When Owners Change Their Minds: How Agents Get Blamed for Unsigned Agreements
It always starts the same way.
A friendly call.
A few WhatsApp photos.
A quick “You help me sell, I’ll pay you commission.”
You rush to the site, take pictures, craft the perfect caption, and post.
Enquiries start coming in. A buyer seems serious. You negotiate, follow up, close the gap — and then the owner says,
“I didn’t authorise that price.”
“I never told you to sell.”
“Let’s hold off — my cousin says it’s worth more.”
Suddenly, the deal you built collapses — and somehow, you’re the one to blame.
The Missing Line Between Help and Authority
Most agents don’t realise how thin that line is. Without a signed appointment, there’s no proof you were ever authorised. In the owner’s eyes, you were just “helping to market.”
When the market turns soft, that blurry line becomes dangerous:
- A seller can withdraw, saying you acted too fast.
- A buyer can complain, saying the owner changed the price.
- A co-broker can question, who really represents the seller?
Everyone retreats — and the agent who built the bridge ends up in the water.
Why Owners Flip
It’s rarely about malice. Most just don’t see the effort behind your marketing. To them, changing price or direction feels harmless. They forget the cost: your photos, time, reputation, even buyer trust.
In bad markets, doubt spreads faster than trust.
A single phone call —
- “You can sell higher.”
- “Don’t commit yet.”
- “Just see what other agents say.” — and your weeks of groundwork disappear.
The Twist: Blame Travels Fast
When owners back out, they don’t say “I changed my mind.” They say:
- “The agent list without consent.”
- “The agent misled me.”
Because the public expects agents to be professional, not hopeful. Without paperwork, you can’t prove you were careful. Without authority, your defence becomes opinion.
And in Malaysia, the burden falls on the agent, not the client.
The Paper That Stops the Spin
A signed appointment — even an ad-hoc one — draws a clear boundary: who authorised, at what price, under what terms.
It turns “he said, she said” into recorded fact. It freezes memory before it fades. It lets you walk into every negotiation as the appointed representative, not the convenient scapegoat.
Because when minds change, documents don’t.
The Real Lesson
Owners can change prices.
Markets can shift.
But you can’t defend what you can’t prove.
Marketing without authority isn’t initiative — it’s exposure. And in a profession built on trust, the only shield is clarity on paper.
So before you chase the next “okay, go ahead” — ask for the signature that says, “You’re in charge.”
