When a seller contracts with a broker to market the seller's property, the broker becomes an agent of the seller and the seller is the client principal. What term best describes this relationship?

• A. Single agency
• B. Designated agent
• C. Seller as principal
• D. Agency coupled with interest

Answer: (C)

This is about the principal–agent relationship in a listing. When a seller hires a broker to market the property, the broker acts as the seller’s agent and the seller is the principal—the client the agent represents. The term that best fits this setup is the seller as principal, because it names who the client is and who represents them in the transaction. The broker owes fiduciary duties to the seller (loyalty, confidentiality, disclosure, etc.) and acts to advance the seller’s interests.

This differs from single agency, which describes representing one side in a transaction but doesn’t specify who is the principal in the relationship. Designated agent refers to a broker designating different agents to represent each party within the same brokerage, not the basic client–agent pairing here. Agency coupled with an interest describes an agency formed to protect the broker’s own interests, which isn’t the general listing relationship described.