Zillow's May 2026 analysis of more than 15 million home transactions found that sellers in dual agency deals lost a national median of $2,165 per home, and a combined $1.49 billion over three years. California sellers absorbed the largest aggregate loss at $533 million. For a typical Ramona home around $750,000, a proportional penalty would be roughly $3,600 to $3,750.
The directional finding is clear. When one agent represents both sides of a transaction, sellers tend to leave money on the table. Ramona sellers should know how their listing agent handles dual agency before signing a listing agreement, not after.
What Zillow found
On May 14, 2026, Zillow released analysis of more than 15 million home transactions from 2023 through 2025. Roughly 6.8 million met their inclusion criteria for studying dual agency, defined as transactions where the same individual agent represented both the buyer and the seller.
The headline findings:
| Finding | Value |
|---|---|
| Combined seller losses from dual agency, 2023 to 2025 | $1.49 billion |
| Median per home loss | $2,165 |
| California aggregate seller losses | $533 million |
| Florida aggregate seller losses | $217 million |
| New York aggregate seller losses | $146 million |
| Dual agency share of total sales | 4.7% |
A separate finding in the same study: sellers who listed off the MLS, privately, never publicly exposed, typically sold for 1.3 percent less than comparable MLS-listed homes. That worked out to about $4,230 per home.
What it means for a Ramona sale
Zillow published a national median dollar loss but did not publish a clean California-specific per home figure. Working from the national figures, the dual agency penalty appears to run roughly 0.4 to 0.5 percent of sale price. Applied to a Ramona home in the $750,000 range, that math points to a penalty of approximately $3,600 to $3,750.
That is not a precise forecast for any individual home. It is an estimate based on extrapolating from a national median. The actual penalty in any given transaction could be higher, lower, or zero depending on circumstances. But it is the right order of magnitude for thinking about whether dual agency is worth the risk in your specific situation.
Why dual agency tends to cost sellers
The mechanism is straightforward. When one agent represents both sides of a transaction, the agent's loyalty is mathematically split. If the agent pushes hard to get the seller a higher price, the agent's commission increases modestly. If the agent successfully represents both sides on the same deal, the agent's commission doubles.
That is not a hypothetical conflict of interest. It is a real one, baked into how commissions work. The agent does not have to be malicious to be tempted. The incentive structure does the work on its own.
In practice, dual agency typically plays out in one of three ways:
The agent encourages an aggressive list price, then steers the seller down. The seller is told their home will fetch a premium, signs a listing agreement at a high price, and is later coached to accept a lower in-house offer because the market has "shifted." The agent collects two commissions either way.
The agent quietly discourages waiting for competing offers. A motivated in-house buyer is framed as the safe choice. Patience is framed as risk. The seller never sees what other offers might have looked like.
The agent shares seller information that helps the buyer negotiate down. Sometimes this is intentional. Often it is not. Either way, when one person is the conduit for both sides of the negotiation, information that should stay private rarely does.
None of these scenarios require dishonesty. They require ordinary human responsiveness to financial incentives. That is why states have been increasingly restrictive about dual agency over the past decade, and why eight states have made it illegal entirely.
How to protect yourself
If you are listing your home in Ramona, here is the conversation to have with any listing agent before you sign anything.
Ask their dual agency policy in writing
Not "do you do dual agency" because most agents do when it is lucrative. Ask "what is your standard practice when one of your buyers is interested in my listing?" The answer should be specific, not vague. If the answer is "we handle that case by case" or "we always disclose," push for more detail. Vague answers tend to mean the answer is yes when the money is right.
Get disclosure at the listing stage, not the offer stage
California requires disclosure of dual agency. But the timing matters. Disclosure during a hot offer creates pressure to accept the arrangement quickly so the deal does not fall apart. Disclosure at the listing agreement stage creates space to think and to decide on terms when nothing is at stake.
Understand the commission structure
If an agent's commission doubles in a dual agency scenario, that should be disclosed in writing before the situation arises. If you want to read more about how my fee structure is built differently, see my 1% listing commission page.
Ask about MLS exposure
Will your listing be on the full MLS, or in any private listing network? If your agent mentions an "exclusive" or "private network" or "coming soon" listing first, ask why. Most of the time, broader exposure produces better outcomes, and the Zillow data supports that. Limited exposure benefits the agent who controls access to your listing more than it benefits you.
My own practice
I am a broker. I could financially benefit from dual agency. The temptation is real, and pretending it is not would be dishonest. Here is how I handle it.
I never do dual agency. Period.
When a buyer who is not already working with another agent contacts me about one of my listings, I refer them to another agent at a different brokerage. They get independent representation. I represent only the seller. My commission stays at the listing side, where it was negotiated upfront.
Making twice the money on a single transaction sounds great in theory. But putting my clients first and building relationships that last is far more important to the future of my business than an extra dollar today. A seller I represent honestly today refers me to three more sellers next year. A seller I quietly shortchange on a dual agency deal tells everyone they know, eventually.
That is not virtue signaling. It is a long-term business decision that happens to also be the right thing to do. Both can be true at the same time.
Frequently asked questions
What is dual agency in a real estate transaction?
Dual agency is when the same real estate agent represents both the buyer and the seller in the same transaction. The agent's commission typically doubles in that scenario, which creates a conflict of interest because the agent benefits financially from closing the deal rather than from advocating fully for either party.
What did the Zillow study find about dual agency losses?
Zillow analyzed more than 15 million home transactions from 2023 to 2025 and found that sellers in dual agency transactions lost a combined $1.49 billion over three years. The median per home loss was about $2,165. California sellers absorbed the largest aggregate loss at $533 million.
How much could dual agency cost the seller of a $750,000 Ramona home?
Based on extrapolating from the national median, the dual agency penalty appears to run roughly 0.4 to 0.5 percent of sale price. Applied to a $750,000 Ramona home, that points to a penalty of approximately $3,600 to $3,750. This is an estimate from a national median, not a precise forecast for any individual transaction.
Is dual agency legal in California?
Yes. California permits dual agency provided both parties consent in writing. State law requires disclosure of the dual agency relationship, but disclosure alone does not eliminate the conflict of interest baked into the arrangement. Eight other states have made dual agency illegal entirely: Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Oklahoma, Texas, and Vermont.
How can a seller protect themselves from dual agency conflicts?
Ask your listing agent their dual agency policy in writing before signing a listing agreement. Get the dual agency disclosure at the listing stage rather than at the offer stage so you have time to consider it. Confirm your listing will be on the full MLS rather than a private listing network. And ask specifically what the agent's standard practice is when one of their buyers becomes interested in your listing.
What is the difference between dual agency and designated agency?
Dual agency is when one individual agent represents both buyer and seller. Designated agency, sometimes called intra-company dual agency, is when two different agents from the same brokerage represent the two sides. The Zillow study focused specifically on the individual agent version. Some research suggests designated agency carries similar risks because the brokerage still benefits when both sides close in-house, but the dynamics are not identical.
Does Scott represent both buyers and sellers in Ramona?
Yes, but never in the same transaction. I represent sellers listing their Ramona homes, and I separately represent buyers searching for Ramona homes. What I do not do is represent both parties in the same deal. If one of my buyers becomes interested in one of my listings, I refer them to another agent for independent representation.
Thinking about selling your home in Ramona?
I will give you a straight read on how representation should work in your specific situation, including telling you if I am not the right fit. No pressure, no script.