Can an agent from my firm host an open house when the listing is with another firm?

QUESTION: One of my agents would like to generate buyer leads by hosting an open house at another firm’s listing. If the listing agent, who is not dually affiliated with our firm, says it’s OK, and the seller is also OK with the arrangement, would this be permissible? If so, would all potential buyers attending the open house be required to sign a showing agreement?

ANSWER: These kinds of open houses are permissible, but they pose risk and must be handled in compliance with the License Law. The North Carolina Real Estate Commission wrote about this practice in the April 2021 eBulletin, which you can read here.

If an agent unaffiliated with the listing firm wishes to host an open house, then the agent must act as a subagent of the seller. This means that the unaffiliated agent should:

1.     Obtain a written agreement signed by the seller authorizing the involvement of the unaffiliated agent as a seller subagent. The agreement should cover compensation, as well as responsibility for damages, theft, and other issues. We do not have a standard form that includes these provisions. Therefore, your agent will probably need to work with an attorney to draft an appropriate agreement, and the listing firm should also be a party to this agreement to make the responsibilities to the seller clear.

2.     Fully disclose their agency role at the open house to potential buyers. The WWREA should be used for this purpose. See Rule .0104(c).

3.     Communicate to the seller any relevant information obtained from buyers during the open house. Since the unaffiliated agent is a seller subagent, then that means their fiduciary duty is to the seller. Any relevant information from buyers must be relayed to the seller.

4.     Obtain permission from the seller before agreeing to represent any buyer encountered at the open house. Since the unaffiliated agent is a seller subagent, they will need the seller’s permission to switch roles and represent a buyer. This should be addressed in the written agreement authorizing seller subagency given the risk to the seller.

In addition, any broker conducting an open house has a duty to discover and disclose material facts to all parties involved in a transaction. While a listing broker may provide information to the unaffiliated agent for purposes of disclosure at an open house, the listing broker and their firm remain responsible if all required disclosures are not made.

As to your final question, a seller subagent does not have a duty to enter into a written agreement with a buyer, such as Form 202 (Property Showing Agreement), in order to show them the home at an open house. However, if the unaffiliated agent ends up working with a buyer, then they would need one. This issue likely would need to be covered by the unaffiliated agent and their BIC to ensure MLS compliance. We wrote a Q&A on this subject here.

Release Date: 8/21/2025

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