After January 1, 2026, California combines one statute with three new DRE regulations
Sign the agreement
As soon as practicable, with the buyer's offer as the statutory outside deadline
Before a showing is presumed practicable
The 2026 regulation creates a rebuttable presumption before an in-person or qualifying virtual showing
Use a 90-day cap
For a non-entity buyer, count from the day after the last signature or the agreed delayed effective date
A California buyer's agent performing licensed services for a buyer must enter into a written buyer-broker representation agreement as soon as practicable and no later than the buyer executes an offer. Since January 1, 2026, DRE regulations presume it is practicable to obtain the signed agreement before an in-person or qualifying virtual showing, although that presumption can be rebutted. The agreement must cover compensation, services, when compensation is due, and termination. For an individual buyer, the initial term and any renewal may not exceed 90 calendar days and may not renew automatically.
DRE, 2026 Pertinent Excerpts, Civil Code section 1670.50 · checked 2026-08-27The 2025 statute and 2026 regulations do different work
| Date | Legal change | What it added |
|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2025 | Civil Code section 1670.50 took effect | Written buyer-broker agreement, outside execution deadline, minimum terms, maximum term, renewal limits, unenforceability, and licensing consequence |
| January 1, 2026 | Commissioner's Regulations 2906.1 through 2906.3 took effect | 90-day calculation, renewal mechanics, pre-showing rebuttable presumption, virtual-showing definition, seller-agent distinction, and licensed-service boundary |
| August 27, 2026 | Current review baseline | Both the statute and the 2026 regulations control this guide |
Why the date matters
An article that stops with the 2025 outside deadline misses the 2026 presumption before a showing and the exact 90-day calculation. An article that says California first required agreements in 2026 is also wrong. The statute began in 2025; the clarifying regulations began in 2026.
The mandate follows licensed buyer-side services
Agreement required
Regulation 2906.3 says the agreement is required when a broker performs services for or on behalf of a buyer of real property or an interest in real property for which a license is required under Business and Professions Code section 10131(a).
Seller agent still seller agent
Regulation 2906.2 expressly says a seller's agent acting solely for the seller is not acting as a buyer's agent merely by showing property to potential buyers, at an open house or another showing.
Conduct still matters
A seller's agent does not become a buyer's agent merely by opening the door. If the licensee undertakes buyer-side representation or performs licensed services for the buyer, classify the actual relationship and apply the agreement requirement. Labels cannot override conduct.
As soon as practicable now carries a pre-showing presumption
Regulation 2906.2 creates a rebuttable presumption that it is practicable to obtain the signed agreement before the buyer's agent or an affiliated salesperson or broker associate shows the buyer property in person or virtually. A virtual showing means the licensee, at the buyer's direction, enters the property and provides a live or recorded digital walk-through to the buyer who is not physically present.
Presumption
Before a covered showing is the expected practicable point under the 2026 regulation.
Rebuttable
The rule is not worded as an absolute ban on every showing before signature. Facts can rebut the presumption.
Outside deadline
Civil Code section 1670.50 still says no later than execution of the buyer's offer.
Post 61 owns the showing question in depth, including what the presumption does, what a virtual showing is, and why private association or MLS rules may impose a different operational deadline.
DRE adopted Regulations 2906.1 through 2906.3 · checked 2026-08-27Give the agency relationship disclosure before the representation agreement
Explain the agency relationships
Civil Code section 1670.50(c) requires the buyer's agent to provide the section 2079.14 agency disclosure form before executing the buyer-broker agreement.
Negotiate and sign the representation agreement
Define compensation, services, when compensation is due, and termination, then execute within the current timing rules.
The agreement must address four minimum subjects
| Required subject | What it answers | Review point |
|---|---|---|
| Broker compensation | How the broker will be compensated under the representation | Do not use a supposed standard rate; compensation is negotiated |
| Services to be rendered | What licensed buyer-side work the broker agrees to perform | Match promises to a realistic service scope and the buyer's objectives |
| When compensation is due | The event or conditions that trigger the buyer's payment obligation | A seller contribution is not guaranteed and should not make the buyer's own obligation unclear |
| Contract termination | How and when the representation ends | Read expiration, cancellation, post-termination obligations, and any compensation tail together |
Include does not mean stop at four headings
Civil Code section 1670.50 says the agreement shall include, but is not limited to, these subjects. A usable agreement also needs clear parties, scope, effective and expiration dates, exclusivity if any, modification rules, and transaction-specific terms. Those additions must remain consistent with law and the parties' informed agreement.
