Do You Have to Sign a Buyer Agreement to See Homes in Portland or Vancouver?

Do you have to sign a buyer agreement before touring a home in Oregon or Washington?

Yes. As of 2026, both Oregon and Washington require you to sign a written buyer representation agreement with an agent before that agent tours a home with you. Washington has required it since January 1, 2024, Oregon since January 1, 2025, and a national rule change from the NAR settlement made it standard everywhere on August 17, 2024. The agreement spells out what your agent does, how long you're working together, and exactly how your agent gets paid — but the terms, including length and fee, are negotiable, and touring a public open house on your own doesn't require one.

By Rick Sadle | August 3, 2026

If you've started looking at homes on either side of the Columbia River this year, you've probably hit a new step that caught you off guard: before an agent will unlock a door and walk you through a house, they hand you a form to sign. A lot of Portland and Vancouver buyers are asking the same thing right now — do I actually have to sign this, and what am I agreeing to?

Here's the straight answer, and what it means for you.

Why this changed — and when

Three separate things landed close together, which is why it feels sudden.

• Washington put buyer agency agreements into state law effective January 1, 2024. Buyers here have needed a written brokerage services agreement before an agent represents them for over two years now.
• The National Association of Realtors (NAR) settlement took effect August 17, 2024. It requires a written agreement with a buyer before touring any home listed on the MLS — anywhere in the country — and it removed offers of buyer-agent compensation from the MLS.
• Oregon followed with its own requirement effective January 1, 2025, and Oregon law layers on extra content the agreement must include.

So if you're shopping in Clark County and also peeking at listings in Northeast Portland, you're now signing an agreement in both states — and the forms are different.

What you're actually signing

In Washington, the form is the NWMLS Buyer Brokerage Services Agreement (Form 41). In Oregon, it's the Oregon buyer representation agreement (OREF Form 050), and Oregon rule requires it to include specifics like the broker's name and contact information, the term, your search criteria, a description of the legal obligations, and your right to terminate.

Strip away the legal language and every version answers three questions:

1. How long are you and this agent working together?
2. What is the agent's job, and what do you owe them?
3. How much does the agent get paid, and who pays it?

That third one is where the real change lives.

Who pays your agent now

For years, the seller effectively paid both agents, and buyers rarely thought about it. That's over. Under the new rules, your compensation is set between you and your agent in the agreement — not by the seller and not by the MLS.

Here's how it works in practice:

• You and your agent agree on a fee — say, a percentage of the purchase price or a flat amount.
• The seller can still offer to pay some or all of your agent's fee. That's now negotiated as part of your offer, not advertised on the MLS.
• If the seller agrees to pay, that amount is credited toward your agent's fee. You cover any difference. If the seller pays the full amount, you owe nothing out of pocket.
• Your agent can never collect more than the amount in your agreement, even if a seller offers more.

A concrete example on a $600,000 home — right in the heart of the Portland-Vancouver price range:

• You agree to a 2.5% buyer-agent fee, which is $15,000.
• The seller agrees to pay 2%, or $12,000.
• You cover the $3,000 gap.
• If instead the seller agrees to pay the full 2.5%, your out-of-pocket cost is $0.

At other price points and rates, the math scales the same way: 2.5% is $12,500 on a $500,000 home and $17,500 on a $700,000 home. These percentages are examples, not standard rates — commissions have always been negotiable, and now that negotiation is explicit and in writing.

This is exactly the kind of number I walk buyers through before we ever set foot in a house, because it changes how you write an offer.

Exclusive vs. non-exclusive — read this part

Not all buyer agreements lock you in the same way.

• An exclusive agreement means you work with that one brokerage for the term. You can't have another agent represent you on a purchase during that window.
• A non-exclusive agreement lets you work with more than one broker at a time.

