Exclusive Buyer Representation Agreement — Iowa Edition Template

Since the 2024 NAR settlement took effect, a written buyer representation agreement is no longer optional for most agents — MLS participants must have a written agreement with a buyer before touring a home, and that agreement must state the compensation the buyer's broker will receive, in an amount that is objectively ascertainable and not open-ended. This template is built for that new reality.

The Exclusive Buyer Representation Agreement establishes the brokerage as the buyer's exclusive agent for a defined term and geographic area, sets out the broker's fiduciary duties (loyalty, confidentiality, disclosure, obedience to lawful instruction, reasonable care, and accounting), and — most importantly — fixes the broker's compensation in writing: a flat fee, a percentage, or an hourly structure, with clear language on how seller-paid or listing-broker-paid amounts offset the buyer's obligation. It includes a protection period for properties introduced during the term, a retainer provision, dual agency/designated agency consent language, and clean termination mechanics.

This 5-page template includes the compensation disclosure language required under the settlement framework, plus a 50-state variation notes section covering states where buyer agency agreements have statutory content requirements (several states mandate specific disclosures, type-size requirements, or prohibit certain term lengths). Buyer agency itself is a creature of state agency and license law, so the notes flag where state forms or specific statutory language are mandatory. As with all templates in this library, it is a drafting starting point to review with your broker or attorney — not a guaranteed state-compliant form.

About this Iowa Edition: Every template was redrafted around Iowa's real estate license law, Iowa Code chapter 543B, and the Iowa Real Estate Commission's rules in 193E IAC, which require written brokerage agreements with definite expiration dates, a written agency disclosure before any brokerage agreement or offer, and the informed written consent of all parties before a brokerage may act as a dual agent or through appointed (designated) agency — so the consent form in this set is a true Iowa dual agency / appointed agency election rather than a transaction-brokerage substitute. The seller disclosure form is structured to Iowa Code chapter 558A (delivery before the buyer's written offer) and adds the Iowa-specific items practitioners expect: radon, the time-of-transfer septic inspection under Iowa Code chapter 455B, and the groundwater hazard statement categories. Throughout, the forms reference the Iowa statute of frauds (Iowa Code § 622.32), the Iowa Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (Iowa Code chapter 554D), homestead spousal joinder (Iowa Code § 561.13), the commercial broker lien act (Iowa Code chapter 570A), Iowa's abstract-and-Title-Guaranty title practice, and the rule that all compensation flows through the licensed brokerage.