Real Estate Law · August 26, 2026 · 8 min read
She'd been to three of my open houses. Nice couple, pre-approved, looking in the Bel Air to Fallston corridor. Last Sunday she called and asked if I could write her offer on the ranch I had listed in Harford County.
"You know the house. You know what the seller wants. It'll be easier, right?"
I said no.
Not because I didn't want to help. Not because the commission wouldn't have been lovely. I said no because I'm not allowed to serve two masters, and more importantly, because she deserved someone in her corner who wasn't also in the other corner.
That's dual agency. And it's one of the most misunderstood parts of Maryland real estate law, right alongside fair housing and disclosure rules. Today I want to walk through what agency actually means when you're buying or selling a home in Maryland, DC, Pennsylvania, or Delaware, because the wrong assumption here can cost you thousands of dollars or worse.
When I sign a listing agreement to sell your house in Baltimore County or Harford County or anywhere else I'm licensed, I become your agent. That's a legal term. It means I owe you loyalty, confidentiality, disclosure, obedience to lawful instructions, reasonable care, and accounting. It's called fiduciary duty, and it's not optional.
When I sign a buyer representation agreement, same deal. I work for you. I don't work for the seller. I don't work for the transaction. I work for you.
But here's where it gets messy. In Maryland, dual agency is legal. That means one agent can theoretically represent both buyer and seller in the same transaction, with written consent. Some states banned it. Maryland didn't. Neither did DC or Pennsylvania or Delaware.
The Maryland Real Estate Commission has specific rules about this. You have to consent in writing. The agent has to disclose it before anyone signs anything binding. And the agent's duties change the moment dual agency kicks in.
You lose confidentiality. I can't tell you the seller will take less. I can't tell the seller you'll pay more. I become a referee, not an advocate. I can still help you with paperwork, but I can't advise you on strategy or negotiation.
Most people don't want that. I don't blame them.
Here's what usually happens instead. Let's say you call Samson Properties and want to see one of our listings. You get assigned a buyer's agent who is not the listing agent. That buyer's agent represents you. The listing agent represents the seller. We're at the same brokerage, but we're on opposite sides of the table.
That's called designated agency, and it's how most offices in Harford County, Baltimore City, Montgomery County, and across the region handle it. The Maryland REALTORS® association has good guidance on this in their Understanding Brokerage Relationships materials.
You still get full representation. Your agent still owes you confidentiality and loyalty. The listing agent owes the same to the seller. The brokerage stays neutral.
It works. But you still need to understand who your agent is and what they can and can't tell you.
Maryland law requires agents to give you an "Understanding Whom Real Estate Agents Represent" disclosure at the first scheduled face-to-face meeting. Not at contract. Not at closing. At the first meeting.
In my educator days, I'd call this a "read-before-you-need-it" document. Most people skim it. But it explains seller's agents, buyer's agents, dual agency, designated agency, and what happens if you don't sign a representation agreement at all.
That last one surprises people. If you tour homes with me but never sign a buyer rep agreement, I'm working as a subagent of the seller in most cases unless we've agreed otherwise in writing. You're a customer, not a client. I owe you honesty and fair dealing, but not loyalty or confidentiality.
That changed a bit after the NAR settlement earlier this year, which tightened up buyer representation requirements, but the underlying agency law is the same. If you want someone in your corner, you sign an agreement that says so.
Pennsylvania's law is similar but not identical. The Pennsylvania Real Estate Commission requires a Consumer Notice at the first contact. Dual agency is legal there too, with consent. Designated agency is common in York County and Lancaster County, just like in Maryland.
Washington DC uses the same basic framework. The DC Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection oversees real estate licensees, and dual agency is permitted with disclosure and consent.
Delaware's a little different. Dual agency is allowed, but the Delaware Real Estate Commission has strict rules about when and how you disclose it, and many Delaware agents avoid it entirely.
If you're buying or selling in multiple states (and plenty of my clients do, especially when they're relocating from Aberdeen Proving Ground to a job in York or looking at homes in both Harford and Cecil Counties), make sure you understand which state's law applies and what your agent's role is in each transaction.
Back to my open house couple. I could have said yes. I could have gotten their written consent, explained the limits of dual agency, and written the offer. It's legal.
But here's what I know from 20 years in education and leadership before I ever sold a house: people need advocates, not just facilitators. When you're spending $400,000 or $600,000 or more on a home in Harford County or Baltimore County, you need someone who can tell you the seller's roof is original and you should ask for a credit. You need someone who can say, "That counteroffer is garbage, let's walk."
I can't do that in dual agency. So I referred her to a colleague I trust. He represented her. I represented my seller. She got a good deal. My seller got a solid buyer. Everybody won because everybody had a real advocate.
That's how it should work.
If you're getting ready to buy or sell homes in Maryland, DC, Pennsylvania, or Delaware, here's what you need to pin down with your agent before you sign a listing agreement or buyer rep agreement:
Who do you represent in this transaction? If it's a listing, are you my seller's agent? If I'm buying, are you my buyer's agent, or are you showing me homes as a subagent of the seller?
If I want to make an offer on one of your listings, what happens? Will you represent both of us, or will you refer me to another agent?
If we're at the same brokerage, how does designated agency work here?
What are you required to disclose to the other side, and what stays confidential?
These aren't rude questions. They're smart questions. Any Maryland realtor or DC or Pennsylvania or Delaware agent who gets annoyed by them isn't someone you want representing you.
One last piece. Agency is about who you represent. Fair housing is about who you can't discriminate against. The two overlap in ways that matter.
As your agent, I can help you find a home that fits your needs. I can show you homes for sale in Harford County near good schools, or quiet streets, or accessible floor plans. What I can't do is steer you toward or away from neighborhoods based on race, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, or any other protected class under the Fair Housing Act.
That applies whether I'm your buyer's agent, your seller's agent, or practicing dual agency. It's not negotiable. It's federal law. And it's the right thing to do.
If you're worried about fair lending after the recent news that federal agencies pulled SPCP guidance, know this: fair housing enforcement didn't go anywhere. HUD is still active. The Maryland Commission on Civil Rights is still active. Discrimination is still illegal and still prosecuted.
Your agent's job is to help you find a home you love in a community that fits your life, full stop.
Real estate agency isn't exciting. It's not going to show up in your Instagram feed or get you likes. But it's foundational. When you understand who your Maryland realtor represents, what they can and can't say, and what you're signing when you enter into an agreement, you make better decisions.
You avoid surprises. You avoid paying more than you should or accepting less than you deserve. You avoid sitting at a closing table wondering why nobody told you something that mattered.
I've seen that happen. I've seen buyers realize too late that the agent they thought was helping them was actually working for the seller. I've seen sellers lose thousands because they didn't understand that their agent was also representing the buyer and couldn't negotiate aggressively on their behalf.
It doesn't have to be that way.
If you're thinking about buying or selling in Harford County, Baltimore County, Baltimore City, Cecil County, or anywhere else I'm licensed in Maryland, DC, Pennsylvania, or Delaware, let's talk about representation before we talk about anything else. You can reach me here or call the Samson Properties Bel Air office.
You deserve someone in your corner. Not a neutral referee. Not someone juggling two clients in the same deal. Just someone who works for you.
That's what agency means. And it's worth getting right.
Katrina Kirton Sherrod, REALTOR® · Samson Properties · Licensed in MD, DC, PA & DE · 443-616-9770 · Katrina@kkstherealtor.com
“The house you looked at today and wanted to think about until tomorrow may be the same house someone looked at yesterday and will buy today.” — Koki Adasi