If you’re thinking of buying a house, one of your first decisions is whether to work with a buyer’s agent.
As the name suggests, a buyer’s agent is a real estate agent who represents the buyer in a home sale, as opposed to the listing agent, who represents the seller.
It’s important to understand that just because an agent shows you a house doesn’t mean she works on your behalf. To establish true buyer’s agency, you must sign a formal buyer’s agency agreement, which spells out your obligations to each other. Basically, the agent is promising to represent only your interests, and you’re promising not to make offers that cut her out of deals – and ultimately, her paycheck.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/23/REDPTBNJS.DTL#ixzz16b9RssNw