Texas Agency Law — Cheatsheet

Agency Relationships Comparison

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Texas Intermediary vs. Dual Agency

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IABS Notice — Trigger and Delivery

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OLD CAR Fiduciary Duties

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Duties to Non-Clients (Customers)

• Honesty (no misrepresentation)

• Disclosure of known material facts

• No steering, blockbusting, or fair housing violations

• NOT the full fiduciary standard

Texas Seller's Disclosure Notice

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Type	Represents	Fiduciary Duties?	Key Restrictions
Seller's Agent	Seller	Full fiduciary to seller	Owes honesty + material fact disclosure to buyer (non-client)
Buyer's Agent	Buyer	Full fiduciary to buyer	Owes honesty + material fact disclosure to seller (non-client)
Intermediary	Both — neutrally	Restricted (neutral facilitator)	Cannot advise on price, motivation, or strategy; cannot share confidential info
Feature	Texas Intermediary	Traditional Dual Agency
Name used in TX	Intermediary	Dual agency (abolished in TX)
Written consent	Required from BOTH parties	Required
Broker role	Strictly neutral facilitator	Active representative of both
Appointed associates	Can advocate for their assigned party	Varies by state
Share confidential info?	NO	NO
Advise on price/strategy?	NO (unless appointed associate)	NO
Rule	Detail
When required	First substantive dialogue about a specific property
Open house attendance	Does NOT trigger IABS requirement
Online advertising	IABS must be on broker's website
What it is	Informational disclosure (not an agency agreement)
Failure consequence	TREC violation; does NOT void resulting contract
Letter	Duty	Critical Point
O	Obedience	Only LAWFUL instructions; cannot follow discriminatory or illegal directions
L	Loyalty	Client's interest above agent's own financial interest
D	Disclosure	Proactively share all material information client would want to know
C	Confidentiality	Survives termination of agency relationship — no time limit
A	Accounting	Accurate records; no commingling or conversion
R	Reasonable Care	Professional competence; meet deadlines; know the market
Rule	Detail
Who completes it	Seller (not the agent)
Applies to	1-4 unit residential sales
Exemptions	Foreclosure sales, estate sales, co-owner transfers, new construction, sales to close relatives
Death on property	Not required to disclose UNLESS death caused by property condition
If buyer asks	Must answer honestly (lying = misrepresentation)
Agent's independent duty	Must disclose known material defects even if seller's form is silent

Intermediary with Appointed Associates

• Broker remains neutral — cannot advise either party

• Appointed associates CAN advocate on price, motivation, negotiating strategy

• Appointment requires distinct agents for each party

• If only one agent in office working both sides → no appointment possible; full neutrality applies

Common Exam Traps

• TX uses "intermediary" not "dual agency" — dual agency abolished in Texas

• Intermediary requires written consent from BOTH parties — cannot arise by conduct or assumption

• Confidentiality survives the agency relationship — former agent cannot disclose old client's minimum price years later

• IABS is NOT an agency agreement — it is purely informational

• Agent's independent disclosure duty — must disclose known material defects even if they represent the seller

• Appointed associates can advocate — this is the key advantage over undesignated intermediary status

• Obedience is NOT absolute — unlawful instructions (discriminatory showing restrictions, etc.) must be refused