Do you know who your real estate agent represents?

If you are a seller, you can be certain the agent who listed your house works for you. But if you are a buyer, are you sure the agent who drives you from house to house is on your side?

Unless he or she is what’s known as a buyer broker, “your” agent may actually be working on behalf of the seller, or may not speak for either side in the transaction. And unless he or she practices the art of working only for buyers, never sellers, even a self-identified buyer broker may not be doing you justice.

True buyer brokers maintain that agents cannot work both sides of the fence. They say the practice of representing buyers can’t be turned on and off at will.

But according to a new report from the Consumer Federation of America, an association of nearly 300 nonprofit consumer organizations, many buyers and sellers have no clue who their agents truly work for. And given the amount of money involved in the typical real estate deal, that’s important to know, says CFA’s former executive director, Stephen Brobeck.

Why? Because when you think the agent is working on your behalf, you’re likely to disclose information that would hurt your bargaining position -- say, how much you can afford as a buyer, or your bottom line as a seller -- if the other side knew it. Or the agent might take you only to houses he listed, where he stands to rake in the entire commission rather than sharing it with a buyer’s agent.

This isn’t the first time the CFA has taken on the issue of agency: It issued its first report in the mid-1990s. And with the help of the National Association of Realtors, the principal trade group of agents and brokers, important changes in disclosure laws were put in place.

Back then, subagency was dominant. With this form of representation, an agent works with the buyer, but owes their fiduciary responsibility to the seller. That means they can’t bargain on the buyer’s behalf, point out flaws in the property or even suggest hiring an independent inspector to examine the place.

Subagency is still practiced in some places. In Wisconsin, for example, all agents work for the seller unless a buyer-agency agreement permits them to work for the buyer. But in most places, multiple-role agency has become most prominent.

That takes several forms. One is a designated agent who is recruited by the seller’s agent to work with, and for, the buyer. Another is a dual agent, who supposedly represents the interest of both sides in the same transaction. And a third is a transactional agent, who works with both parties to facilitate the sale, but has no fiduciary responsibility to either side.

Unfortunately, according to the results of a CFA poll of 1,000 people, the majority of consumers (55 percent) don’t understand these terms and their implications.

In most states, agents have a legal and ethical obligation to divulge their relationship to buyers and sellers. But this information is often revealed with little, if any, explanation on a piece of paper the consumer is asked to sign, but rarely reads or questions.

In some places, disclosure is only required orally, not in writing, or not at all until the buyer reaches the closing table. Indeed, a CFA mystery shopper survey found that 75 percent of agents they spoke to made no effort to mention the issues involved with dual agency.

Complicating the problem further is the fact that state real estate commissions have been ineffective in enforcing disclosure laws. “Violations usually only come to light when agent practices are so egregious that they lead to litigation,” the CFA report says.

In a response to my question during a press briefing, Brobeck said that “agency has become very complicated. There’s still a lot of room for improvement. I would call it a mess right now.”

Still, Brobeck believes agency disclosure is “better than it was” in the ‘90s.

The CFA is calling for new reforms, including the prohibition of dual agency, which is already illegal in eight states, and full disclosure of agency at the first substantive contact with the client.

In a survey of 1,000 people who said they would be selling within a year, Clever Real Estate, which connects buyers and sellers with agents, found that nearly 4 out of 5 respondents would consider using a dual agent, or were unsure whether they would or not.

“This arrangement is inherently problematic, in that a dual agent is under no legal obligation to represent the interests of either party as a fiduciary,” said Thomas O’Shaughnessy, an analyst with Clever.

Until these CFA recommendations and other improvements are enacted -- if they ever are -- it’s up to consumers to protect themselves. Here’s how:

At the outset, ask agents to disclose their relationships throughout the entire sales process. If they won’t work solely as your fiduciary, ask them to slice their commission: by 1 percentage point if another agent is involved, the CFA suggests, or 2 points if they’re a dual agent working for both parties.

Also, consider hiring an attorney who will look out for your interests.

And again: Don’t give any information that can be used against you when the time comes for haggling to someone who is not completely on your side.

Just because a house is described as a bargain doesn’t mean it is one. On the contrary: It may be overpriced.

According to Trulia, houses listed as “bargains,” “deals” or some other catchphrase are sometimes listed for more than their estimated value. Researchers at the real estate site combed through listings over the previous year, finding that places in 35 of the top 100 markets nationally were not the great buys they were said to be.

In other words, Trulia reported, “some deals are too good to be true.”

In Cape Coral, Florida, for example, nearly 6 percent of the houses listed for sale over the last 12 months were advertised as bargains, but only a third of those were actually priced below their estimated value.

On the other hand, notoriously pricey San Jose and San Francisco tended to have the most so-called bargain listings that deserved the name. At the same time, though, these two Bay Area markets also had the most houses that sold for more than their asking price.

