What Is a Self-Represented Party Under TRESA Phase 2?
Under Ontario's Trust in Real Estate Services Act (TRESA), Phase 2 of which came into force on December 1, 2023, every person who interacts with a brokerage is treated as either a “client” of that brokerage or a “self-represented party” (SRP). A client has signed a written representation agreement and is owed full fiduciary duties. A self-represented party has not, and is owed a much narrower set of duties — honesty, fairness, and the brokerage’s legal obligations — but no advice, opinion, or advocacy on the deal.
SRP status is the option that replaced the older “customer service agreement” under the previous Real Estate and Business Brokers Act. It is meant to be unambiguous: either you are a client of the brokerage, with all the protections that entails, or you are on your own and the brokerage is treating you as a counterparty rather than as someone it is working for.
Before you sign anything as an SRP, it is worth printing the one-page summary of your rights either way. Our printable TRESA Phase 2 buyer rights checklist puts the client vs SRP comparison, the RECO Information Guide requirement, the written representation agreement, the designated representation election, and the confidentiality rules on a single page you can take to a showing.
When you are an SRP rather than a client
You are a self-represented party any time you deal with a brokerage on a transaction without signing a written representation agreement with that brokerage. The most common situation is a buyer who calls the listing brokerage directly to view a home and then wants to make an offer through that same brokerage, without engaging their own buyer’s agent. It can also happen on the sell side — for example, when a private seller asks a brokerage to bring a buyer but does not want to sign a listing agreement.
TRESA Phase 2 requires the brokerage to give you a written information guide — the RECO Information Guide — explaining the difference between being a client and being a self-represented party, and to obtain a written SRP acknowledgement from you before providing services to you in that capacity. The acknowledgement is not a sales contract; it is a signed confirmation that you understand the brokerage is not representing you.
What a brokerage can do for an SRP
- Share publicly available information — listing details, neighbourhood data, MLS® history.
- Provide standard form documents (such as a blank Agreement of Purchase and Sale) so you can fill them in yourself.
- Convey your offer or counter-offer to its client (the seller, or the buyer on the other side).
- Explain the brokerage’s own processes, deadlines, and required disclosures so you understand the mechanics of the transaction.
- Treat you honestly and fairly, and comply with all of its statutory obligations under TRESA and RECO rules.
What a brokerage cannot do for an SRP
The line that matters most is between information and advice. A brokerage acting for its client cannot give you, the SRP, services that would amount to representation — because doing so would create a conflict with its actual client.
- No opinion on price. The brokerage cannot tell you what to offer or what the property is really worth.
- No negotiation strategy. The brokerage cannot help you decide which conditions to include, how to structure a counter-offer, or when to walk away.
- No comparative market analysis prepared for you. CMAs are a client service.
- No confidentiality. Anything you tell the brokerage — your top price, your motivation, your deadlines — can and will be passed to its client, because its duty of disclosure runs to the client, not to you.
- No advocacy. The brokerage cannot push for your interests in any disagreement with its client.
The written SRP acknowledgement
Before the brokerage provides any services to you as an SRP, it has to give you the RECO Information Guide and have you sign a written acknowledgement that confirms you have received the guide, that you understand the brokerage is not representing you, and that you understand the limits of what it can do. The acknowledgement names the brokerage, identifies the property or transaction (if known), and is dated.
If a brokerage starts giving you services that look like representation — advising you on price, recommending conditions, holding back information from its own client to favour your position — without first signing you up as a client through a written representation agreement, that is a TRESA compliance issue. The fix is either to formalise your status (sign a representation agreement and become a client) or to step back to true SRP service.
When SRP status makes sense — and when it does not
Going forward as an SRP can make sense if you are an experienced buyer or seller, you are comfortable interpreting the contract yourself or with your lawyer, and you do not need negotiation help. Some investors and seasoned private sellers prefer it because it keeps the lines crisp: the brokerage is on the other side, and you act accordingly.
It usually does not make sense for a first-time buyer, a first-time seller, or anyone in a competing-offer situation. The cost of “saving” representation is paid in advice you didn’t get — on price, on conditions, on whether to sign at all. In a multiple-offer night, an SRP is negotiating against a brokerage whose entire job is to get the best outcome for the other side.
If you are weighing this for a deal where the same brokerage represents both sides, also read our explainer on designated representation under TRESA Phase 2, which covers the alternative where the brokerage assigns a different individual agent to each side instead of treating one side as an SRP.
Questions to ask before you sign the SRP acknowledgement
- Have I received the RECO Information Guide and had time to read it?
- Do I understand that anything I say to this brokerage may be shared with its client on the other side?
- Am I prepared to draft, review, and negotiate the Agreement of Purchase and Sale myself or with my own lawyer?
- Would becoming a client of a different brokerage — one that is not on the other side of this deal — give me better protection than going forward as an SRP?
- Is there a multiple-offer or condition-sensitive situation where I really need an advocate, not just a counterparty?
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is being a self-represented party the same as being unrepresented?
- Yes — SRP is the TRESA Phase 2 term for an unrepresented person dealing with a brokerage. You are not the brokerage's client, and the brokerage is not acting on your behalf.
- Do I save on commission by being an SRP?
- Not directly. Commission terms are set in the listing brokerage's agreement with the seller. Some sellers and listing brokerages will negotiate the cooperating-side commission down when the buyer is self-represented because there is no second brokerage to pay, but this is a deal-by-deal negotiation, not an automatic discount.
- Can I switch from SRP to client during the same transaction?
- Yes, in principle, but the brokerage on the other side of the deal usually cannot become your representative because of the conflict of interest. Switching to client status normally means engaging a different brokerage to represent you before signing or amending the agreement.
- What if no one gave me the RECO Information Guide or asked me to sign an SRP acknowledgement?
- That is a TRESA compliance issue. Ask the brokerage in writing for the guide and the acknowledgement. If the brokerage refuses or has already given you advice that looks like client-level representation without a written representation agreement, you can raise it with the broker of record and, if needed, with RECO.
Related Reading
Primary sources for jurisdictional facts:
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