The compensation promise belongs to the buyer and broker
Negotiate the obligation
The agreement must state compensation terms and when compensation is due. DRE warns licensees not to represent that there is a standard rate. The buyer should understand the amount or method, trigger, and personal obligation before services proceed.
Separate obligation from payment source
A buyer may pay out of pocket or request a seller concession toward the obligation. The seller may accept or reject that request. Unless the agreement provides an exit or the broker releases the buyer, a rejected concession does not automatically erase the buyer's contractual responsibility.
Post 62 owns negotiability and compensation language. Post 63 owns the seller-payment route. This article keeps only the contract-level rule needed to understand what the agreement must settle.
DRE advisory, buyer representation and compensation · checked 2026-08-27For an individual buyer, three months now means 90 calendar days
| Agreement fact | Day 1 | Maximum | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last party signs April 10 | April 11 | 90 calendar days from April 11 | The first day is the day after the last signature |
| Parties sign on different dates | Day after the later signature | 90 calendar days from that start | The last party's signature controls |
| Agreement states a delayed effective date | Agreed delayed date | 90 calendar days from that date | The written delayed date replaces the ordinary signature-based start |
| Buyer is a corporation, LLC, or partnership | Contract terms control | Statutory 90-day maximum does not apply | This is an exception to the term cap, not an exception to the agreement requirement |
The entity exception is narrow
The 90-day maximum does not apply when the agreement is between the broker and a corporation, limited liability company, or partnership. The exception does not say those entity buyers need no written agreement, no required terms, or no timely execution.
A buyer-broker agreement cannot renew automatically
Before expiration
Execute the renewal before the original agreement expires
In writing
An oral extension does not satisfy the renewal rule
Dated and signed
All parties sign the renewal; its effective date is the last signature date
New 90-day cap
For a non-entity buyer, the renewal itself may not exceed 90 calendar days
A buyer-broker agreement made in violation of the term and renewal subdivision is void and unenforceable. A licensee who violates section 1670.50 is also deemed to have violated the licensing law. Those consequences make date calculation part of compliance, not clerical cleanup.
Eight questions to answer before signing
Parties and broker
Does the agreement identify the buyer and the brokerage that will provide representation?
Service scope
What will the broker search, show, analyze, prepare, communicate, investigate, and coordinate?
Exclusivity and coverage
Does the agreement cover all property, a type, an area, a specific property, or a defined transaction?
Compensation
How is compensation calculated, who remains obligated, and when is it due?
Term
What is the effective date, expiration date, and correct 90-day calculation if the cap applies?
Exit and aftermath
How may either party end the relationship, and do any duties or payment provisions survive termination?
Agency choices
What happens if the buyer approaches a seller directly, changes brokers, remains unrepresented, or considers dual agency?
Changes
Does the agreement require modifications to be written and accepted rather than handled through an informal promise?
The agreement is not a license to rush
DRE advises licensees to explain the practical application of the document and give buyers adequate time to review and understand it. A signed contract should reduce uncertainty about service and payment, not hide it in urgency.
Eight current buyer-agreement mistakes
Saying the agreement requirement first began in 2026 rather than separating the 2025 statute and 2026 regulations
Treating the pre-showing rebuttable presumption as if the statute itself created an exception-free showing ban
Waiting until the offer even though execution was practicable earlier
Signing before giving the required agency relationship disclosure
Omitting services, compensation, the due event, or termination
Calculating 90 days from the first signature instead of the day after the last signature
Using automatic renewal or an unsigned oral extension
Treating the entity term-cap exception as an exception to the entire agreement law
Turn the agreement into a study sequence
Disclosure, timing, terms, term, renewal
Use the Agency Sequencer to connect the agreement to the relationship it creates and the duties that follow.
Review the required pre-agreement disclosureCalifornia license requirement FAQs
Keep going
Connect the buyer agreement to the Agency area
Move from qualification to forms, fingerprints, the examination, and license issuance.
Give the agency disclosure before the agreement
Place the statutory relationship form, acknowledgment, agreement, role disclosure, and confirmation in order.
Understand the representation choices
See what changes if a buyer later considers dual agency or proceeds without representation.
Practice buyer-representation scenarios
Test timing, term, renewal, compensation, disclosure, and agency-role facts.