Did the listing agent breach a BRRETA duty?
- ANo, because § 10-6A-5(b) does not require the listing agent to seek out defects
- BYes, because listing agents must inspect every area of the property
- CYes, because the agent should have hired an inspector
- DNo, but only because the seller signed a disclosure statement
Pick an answer before you read on.
Answer: A
No, because § 10-6A-5(b) does not require the listing agent to seek out defects. The seller's broker's disclosure duty in section 10-6A-5(b) covers specified adverse facts the broker actually knows. That subsection expressly creates no duty to discover or seek out those facts, and the buyer retains responsibility to inspect. These facts establish no actual knowledge of moisture. This is the limit of that disclosure subsection, not a release from reasonable care, other applicable law, or a duty the broker separately agrees to perform.
Why each choice is right or wrong
A. No, because § 10-6A-5(b) does not require the listing agent to seek out defectsCorrect answer
Section 10-6A-5(b) does not itself require the seller's broker to search for defects. No actual knowledge is established here; other agreed duties still need separate consideration.
B. Yes, because listing agents must inspect every area of the property
The disclosure subsection does not impose an inspection of every area. It focuses on covered adverse facts the seller's broker actually knows.
C. Yes, because the agent should have hired an inspector
This statutory duty does not require the listing agent to hire an inspector. A separate undertaking could create a different obligation, but none is given.
D. No, but only because the seller signed a disclosure statement
A seller's disclosure form is not the reason for the answer. The broker's actual knowledge and the scope of section 10-6A-5(b) decide it.
The trap
The question asks what this disclosure subsection requires. An answer that makes every listing agent a property inspector goes too far, as does a rule saying brokers never have any inspection-related duties.
The Rule
A seller's broker need not seek out defects under § 10-6A-5(b), but must disclose covered facts it actually knows.
What would change the answer
- If the agent had actually seen standing water in the crawl space, the agent would have to disclose it if a reasonably diligent inspection would not reveal it.
- A buyer's own broker should still advise the buyer to get expert advice on matters beyond the broker's expertise, such as moisture, under § 10-6A-7.
Where the rule comes from
- O.C.G.A. § 10-6A-5, Duties and responsibilities of broker engaged by seller. A seller's broker must perform the engagement, promote the seller's interests (including timely presenting all offers to and from the seller even when the property is under contract, though it need not seek more offers then unless the engagement says so), exercise reasonable skill and care, obey the law, keep requested confidences, and disclose to all parties actually known adverse material facts about the property's physical condition and conditions within one mile that a diligent inspection would not reveal.
- O.C.G.A. § 10-6A-7, Duties of broker engaged by buyer. A buyer's broker must perform the engagement, promote the buyer's interests (seeking a property at acceptable price and terms, timely presenting all offers to and from the buyer even when the buyer is under contract, disclosing actually known adverse material facts concerning the transaction, advising expert help, and accounting for money), use ordinary skill and care, obey the law, and keep confidences the buyer expressly requests; in a seller-financed sale or loan assumption it must also disclose to the seller actually known adverse material facts about the buyer's financial ability and, in a residential sale, whether the buyer intends to occupy the property as a principal residence.
This is an original teaching question written from the statute. It is not a PSI exam item, and it is not copied or reconstructed from one. On the exam, BRRETA sits inside the Georgia agency and listing content. The BRRETA guide covers the client and customer table and the dual and designated agency rules in one place.