Do you need a buyer’s mandate for an agent to search for you?
It is not compulsory, but without one the agent works on your search with no assurance of being paid, and that determines how much time they can give it. A buyer’s mandate is the document by which a buyer instructs an agent to find a property meeting defined criteria, setting the fee and the period it covers. It earns its place when you are looking for something that is not listed: a targeted search costs weeks of work, and no professional invests those in a request that may evaporate tomorrow.
What it contains
What you are looking for
, written so that it can be said whether a property qualifies. Area, price bracket, minimum size, and the two or three things you will not give up. A mandate saying «a villa in Liguria» binds nobody, because it excludes nothing.
The fee and who pays it
It can fall on you, on the seller, or be split. Agree it first, because it determines whose instructions the agent takes.
The term
Three to six months is usual. Longer binds you without pressing the agent; shorter leaves no time for a targeted search.
Whether it is exclusive
, and what happens if you find something yourself. This is the clause to negotiate carefully: many templates provide for the full fee even on a property you found on your own.
What counts as «found»
If the agent shows you a property and you buy it a year later through someone else, is the fee due? Standard clauses say yes within a period. Know this before signing.
Exclusive or not
Without exclusivity you can instruct several agents, and each will offer what they hold. That is sensible if you are looking for something common, where the listed supply is wide.
With exclusivity the agent has a reason to do the work that matters: querying their network, approaching owners of properties that are not for sale, building the search rather than waiting. It is the only route to what is not published, because nobody does that work for free.
The risk is tying yourself to an agent who then produces nothing. Two safeguards handle it: a short renewable term, and a written commitment to report — how many properties identified, how many owners approached, with what outcome. If after sixty days there is nothing to report, do not renew.
How to write a brief that produces results
A mandate is worth only as much as the brief inside it, and vague briefs produce pointless viewings.
Say what you rule out, not only what you want
«No more than twenty minutes from the centre», «not on a busy road», «no more than three floors without a lift». Exclusions genuinely narrow the field; wishes do not.
Rank your priorities
If you had to give up either the view or the garden, which one? An agent who knows can bring you something you had not considered; one who does not brings only what matches literally.
Give real timing
«Within the year» and «when the right one turns up» lead to two different searches, and to two different ways of negotiating when one is found.
Say how you are paying
Funds available, mortgage to be approved, another property to sell first. On a confidential property this determines whether you are shown in.
How Realux works
A requirement entered into the Realux network is compared against the properties selected agents do not publish: your agent queries a network, not only their own file.
The requirement travels without your name: other agents see what is being sought, in what bracket and on what timing, not who. And the terms between agents are set beforehand, so sharing your search does not mean handing it to someone else.
Tell us what you are looking forFrequently asked questions
- Who pays the agent searching for me?
- It depends how the agreement is built. In Italy the agent is frequently paid by the seller even when working for the buyer, which is why few agents genuinely represent buyers: the money comes from the other side. A mandate paid by you costs more and buys something different — someone with no interest in you buying that particular property.
- How long should it run?
- Three to six months, renewable. A targeted search needs at least sixty days to produce anything concrete, because approaching owners of properties that are not for sale takes time. Beyond six months with nothing to show, the problem is not the term.
- If I find a property myself, do I still pay?
- It depends what you signed, and this is the clause to read most carefully. Many templates provide for a fee on any purchase completed during the period, including properties the agent never showed you. It is negotiable: it can be limited to properties actually introduced.
- Can I instruct agents in different cities?
- Yes, and on searches covering distant areas it is sensible. What to avoid is instructing several agents on the same area: they end up offering you the same properties and, worse, approaching the same seller on your behalf, which weakens your position.