The length is negotiable. In Washington, if the term isn't specified, Form 41 commonly defaults to around 60 days. You are not required to sign a six-month, all-of-Portland exclusive just to see one house. If you're not ready to commit, you can ask for a shorter term, a single-property agreement, or a non-exclusive arrangement while you decide whether the agent is the right fit.

The open house exception

You do not need a signed agreement to walk through a public open house on your own. That's true under the NAR rules in both states. If you're in the early, kicking-the-tires stage — driving through Sellwood-Moreland or Camas on a Sunday and stopping at open houses — you can look without signing anything.

The agreement comes into play the moment you want an agent to represent you and privately tour homes with you.

How to protect yourself before you sign

You're allowed to treat this like the real contract it is. Before you sign anything:

• Ask for a short or single-property term if you're still deciding on an agent.
• Get the compensation in plain numbers — a percentage or dollar figure you understand, not vague language.
• Confirm how seller-paid compensation is handled, so you know your worst-case out-of-pocket cost before you write an offer.
• Ask how to terminate and what happens if it isn't working out.
• Make sure it's the current form — some older Washington versions of Form 41 still circulating lack the updated compensation-ceiling language.

A good agent will walk you through every line of this without rushing you, because a buyer who understands the deal is an easier buyer to represent.

Buying across two states makes this trickier than it looks — different forms, different timelines, and a market where Portland-area homes are still selling in around two weeks and often drawing multiple offers. Knowing your compensation and commitment before you fall in love with a house is what keeps you in control.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to sign a buyer agreement just to look at homes in Portland?

To privately tour a home with an agent representing you, yes — Oregon requires a written buyer representation agreement first, effective January 1, 2025. You can still visit public open houses on your own without signing anything.

Can I refuse to sign a buyer agency agreement in Washington?

You can decline, but then an agent can't tour homes with you or represent you, since Washington has required a written agreement since January 1, 2024. What you can do is negotiate the terms — a shorter term, a non-exclusive arrangement, or a single-property agreement.

Who pays my buyer's agent now — me or the seller?

Your fee is set in your agreement with your agent. The seller can still agree to pay some or all of it as part of your offer, and whatever they pay is credited toward your fee. You cover any remaining difference, and you never owe more than the amount you agreed to.

How long am I locked into a buyer agreement?

The term is negotiable. In Washington, if it isn't specified, the NWMLS agreement commonly defaults to about 60 days. You can ask for a shorter term or a single-property agreement if you're not ready to commit to one agent.

Is the buyer agreement the same in Oregon and Washington?

No. Washington uses the NWMLS Buyer Brokerage Services Agreement (Form 41), and Oregon uses the OREF buyer representation agreement (Form 050), which Oregon rule requires to include specific details like the term, your search criteria, and your termination rights. If you're buying on both sides of the river, you'll sign both.

The bottom line

Signing a buyer agreement isn't a trap — it's a negotiable contract that finally puts your agent's job and pay in writing. The two things to get right before you sign are the term (how long, and how exclusive) and the compensation (how much, and who pays it). Nail those down and you're in a strong position from your very first showing.

If you're starting to look in Portland, Vancouver, or anywhere in between and want someone to walk you through exactly what you'd be signing and what it would cost you, I'm happy to go through it line by line. Reach out anytime.

This article is for general information and reflects real estate rules as of August 2026. It isn't legal or tax advice — I'm a licensed broker, not an attorney or CPA. Buyer agreement forms and requirements change, so verify the current version and terms with your agent before you sign.

About Rick Sadle

Rick Sadle is the Principal Broker and CEO of The Sadle Home Selling Team at Keller Williams Realty Professionals, serving the Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington real estate markets. With more than 20 years of real estate experience, over 3,500 homes sold and more than $1 billion in team sales volume, Rick is one of the Portland area's most experienced real estate professionals. He is also a weekly real estate expert on KXL 101 FM, where he discusses the Portland and Vancouver housing markets, mortgage rates, housing trends and the economy. Rick is an Oregon-licensed Principal Broker and Washington-licensed Broker.