An Exclusive Buyer Broker (EBB) is a real estate brokerage, agency or office that represents buyers only. Agents working for an EBB are buyers' agents exclusively.
An EBB or associated broker does not take or hold listings or represent the seller or landlord in any way, nor do the agents working under or for him/her. This includes advertising "for sale by owner" properties. In many states, by law, the broker, or agent must have a written agency agreement to represent the buyer exclusively. Without one, the broker or agent may be working for the seller or in a limited capacity.
History
In 1983, a Federal Trade Commission study revealed that more than 72 percent of home buyers in the United States mistakenly believed that the agent who was showing them homes was representing their interests. As a result, laws requiring agents to disclose whom they actually represent have been passed across the country. As consumers generally became aware that most agents worked for the seller, many began demanding their own representation.
Around the same time, these ideas were being advocated by Honolulu attorney, educator and author of many books, John W, Reilly. His 1987 book "Agency Relationships in Real Estate" was the culmination of several years working with the National Association of Realtors (NAR)and NARELLO the license law arm of the association.
In November 1985 California entrepreneur Ridgely Evers' America's First Home Store opened in Chandler, Arizona, as the first Exclusive Buyer Brokerage in the USA. In 1986 the name was changed to Buyer One and the company had its first public offering. The first national franchise to offer Exclusive Buyer Brokerage was The Buyer's Agent Inc., which was formed in July 1988 by Tom Hathaway, a former state highway patrolman and investigator/compliance officer for the Missouri Real Estate Commission.