Regarding agency agreements in Texas, which statement is true?

• A. The Texas Real Estate Commission has not promulgated nor approved any agency agreements for use between brokers and clients.
• B. There exists a wide number of promulgated agency forms for various purposes.
• C. Agency agreements must be notarized.
• D. Agency agreements are optional and unregulated.

Answer: (A)

In Texas, who represents whom in a real estate transaction is managed by licensing rules, not by a bank of standard agency contracts. The Texas Real Estate Commission does not publish or approve official agency agreement forms for use between brokers and clients. Instead, brokers commonly use forms they or their brokerage prepare, as long as the documents meet regulatory requirements. You’ll also see the Information About Brokerage Services disclosure, which must be provided at first substantive contact to clarify representation, but it isn’t the agency agreement itself. Because there are no TREC-promulgated agency-relationship forms, the statement that the commission has not promulgated or approved any agency agreements is true. The other options aren’t accurate: there isn’t a wide array of TREC-promulgated agency forms for various purposes, agency agreements aren’t required to be notarized, and agency agreements aren’t simply optional and unregulated since written disclosure and proper representation rules govern them.