much a person strives for the goal and how much effort he puts into achieving it.
Let's look at how realtors work to understand who this profession is suitable for. To succeed, it is necessary to secure at least two to three transactions and from three to five contracts within a month, on which a decent income depends entirely. The success of high sales, a huge flow of clients is 90% dependent on the approach to this of the realtor himself, his skills and abilities to sell and negotiate, to convince his clients.
Contents of a standard agency agreement
Typically, a contract begins with an indication of the place where the agreement is concluded and who its subjects are - information about the agent and the principal. This is followed by a clause stating that the principal instructs, and the agent undertakes, the duties to act on his behalf and at his expense. The latter is not an agency fee, but belongs to the area of entertainment expenses, and this is how it is reflected in the accounting documentation.
An important circumstance is to indicate which party has rights and obligations for all those transactions that will be concluded by the agent due to the performance of his duties under the agency agreement. Usually they write that they arise from the principal. It is quite possible that such a brief formulation has its own explanations, but here it would be useful to note the limitations. For example, indicate that if this does not violate the rights of the principal and contradict his material interests.
The section describing the rights and obligations of the parties simply lists the main types of intermediary services that his agent can perform on behalf of the principal. For example, enter into purchase and sale transactions or represent interests in courts. The list of activities is unlimited. You can add various analytical or physical actions to it.
Each party has the right to indicate what the other must do at the time of termination of the contract. It would not be amiss to establish the agent’s obligation to return, within a certain period of time, all those powers of attorney that were issued to him in the course of fulfilling his contractual obligations.
The agent’s remuneration section specifies the specific amount he will receive for providing his services, the payment procedure and the method of transfer. The agreement can be concluded for an indefinite period, then it is necessary to indicate what amount and in what period the principal undertakes to transfer. Immediately following these conditions is a section on the agent's reports, and its specifics depend on the nature of the tasks that the principal assigns to his agent. Payment and reporting can be closely linked. The principal has the right to tie payment for the agent’s services not only to what he did, but also to how he reported on the work done.
All other sections of the agreement are standard for legal business transactions in the Russian Federation. What is important here is primarily how the principal intends to terminate the relationship with the agent if he considers it necessary to do so. The contract law of the Russian Federation does not impose serious restrictions on principals, because in essence the activities of an agent are closer to the provision of services. It will be better for everyone that at the time of termination of the contract the parties do not owe each other any material funds. Therefore, business traditions require that upon termination of an agency agreement, the principal must pay the agent for what he has already done for him. In the document itself, this is reflected by the clause that the principal reserves the right to terminate the relationship at any time by sending appropriate written notice.
Deals fall through: what to do to stop it
Today, the work of a realtor is greatly facilitated by computer programs. If you record as much information as possible in advance, then you can draw up documents without a single mistake, know all the information about clients, and even receive reminders about meetings. One such program is an industry CRM system .
Let's look at its useful functionality using the example of one of the SalesapCRM real estate systems.
- By clicking on the client's name, you will open a card that stores his contacts, requests for objects, notes about which objects he looked at and why he refused them. The realtor can indicate some individual characteristics of the client, for example, explosive character or meticulousness. This will help him quickly figure out how to talk to a client and how to prepare for a meeting.
This is what a client card looks like in SalesapCRM: in addition to contact information, you can specify any information about the client that will be useful for negotiations
- The same cards are created for each object . They contain everything: address, area, location of rooms, photographs, documents, special notes, etc. When an agent works with dozens of objects, the nuances of each are impossible to keep in mind. And if all of them are recorded in the CRM, then he can warn the client in advance, for example, about illiquid factors, so that he does not waste time looking through them.
The object card in SalesapCRM stores all information about it, owner contacts, photographs and documents
- The system reminds you when and who to call, send a letter or make an appointment. The realtor or manager himself sets a task, for example, to call the client on a specific day. At the appointed time, he will see a notification on the screen.
This is much more convenient than writing down tasks in a notepad, because you simply won’t open it. If the client sees that the agent is punctual and does not forget anything, then he will trust him and is unlikely to change his mind about concluding a deal for fear of deception.
- CRM “suggests” what questions the owner needs to ask before entering into a deal, so as not to find out about “surprises” later. To do this, you only need to write out the checklist once and configure the system so that it appears in the transaction card at the “Meet the client” stage.
Checklist with questions for the owner in SalesapCRM.
In the same way, you can record a list of documents and certificates that need to be requested from the owner or the authorities. To prevent transactions from falling through, always check the documents for the object in advance, tell the client honestly about illiquid factors, and also find out in detail the reason why the client is ready to terminate the contract, and look for a middle ground. Read more useful tips for working with real estate in our blog . And to be the first to receive the latest articles, subscribe to us on VKontakte and Facebook .
Author: Elena Zaitseva
Why does a buyer become a victim of a black realtor?
