ESTATE AGENT APPOINTMENT AND INSTRUCTION LETTER
Important legal, jurisdiction and formality warning
This fictional letter is a worked educational example, not legal advice and not a complete set of estate-agent terms. It does not itself transfer land, constitute a contract for sale or replace conveyancing documents. Before signing, the seller must check the agent’s current terms, consumer cancellation and unfair-terms rules, estate-agent legislation, anti-money-laundering obligations, the Energy Performance Certificate regime, property information forms, leasehold information, planning and building-regulations history, tax, mortgage conditions and any referral arrangement. An agent must not invent or conceal material information. Commission can become payable under statutory and contractual rules even where a different agent or the seller introduces a buyer. Obtain independent legal and tax advice, and use a conveyancer for the sale.
Date and parties
This instruction is made on 6 June 2027 between Rhea Louise Sutton and Malcolm Peter Sutton, both of 41 Brackenfield Road, Exeter EX2 7QW (together, the Seller), and Westmere Homes Exeter Limited, company number 12170482, of 5 Southernhay East, Exeter EX1 1QF (the Agent). The Agent’s principal contact is Priya Nandini Shah, senior negotiator, at priya.shah@example.test and 01392 555 407.
The Seller appoints the Agent to market 41 Brackenfield Road, Exeter EX2 7QW, title number DN 746291, a freehold three-bedroom house with a garage, rear garden and driveway (the Property). The Seller states that Rhea and Malcolm are the registered proprietors, that they intend to sell as trustees of the registered title, and that the Property is occupied by the Seller. This statement is information for the Agent, not a title warranty. The Seller must tell the Agent immediately if a trust, restriction, mortgage, tenancy, option, co-owner, insolvency issue or other interest affects the sale.
1. Agency basis, term and price
The appointment is a sole agency appointment from 6 June 2027 through and including 5 October 2027. During that period the Seller will not appoint another estate agent to sell the Property. If the Seller ends this appointment during the fixed period without an agreed reason, the Agent may claim only a fee that is lawfully due under the Agent’s current terms and applicable law; this letter does not create a penalty. From 6 October 2027 the appointment continues as a non-exclusive agency until either party gives 14 days’ written notice. A sale agreed during the appointment, or with a buyer introduced during the appointment and completed within six months after termination, may attract a fee if the contractual and statutory conditions for payment are met.
The suggested asking price is £465,000. The Seller authorises the Agent to advertise at that price and to report offers without stating that an offer is accepted unless the Seller gives written authority. The Seller may change the asking price by email. The Agent must pass every offer to the Seller promptly and in writing, including the buyer’s stated conditions, funding position where known and any related sale. Neither the asking price nor a valuation is a guarantee of market value. The Seller alone decides whether to accept, reject or negotiate an offer.
The Agent’s commission is 1.20% of the gross sale price plus VAT at the rate applicable when the fee is supplied, payable on legal completion. If the gross sale price is £465,000, the commission before VAT is £5,580.00 (465,000 multiplied by 0.012). If VAT is 20%, the illustrative total is £6,696.00 (5,580.00 plus 1,116.00). The arithmetic is an example, not a promise about the VAT rate. No commission is calculated on the Seller’s fixtures or chattels sold separately unless the Agent’s written terms lawfully provide otherwise.
The Agent may charge the following separately agreed disbursements: EPC £78.00 including VAT, professional floor plan £144.00 including VAT, and premium photography £192.00 including VAT. The total of those three items is £414.00. The Seller authorises them only if the Agent confirms that the relevant item is needed and is not already included in a current package. No other advertising expense above £150.00 including VAT may be incurred without the Seller’s written approval. The Seller will reimburse an approved expense on receipt of an invoice, whether or not a sale completes, unless the expense was caused by the Agent’s breach.
2. Marketing and information
The Agent will arrange one site visit, measure the Property, prepare a draft brochure for approval, place an online listing, erect a board if permitted, arrange accompanied viewings and provide a weekly written marketing report. The first draft must describe the Property accurately and identify the garage, garden, parking and any known restriction. The Agent will not describe a room as a bedroom, extension or conversion unless the Seller supplies information that reasonably supports that description. The Agent will correct an error promptly after notice.
The Seller will provide an EPC or authorise the Agent to arrange one, a completed property information form when requested, guarantees and certificates for the 2019 rear conservatory roof and 2022 boiler replacement, information about boundaries and rights, planning and building-control documents in their possession, details of the mortgage and any known dispute, and keys for agreed viewings. The Seller confirms that the statements supplied are accurate to the best of their knowledge and will update them when circumstances change. The Agent may rely on the information but must make reasonable enquiries required by law and its professional obligations.
