A written buyer agreement does not automatically make a Florida licensee a single agent. Separate the agreement about services and compensation from the legal brokerage relationship and its duties.
Florida law and NAR guidance checked October 18, 2026.
Jump to: Who pays the buyer's agent? · NAR / MLS participation rule: written buyer agreements · Florida law: brokerage relationships and duties · Consent to transition: what changes, and when? · Residential versus commercial disclosure questions
Keep three documents or concepts separate
| Concept | Question it answers |
|---|---|
| Buyer-broker agreement | What services and contractual terms have the buyer and brokerage agreed to, including compensation? |
| Brokerage relationship and required disclosures | In what capacity is the licensee acting, and what duties apply? |
| Purchase contract | What are the buyer's and seller's terms for purchasing the property? |
A form may address more than one subject. Read its provisions instead of deciding the relationship from the presence of a signature or the word “buyer.”
NAR / MLS participation rule: written buyer agreements
Under NAR's practice changes effective August 17, 2024, an MLS participant working with a buyer must have a written agreement before touring a home, including a live virtual tour. Required compensation terms must be determinable, cannot be open-ended, and limit compensation from any source to the agreed amount or rate. Commissions are negotiable, not set by law. See NAR's Written Buyer Agreements 101.
These requirements should not be confused with a claim that Florida law makes every buyer relationship single agency. NAR expressly distinguishes its written-agreement requirement from the type of relationship permitted under state law. See NAR's settlement FAQ, question 58.
Who pays the buyer's agent after the NAR changes?
Commissions did not disappear. The buyer and brokerage negotiate the services and compensation. Depending on the agreements, payment may come from the buyer, the seller, the listing brokerage, or a combination. No law or NAR rule sets a standard commission rate.
- Buyer payment: the buyer agreement establishes the buyer's obligations, including whether the buyer owes a balance after other payments are credited.
- Seller payment: a buyer can ask the seller to pay some or all of the buyer-broker fee in the purchase negotiations. The seller can accept, counter, or decline.
- Listing-broker payment: the listing brokerage may agree to share compensation with the buyer brokerage, with the required seller authorization.
For the negotiation choices, see NAR's buyer-agreement guide and offers-of-compensation guide. A seller's willingness to contribute is negotiable; it is not a guarantee attached to every listing.
What changed about compensation on the MLS?
Under the NAR settlement practice changes, offers of buyer-broker compensation cannot be communicated through the MLS. Compensation can still be negotiated and communicated off the MLS. Before a listing broker offers or pays compensation to a buyer's broker, the seller must receive the required written disclosure and approve the amount or rate in advance. See NAR's broker-to-broker guidance.
Removing an MLS compensation field does not abolish paid buyer services, require agents to work for free, or make professional MLS access free to the public.
Example: agreed fee and a partial seller payment
Assume a buyer agreement sets a $6,000 total fee, credits payments from other sources toward that fee, and requires the buyer to pay any remaining balance. The seller agrees to pay $4,000 toward it. The remaining buyer obligation is $2,000, subject to those stated contract terms. These are hypothetical dollar amounts, not suggested fees.
Read the actual agreements before calculating an obligation. The NAR written-agreement rule caps the buyer brokerage's compensation from all sources at the agreed amount or rate; an offer from another source does not automatically increase that cap. Resolve payment arrangements with the supervising broker and closing team, and confirm any loan-program requirements with the lender.
Quick check: Does a seller have to offer buyer-broker compensation? No. Does an empty MLS compensation field mean the buyer's broker cannot be paid? No. Does seller payment alone establish whom a Florida licensee represents? No—identify the brokerage relationship separately.
Compensation guidance checked October 20, 2026. For percentage and split calculations, see commission math.
Florida law: brokerage relationships and duties
See Florida Brokerage Relationships, Disclosures, and Consent to Transition for the complete guidance.
Worked example
See Florida Brokerage Relationships, Disclosures, and Consent to Transition for the complete guidance.
What about walking into an open house?
A buyer attending an open house independently does not need to sign a buyer agreement merely to enter. An agent hosting on behalf of the seller or listing broker is in a different position from an agent already working with that buyer. See NAR's open-house guide.
Try three practice questions
- Does signing a buyer-broker agreement, by itself, prove that the Florida brokerage is a single agent?
- Under the NAR rule described above, can an MLS participant working with a buyer wait until after the first home tour to obtain the agreement?
- A person visits an open house alone, and the host works only on behalf of the seller. Must that visitor sign a buyer agreement merely to tour?
Answers and explanations
- No. Read the relationship provisions and applicable disclosures.
- No. The agreement is required before the tour.
- No. That open-house situation is different from a participant working with the buyer.
Consent to transition: what changes, and when?
See Florida Brokerage Relationships, Disclosures, and Consent to Transition for the complete guidance.
Residential versus commercial disclosure questions
See Florida Brokerage Relationships, Disclosures, and Consent to Transition for the complete guidance.
Keep the timing rules separate
Practice: disclosures and transition
See Florida Brokerage Relationships, Disclosures, and Consent to Transition for the complete guidance.
When can a broker use designated sales associates?
See Designated Sales Associates: Eligibility, Confidentiality, and Examples for the complete guidance.
Practice: check every requirement
If a practice answer seems outdated
Identify whether it asks about Florida agency duties, MLS participation rules, compensation, or a purchase contract. Then submit the course, question number, and explanation that appears inconsistent. See how to report a possible content error and the exam-prep guide. These original exercises explain concepts; actual transactions require the applicable forms, current rules, and supervising broker's guidance.