It often happens that the owner does not read the contract, or simply does not want to understand it. Of course, it can be difficult to understand the legal intricacies if you have not dealt with this before. This is what realtors take advantage of, deceiving and depriving them of property. After all, this is a fairly easy way to earn a huge amount of money.
Take the trouble to read all the contracts yourself, without exception. Try to talk less to others about your real estate, analyze the possible risks with lawyers. Don't forget that the fewer people know about your plans, the lower the risk that information will end up in unnecessary sources.
The main thing is not to let your guard down. Real estate is something that is expensive, so take the process seriously and with utmost care.
How black realtors work: beware of scammers
If you are going to connect your own activities with the real estate market, then it is worth knowing its dark side. We are talking about black realtors who often appear in crime chronicles. This category of intermediaries is extremely dangerous, and under no circumstances should you follow their example. And, of course, do not have any dealings with them yourself, because this can be very expensive.
Who are Black Realtors? We are talking about a private broker or an employee of a real estate agency. He uses unscrupulous methods that allow him to obtain someone else's property.
- There are no laws or boundaries for such “specialists.” As a rule, the career of such an “expert” ends behind bars.
There are different types of fraud schemes. Their main goal is to get someone else's property or money for it.
It is necessary to take precautions and check exactly who you are dealing with. Especially if you are selling extremely expensive real estate that is of interest to scammers.
Realtors' tricks
How to start working as a realtor: tips for beginners
Any activity begins with the first step. And those who are just about to start conquering the real estate market are wondering how to start working as a realtor without experience? Someone who does not have his own client base does not know what to do in a given situation. After all, clients will not wait until a specialist studies the necessary material and provides it to the buyer. Therefore, be prepared that at first it will be really difficult, but this does not mean that this is a reason to retreat.
- There are certain steps that will allow you to quickly navigate the difficult area of real estate.
Before you start working as a real estate agent, it's best to try your hand at sales.
This could be a sales manager position or where you need to prove yourself in active sales. If you realize that you sell well and calmly cope with stressful situations, then the real estate business will suit you perfectly.
You must have savings for at least three months ahead
There are no guarantees of decent earnings at the beginning of a realtor’s career, so before starting it you should insure yourself, since it will not be possible to combine such a profession due to the lack of free time. All the time you will have to pay attention to your development, learning all the basics of such work, communicating with colleagues and searching for potential clients.
Go to the job search site and create your resume by filling out the form
You can view possible vacancies in the city and find out the requirements that the employer makes. The resume must be compiled based on these requirements. As soon as you feel ready, start sending out job applications to agencies.
Read on topic: Training and courses for realtors Business in the real estate market How to photograph an apartment for sale
Before working as a realtor without experience, you need a client base, which you can’t do without.
Also find a source of information in order to properly conduct your first transactions. A reliable real estate agency can help with this, giving you the opportunity to get a decent start. Try not to be fooled by the “mountains of gold.” Training should be free, and the agency must already have gained some authority and fame. Here you can gain experience, get valuable information about how real estate agents work, who are also sometimes willing to share their experience. Companies are often willing to provide a customer base that sells homes. This may not be more than two phones per day, however, this is already a good figure for a beginner.
A good agency is ready to conduct training lectures for beginners
Typically, such lectures last up to three weeks, where the necessary information and the basics of the real estate business are discussed. For additional information, you can contact those who have already gained experience. Don't miss the opportunity to get closer to your cherished goal.
Starting to work as a realtor, immediately create your own client base
Be sure to save contacts of those who have already contacted you in order to make repeat calls for new offers, or simply to congratulate on special events, to provide additional opportunities not to lose sight of potential clients.
Tips for a new realtor
Features of the realtor profession
It is necessary to remember that it is much easier to find a real estate seller than a buyer for a property. After all, the seller himself can advertise, contact an agency, or put the property up for sale. Having looked at how real estate realtors work, let’s note the tasks they set for themselves:
- Conclude agreements with sellers;
- Become a truly exclusive representative who understands the market situation;
- Advertise on your own behalf, since it is precisely this ad that will probably be called by a buyer who wants to buy a service, or an entire apartment.
After receiving a call from a buyer, you need to schedule a showing of the property. When talking on the phone, it is necessary to clearly define what the buyer requires. If you understand that the apartment is not suitable for the buyer, it still makes sense to take him to view it. You can always offer another option, since, in addition to the basic needs, at the show you can understand his additional wishes.
It is extremely important to understand the needs of the consumer in order to conclude the most beneficial agreement for everyone.
It must be remembered that cunning and ingenuity are acceptable in the work of a realtor. You can turn on your own charm, answer superficially somewhere, but under no circumstances deceive. It is quite obvious that you will not earn a reputation from this way of working and this approach to it; you will cause inconvenience to yourself, the agency, and the people who turn to you for help.
Features of working in the real estate business
