What is transaction brokerage in South Carolina?

Transaction brokerage is a legal way for a South Carolina real-estate brokerage to provide customer services and facilitate a transaction without representing that customer as an agent.

The simplest way to understand it is this:

• A client has a written agency agreement with a brokerage.
• A customer uses brokerage services without creating that agency relationship.
• A transaction broker can help a customer complete the transaction but is not the customer's advocate in the way a buyer's agent would be.

South Carolina law says an agency relationship cannot be assumed or created orally or by implication. It must be agreed to in writing.

Written by Nora deLyra, founder of Nestor and a licensed South Carolina real-estate professional with NovaCasa Realty LLC. · Updated September 20, 2026

What duties does a transaction broker have?

South Carolina's real-estate licensing law describes duties that include:

• Honesty and fair dealing.
• Accounting for funds.
• Skill, care, and diligence in the transaction.
• Disclosure of material adverse facts affecting the transaction or the property's value or condition when those facts are not readily ascertainable.
• Prompt presentation of written offers and counteroffers.
• Limited confidentiality, subject to legal disclosure requirements.

The law also permits customer services such as identifying and showing properties, providing property information and real-estate statistics, providing preprinted forms, acting as a scribe in preparing forms, and providing lists of outside professionals.

What does limited confidentiality mean?

Unless waived in writing, a transaction broker generally may not reveal certain confidential negotiating information, such as a buyer's willingness to pay more than the written offer, a seller's willingness to accept less than the list price, motivations for buying or selling, alternative financing terms a party might accept, or other information a party asks to keep confidential when the law does not require disclosure.

Limited confidentiality does not make the transaction broker the buyer's agent. It is one of the customer-service duties within transaction brokerage.

What a transaction broker does not do

A transaction broker does not automatically:

• Represent your interests above the interests of other parties.
• Choose your price or negotiating strategy for you.
• Guarantee a property's condition, value, insurability, or future appreciation.
• Replace an attorney, lender, home inspector, surveyor, engineer, insurance agent, accountant, or tax adviser.
• Remove your responsibility to understand and approve the documents you sign.

Why would a buyer choose transaction brokerage?

Some buyers want professional structure and licensed brokerage involvement without hiring a traditional buyer's agent. They may already understand their desired market, prefer to select their own offer terms, and want a technology-guided process with a defined fee rather than a conventional representation model.

Other buyers want individualized advice, strong advocacy, and a professional to recommend strategy throughout the deal. For those buyers, a written buyer-agency relationship may be the better fit.

Neither model is automatically best for everyone. The useful question is: what services, advice, and responsibility do you want?

When should the relationship be explained?

South Carolina law requires a meaningful explanation of brokerage relationships and the state's prescribed disclosure at the first practical opportunity after substantive contact. When substantive contact happens online or electronically, acknowledgment can be handled electronically.

Read the disclosure. It is not merely a website checkbox; it explains whether you are receiving customer or client services. Ask questions if the relationship is unclear.

How Nestor uses transaction brokerage

Nestor is a buyer-directed platform operated through NovaCasa Realty LLC. It is designed to let customers search, request showings, organize homes, ask process questions, and prepare proposed offer terms within a structured transaction-brokerage workflow.

You control the purchase decisions. NovaCasa provides the agreed transaction-brokerage services, required disclosures, licensed review, and transaction structure described in its written agreements.

A practical example

Suppose you find a Mount Pleasant home listed at $650,000. You decide the price you want to offer, the amount of earnest money, the closing date, financing terms, inspection provisions, and whether to request seller-paid closing costs. A transaction broker can provide forms, act as a scribe, help ensure the terms you select are captured, and present the written offer. The transaction broker does not become your advocate simply by helping prepare and transmit the offer.

Frequently asked questions

Is a transaction broker the same as a dual agent?

No. Dual agency is a different relationship involving written informed consent when the brokerage represents both sides as clients. Transaction brokerage provides customer service without establishing that agency representation.

Can a transaction broker show homes?

Yes. South Carolina law includes identifying and showing property among the services that may be offered to a customer.

Can a transaction broker help with an offer?

Yes, within the permitted relationship. Customer services may include providing forms and acting as a scribe. The buyer chooses the substantive terms; the written offer is reviewed and handled through the brokerage process.

Can I change to buyer agency later?

A different relationship requires a written agreement and the brokerage's consent. Review any existing transaction-broker agreement, fees, termination terms, and property-specific obligations before changing course.

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