How to Choose an Agent After the 2024 Rule Change

Choosing an agent changed materially in August 2024, when the practice changes from the National Association of Realtors settlement took effect. Two things are different, and both put more of the decision in your hands.

First, a written buyer agreement is required before an agent tours a home with you. Second, compensation is explicitly negotiable and must be stated in that agreement — it is no longer assumed to come from a figure published in the MLS.

That means you are signing something, early, that defines the relationship. Which makes choosing well matter more than it used to.

Salesperson or broker?

Massachusetts issues two licences and the difference is real.

A salesperson licence is the entry level. The holder must work under the supervision of a broker and cannot operate independently.

A broker licence requires documented full-time practice as a salesperson first, additional classroom education, a separate state examination, and sponsor references. Most practising agents hold the salesperson licence.

Neither guarantees competence, and a good salesperson will serve you better than an indifferent broker. But it is a genuine, verifiable differentiator, and every Massachusetts licence — level, status, and disciplinary history — can be looked up by name on the Division of Occupational Licensure register. Check it. It takes a minute.

"Realtor" is a separate thing again: membership of the National Association of Realtors, which brings a code of ethics but is not a licence level.

What should I actually ask?

Skip "how many homes have you sold". Ask these instead, and listen for specificity.

"Walk me through the two-contract structure here." A competent Massachusetts agent explains the Offer and the P&S, what binds when, and where the deadlines fall, without hesitating. Vagueness here is disqualifying.
"Which towns do you actually work in, and what would you tell me about the streets in them?" Greater Boston is decided street by street. An agent who works your target town knows which addresses feed which elementary school and which streets flood.
"How is your compensation structured, and what am I agreeing to?" Post-2024, this is a real negotiation. Ask about the rate, the term, whether it is exclusive, and what happens if you buy a home you found yourself.
"What would make you tell me not to buy a house?" The answer tells you whether you are hiring an advisor or a transaction processor.
"Who covers you when you are away?" Deadlines here do not pause.
"May I speak to two clients from the last year?" Recent, not curated highlights from five years ago.

Understanding the agreement you sign

Read these terms before signing anything:

Term. How long does it run? A short initial term is entirely reasonable while you find out whether you work well together.
Scope. Exclusive to specific towns, price bands, or property types?
Compensation. The rate or fee, who pays it, and whether a seller contribution offsets it.
Termination. How you get out, and on what notice.
Protection period. Whether you owe a fee if you buy a home the agent showed you, after the agreement ends.

Ask for changes if something does not fit. This is a negotiable contract now, and that is the point of the change.

Massachusetts agency disclosure

Separately from the buyer agreement, Massachusetts requires agents to provide a written disclosure explaining agency relationships at the first personal meeting where a specific property is discussed. It is not a contract — it is a notice. Read it anyway, and make sure you understand whether the agent in front of you represents you, the seller, or both.

Dual agency — one agent or one firm representing both sides — is permitted here with informed written consent. Understand what it means before consenting: an agent who represents both parties cannot advocate fully for either, and cannot advise you on price strategy against the person they also represent.

The signals worth paying attention to

Good: asks about your situation before pitching; tells you what a property's problems are; gives specific local detail unprompted; is straightforward about their fee; is willing to say a house is wrong for you.

Bad: pressure to sign a long exclusive immediately; vagueness about compensation; enthusiasm about every property; unfamiliarity with the towns you are targeting; and — the clearest one — reluctance to put anything in writing.