Does a Real Estate Agent Work for the Buyer or the Seller?

It depends on who signed an agreement with them, and in Mississippi you are entitled to know the answer in writing before you share anything that could hurt your bargaining position. The friendly agent at the open house may work for you, for the seller, for both at once, or for neither. Here is how to tell.

Mississippi makes them tell you

Mississippi requires every licensee to give you a form called “Working With a Real Estate Broker” at the first substantive meeting. The Real Estate Commission’s instructions are emphatic: “This form MUST be completed at the FIRST meeting a real estate licensee has with a prospective client. It MUST be signed by all parties, MUST be in the licensee’s files for that client or property, and the customer or client MUST receive a copy IMMEDIATELY!” (Mississippi Real Estate Commission)

The form itself explains why: “Before you begin working with any real estate agent, you should know whom the agent represents in the transaction. Mississippi real estate licensees are required to disclose which party they represent in a transaction and to allow a party the right to choose or refuse among the various agency relationships.” (MREC Working With a Real Estate Broker form)

“First substantive meeting” is defined narrowly. For a seller’s agent it is “before or just immediately prior to” showing the property to a prospective buyer or “eliciting confidential information from a buyer concerning the buyers’ real estate needs, motivation, or financial qualifications.” (MREC disciplinary order quoting Rule 4.2) In plain terms: the moment an agent starts asking about your budget, you should already have the form.

The four relationships

Source: MREC Working With a Real Estate Broker form

Seller’s agent. A seller’s agent owes the seller “the fiduciary duties of loyalty, confidentiality, obedience, disclosure, full accounting, and the duty to use skill, care, and diligence,” and owes the buyer only “a duty of honesty and fair dealing.” (MREC form)

Buyer’s agent. The mirror image: the same six fiduciary duties to the buyer, and honesty and fair dealing to the seller.

Disclosed dual agent. One licensee or one brokerage represents both sides. Mississippi allows this only “with the informed written consent of the Seller and Buyer,” and the dual agent “shall not represent the interests of one party to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of the other party.” (MREC form) A dual agent keeps all fiduciary duties “except the duties of full disclosure and undivided loyalty,” and may not tell the buyer the seller will take less, tell the seller the buyer will pay more, or reveal either party’s motivation. Both parties must also sign the MREC Dual Agency Confirmation Form, “which shall be attached to the offer to purchase.” (MREC Rules and Regulations)

Customer. This is the trap. If you tour homes with the listing agent and never sign a buyer agreement, “that firm and its agents may show the Buyer properties as a Seller’s Agent or as a Subagent working on the Seller’s behalf. Such a firm represents the Seller (not the Buyer) and must disclose that fact to the Buyer.” The form adds that the seller’s agent “cannot give you legal or financial advice.” (MREC form)

Why this matters more than it used to

Most people on both sides are represented. In 2025, 88% of buyers and 91% of sellers used an agent, with seller representation at the highest level on record. (NAR) When nearly everyone has an advocate, the person without one is at a measurable disadvantage.

And the paperwork now arrives earlier. Since August 17, 2024, an agent using the MLS and working with a buyer must have a written agreement “prior to touring a home, including both in-person and live virtual tours.” (NAR) Mississippi’s dual-agency rule notes a brokerage agreement with a buyer “need not be secured by the broker prior to showing the buyer a property, but must be secured prior to submitting an offer.” (MREC Rule text, 2026) Where the NAR rule is stricter, MLS members follow the stricter rule, so in practice expect to sign before the first showing.

What “fiduciary” means when it counts

Loyalty and confidentiality are abstractions until you are negotiating. Three examples from Central Mississippi transactions:

• A buyer mentions to the listing agent that they are pre-approved for $40,000 more than their offer. Under Mississippi’s rules, that agent “would be required to tell all such information to the Seller.” (MREC form) A buyer’s agent is forbidden from disclosing it.
• A seller tells their agent they will accept $10,000 under list. A dual agent cannot pass that on; a seller’s agent cannot either; a buyer’s agent would be obligated to use it.
• An inspection turns up a roof issue. A buyer’s agent’s duty of disclosure means telling you everything they know about the problem and your options. A seller’s agent’s duty is honesty, which is narrower.

How to protect yourself

1. Ask “Who do you represent?” before you say anything about money. You are entitled to the answer and the form.
2. Read which box is checked. The form has four: client (seller), client (buyer), customer, and dual-agency consent. Do not sign the dual-agency box without understanding that it waives undivided loyalty.
3. If you want an advocate, sign a buyer agreement. It costs nothing to sign; compensation is negotiated in the same document and is “not set by law.” (NAR)
4. Keep your copy. The rules require the licensee to give it to you and keep the original on file.

At HomesRX, I practice single agency wherever possible and explain the dual-agency section line by line before anyone initials it. The point of the form is informed choice, and a choice made in a hurry at the kitchen table is not informed.

Frequently asked questions