Shall not bypass or cut out the listing salesperson – CPD courses
An estate agent or salesperson who comes to know of a property available for sale or lease through another salesperson’s listing, or seeking to co-broke a property transaction and who has obtained any information relating to such property pursuant to an enquiry with the advertising salesperson, shall work with the listing salesperson to close the transaction and not make direct approaches to the landlord/ owner. CPD courses
In addition, the salesperson shall not arrange for, or suggest to, other salespersons to make direct approaches to the landlord/owner as this would also have the effect of bypassing the listing salesperson who had introduced the landlord/owner or property to them. CPD courses.
Examples:
a. Salesperson A was exclusively appointed by a landlord verbally to lease out a newly completed condominium unit. After seeing Salesperson A’s advertisement on the newspaper, Salesperson B contacted Salesperson A and ascertained the specific property that was being advertised. Salesperson B then found out the contact details of the landlord and contacted the latter, informing that he has a suitable tenant to introduce to the landlord. The landlord asked Salesperson B to go through Salesperson A to co-broke but Salesperson B refused. In the end, the landlord proceeded to close the transaction with Salesperson B, thereby cutting out Salesperson A in the transaction. Salesperson B should not have directly approached the landlord. CPD courses.
b. Salesperson E advertised for landlord in an open listing arrangement. Salesperson F responded to the advertisement and a viewing was arranged for a prospective tenant brought by Salesperson F. On the same day, prospective tenant made an offer to the landlord, conveyed via Salesperson F to Salesperson E. The landlord rejected the offer on the next day because he was looking at getting a higher rent. The rejection was conveyed by Salesperson F to Salesperson E. CPD courses.
On the same day, the prospective tenant informed Salesperson F that he would raise his offer. Instead of relaying the revised offer to Salesperson E, Salesperson F asked Salesperson G, who was from the same estate agent, to represent the tenant and told Salesperson G to approach the landlord directly. Salesperson G contacted the landlord to arrange for a viewing and lied to the landlord that he was bringing another tenant for viewing. The following day, Salesperson F and Salesperson G brought the same tenant for viewing. The tenancy agreement was signed on that day between the landlord and tenant. Salesperson F and Salesperson G had acted unethically to cut Salesperson E out of the transaction by going to the landlord directly, when it was Salesperson E who had first introduced the landlord to the tenant and Salesperson F.
Source: Practice Guidelines on Conduct between Salespersons
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