Brokerage Relationships (BRRETA)
Georgia's Brokerage Relationships in Real Estate Transactions Act defines how brokers may represent the public and the duties they owe. This chapter covers the client/customer distinction, agency duties, and dual agency.
What BRRETA Governs
BRRETA (O.C.G.A. Title 10, Chapter 6A) defines the brokerage relationships Georgia recognizes and the duties a broker owes in each. It governs how agency is created and terminated, disclosure obligations, and confidentiality. Brokers must understand BRRETA because it sets the framework for how the firm and its affiliated licensees represent buyers, sellers, landlords, and tenants.
Client vs Customer
BRRETA distinguishes a client, to whom the broker owes agency duties such as confidentiality, loyalty, and diligent promotion of the client's interests within the law, from a customer, to whom the broker owes honesty and fair dealing but not agency representation. Brokers must not give legal advice and cannot guarantee outcomes such as a sale price. Knowing this line governs day-to-day practice.
Dual and Designated Agency
BRRETA permits dual agency only with the informed written consent of both parties. A dual agent cannot fully advocate for either side and must protect each party's confidential information. Georgia also allows designated agency, in which the broker assigns different affiliated licensees to represent the buyer and the seller within the same firm.