[SteveZ]

Real estate agents may take offense at this, but there is a reality to these transactions - the agent represents neither the buyer nor seller. The agent is strictly an intermediary to a transaction. RE Agents can't provide legal advice. Relying on a RE Agent for business advice is at your own risk.

Real estate offices are in the business to help promote the sale of real estate - the more, the better. Getting the buyer a little more money or the seller a lower price always seemed secondary (to me, at least) to turning property over at the fastest speed possible, the idea being that a lot of quick commissions are more profitable than advising one party or the other on the value of the offer which can delay (or kill) the potential of a transaction actually occurring. In the end, the primary activity has always seemed to get the buyer to spend money, because unless someone is willing to part with cash, no deal happens. If there is no deal, there is no commission.

There is an old commercial adage that taking advice from someone working on commissions based on what you spend or receive is folly, as that person has a vested and fiduciary interest in the outcome of the transaction. There is no objectivity, and therefore no value, to the advice.

Despite all the rhetoric and hyperbole to the contrary in all the real estate broker brochures, the only one you can rely upon to protect your interests in a real estate transaction is yourself or another advisor (attorney or agent) who is being paid independent of the transaction (in other words, not on commission).