The Agent will not include photographs showing personal documents, security codes, children’s faces or valuables without consent. It may use the approved photographs and floor plan for this marketing campaign and remove them after termination within a reasonable operational period. The Seller grants a limited licence for that purpose. The Agent will comply with data-protection duties and will not sell the Seller’s details to a third party. The Seller consents to necessary contact by email and telephone about this instruction and viewings, and may withdraw marketing communications without withdrawing essential transaction communications.
3. Viewings, offers and sale process
The Agent will arrange viewings between 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., giving the Seller at least 24 hours’ notice unless the Seller agrees otherwise. The Seller may require the Agent to refuse a particular time or person for a reasonable safety or privacy reason. The Agent will keep a viewing record, will not give keys to a viewer without supervision or an approved secure process, and will report damage or an incident promptly. The Seller remains responsible for valuables, pets and safe condition.
An offer is not a binding contract for the sale of land. The Agent will explain that exchange of contracts is required and that the Seller should not rely on a buyer’s statement until the conveyancer confirms matters. The Agent will ask for the buyer’s identity and evidence of funds in accordance with its anti-money-laundering procedures, but cannot guarantee the buyer’s solvency. The Agent will tell the Seller if it has a financial, personal or referral interest in a buyer, mortgage broker, conveyancer, surveyor or other service.
The Seller appoints Kestrel & Ford Solicitors, 17 Southernhay West, Exeter EX1 1JG, or another conveyancer notified in writing, to receive the Agent’s sales memorandum and negotiate legal enquiries. The Agent has no authority to vary the sale contract, accept a deposit, give vacant possession, promise repairs, release keys, agree a completion date or sign a transfer. The Seller must refer those matters to the conveyancer. If the sale is leasehold or subject to a management company, additional information and charges may be required before marketing.
4. Conflicts, compliance and client money
The Agent is registered with the Property Ombudsman under reference TPO-EX-7421 and will follow its current code where applicable. It will maintain professional indemnity insurance of £1,000,000 and public liability insurance of £5,000,000, subject to policy terms. It will comply with the Estate Agents Act 1979, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 provisions in force from 6 April 2025, the Money Laundering Regulations, privacy law and other applicable requirements. Any transitional rules will be checked only if relevant to the instruction. The Seller understands that statutory rules may change and take priority over this letter.
The Agent will not receive a buyer’s deposit or sale proceeds unless a conveyancer and the applicable terms authorise it. Any money it lawfully holds for the Seller will be held, reconciled and paid out in accordance with client-money rules. The Agent may deduct an undisputed fee or approved expense only after giving an itemised completion statement. The Seller should raise any genuine dispute promptly and may use a statutory complaint route; a delay in raising a dispute does not by itself waive or forfeit a right, subject to any applicable contractual or statutory time limit.
5. Ending, complaints and signatures
Either party may give 14 days’ written notice after the fixed period. The Seller may terminate immediately if the Agent materially misrepresents the Property, loses a required authorisation or commits a serious confidentiality or client-money breach. The Agent may terminate for non-payment of an undisputed expense, refusal to provide legally required information, or a serious conflict, after giving a reasonable opportunity to remedy where appropriate. Ending the appointment does not remove a fee that has already become due, any lawful continuing-introduction provision, or obligations concerning confidentiality, records and complaints.
The Seller will first send a complaint to the Agent’s compliance officer, Jonas Peter Wren, at complaints@westmerehomes.example.test. The Agent will acknowledge within three business days and issue a substantive response within 15 business days where practicable. The Seller may then use the Agent’s redress scheme or court process. This appointment is governed by the law of England and Wales, but mandatory consumer rights and statutory remedies are preserved.
The parties confirm that they have read the Agent’s current written terms, which must be supplied with this letter, and that this letter records the commercial instruction only. The Seller should not sign until commission, termination and dual-fee provisions are understood.
Signed by Rhea Louise Sutton, Seller Signature: ____________________ Date: 6 June 2027
Signed by Malcolm Peter Sutton, Seller Signature: ____________________ Date: 6 June 2027
Signed for Westmere Homes Exeter Limited by Priya Nandini Shah, Senior Negotiator Signature: ____________________ Date: 6 June 2027
Agent office: 5 Southernhay East, Exeter EX1 1QF Email: priya.shah@example.test