Until recently, real estate agents almost always represented the seller, not the buyer, in the real estate transaction. Even the real estate agent who drove you from home to home was not working on your behalf. By law, the agent was required to work on the seller's side--to get the highest price and the best terms for the seller.

Wide-sweeping changes in Multiple Listing Service regulations as well as revisions in legislation and local real estate regulations have opened a whole new era in real estate transactions, THE AGE OF BUYER AGENCY.

Today, many real estate agents and companies are offering to represent the buyer in the real estate transaction. From the initial selection of properties, all the way through contract negotiations and settlement, you can now have an agent specifically committed to representing your best interests when buying a home.

Consumer advocacy groups have endorsed such representation, and licensing laws in virtually every state are now being reworked to enable and encourage represenation for the buyer.

The Real Estate Buyer's Agent Council, the nation's oldest and largest association of real estate practitioners addressing all aspects of consumer representation in the real estate transaction, has established a criterion for excellence in buyer representation:

To attain this designation, the real estate practitioner must complete an extensive classroom training program on buyer agency and practices and procedures, pass a written examination and submit evidence of practical experience as a buyer's representative.