About this form
Form 6 is the exclusive buyer-side appointment: for the agreed period, the buyer works with one agency to source and acquire residential property. It is the counterpart to Form 2 in the same way Form 5 is to Form 1.
When you need it
- A buyer commits to working with your agency alone for a defined search period.
- You are undertaking substantial off-market sourcing that only makes sense with a secured mandate.
- A buyer wants a single agency accountable for the whole search.
How to complete it
- Record the buyer’s particulars from identification.
- Set the exclusive period with explicit start and end dates.
- Define the search brief carefully. Under an exclusive appointment, a broad brief plus a broad commission trigger can capture a purchase you had no part in.
- State the commission, its basis and its trigger, including the position for a property introduced during the period but completed after it.
- Complete the salesperson’s CEA registration number.
- Explain the effect of exclusivity before signing, and give the buyer a copy.
Common mistakes
- Pairing a very broad search brief with a trigger that captures any acquisition, which is the combination most likely to be disputed.
- Leaving the exclusive period undefined.
- Holding an exclusive buyer mandate while also acting for the seller of a property being considered.
- Assuming exclusivity survives the stated end date.
Legal basis
Prescribed under the Estate Agents (Estate Agency Work) Regulations. CEA publishes the current forms and accompanying guidance. Read the issuer’s guidance.
Questions
- Does an exclusive buyer appointment stop the buyer viewing with other agents?
- It records their agreement to work with one agency for the period. What follows from a breach is a matter of the agreement’s terms, which is why the terms should be explained at signing.
- Can Form 6 be used for commercial property?
- No. The prescribed agreements cover residential property.
- Is a separate agreement needed for each property?
- No — the appointment covers the search brief for the period, not an individual property. That is exactly why the brief needs to be specific.