In such markets, it’s not unusual for houses that start out as good deals to end up costing the eventual winner of the bidding war more than he -- no pun intended -- bargained for.

The takeaway: Do your research. Check out what comparable houses recently sold for, and are currently listed for. Go online to determine an estimated value for the property you are considering, and compare that to the asking price.

A lot of legwork? Yes. But a good real estate agent can help. If you don’t make the effort, you could end up paying more for a “bargain” that wasn’t a bargain at all.

Redfin reports that in January, just 13 percent of its agents worked on behalf of clients in a bidding war over a particular property. That’s way, way down from 53 percent one year ago.

The percentage ticked up a bit in early March, but still, bidding wars are far less common now than at any time between 2001 and late last year.

“Buyers have heard that the market has slowed, so now they’re trying to get all of their ‘wants,’ not just their ‘needs,’” said Kalena Masching, a Redfin agent in Palo Alto, California. “They’re waiting until they find a home that can check more boxes ... In general, they are being more judicious as they think through their purchase.”

One reason for the current lack of bidding wars: The number of houses for sale is increasing, just as the number of potential buyers is subsiding. As of December, the inventory of houses for sale was up 5 percent from a year earlier, but the number of houses sold was down 11 percent.

Perhaps it’s time for sellers to recognize that the market is shifting, and that they need to be a little more reasonable when it comes to an asking price.

Sellers notched some pretty impressive gains last year, according to Attom Data Solutions, a purveyor of realty data. How does $61,000 strike you?

That’s the average gain on sale in 2018, and it’s a 12-year high. In 2017, the typical profit was a “mere” $50,000, and in 2016, it was a “paltry” $39,500.

The 2018 gain represented a 32.6 percent return on investment -- the price the seller paid for the place -- but does not include the cost of any improvements made to the property.

In other words, if a seller paid $15,000 for a new roof during his tenure, or $20,000 for a complete kitchen remodel, his profits weren’t nearly as high. At the same time, if a seller made those improvements, the place likely sold for more than it would have otherwise.

One reason profits are up is that people are staying longer in their homes. According to Lending Tree, folks in America’s 50 largest cities are only moving about once every seven years.

A big factor there is that many seniors are electing to age in place rather than move to smaller places, warmer climates, closer to the kids, assisted living or a combination thereof. Freddie Mac figures that in 2018, 1.6 million houses were kept off the market due to seniors staying put.

For context, 1.6 million is roughly the same number of new single and multi-family housing units built every year. But more importantly, it is more than half the shortfall of 2.5 million units needed annually to meet demand. Indeed, the Urban Institute recently estimated that 3.4 million millennials are missing out on homeownership because of the truncated supply of houses for sale, among other factors.

You’ve asked three highly rated contractors to bid on your planned kitchen remodel. You made sure each quote covers exactly the same items, so you can compare them more easily. But have you made sure everything is included?

Many people don’t, and they end up paying more for their remodeling projects than they thought they would.

It’s not that remodelers are dishonest, although some certainly are. But they often leave out key costs -- sometimes to lowball their estimates so they can win the job, sometimes because they simply forget. Either way, it will end up costing you more.

Permits are one often-omitted cost. Most remodeling projects require building permits -- in Bonita Springs, Florida, you need a permit to change out a garage door, for crying out loud -- but many contractors leave this cost out. Some want their clients to obtain the necessary permits, while others just overlook it.

Either way, if a permit is necessary, don’t try to get by without one. When soliciting bids, make sure you ask that the cost of permits be included, and specify who will “pull” them. Realize, too, that the cost of one or more permits may not be a fixed amount. Depending on where you live, it could be a percentage of the total cost of the renovation.

Another cost sometimes omitted: waste removal and cleanup. If it isn’t included in the contractors’ bids, you’ll have to pay for dumpsters to be delivered, then hauled to the landfill and emptied.

Some of remodeling’s hidden costs have nothing to do with your contractor. For instance, your property taxes are likely to increase. Once a permit is pulled, the local tax assessors will be notified. And sooner or later, they will show up at your front door to have a look at the job and recalculate the value of your property.

In California, according to design-build firm New Avenue, the typical tax increase is 0.5 percent of the amount you spend on your project. So, if your remodeling project runs $300,000 -- things are costly in California -- you could expect an increase of $1,500 or so in your annual property taxes.

If you are renting out the property, you’ll likely recover the extra cost in the form of a higher rent. But if you are an owner-occupant, that jump has to be part of your deliberations in whether to move forward or not.

Your utility bills are likely to go up as well -- certainly during construction, if only because the workers will need heat or air conditioning to be comfortable as they perform their magic. They’ll also be going in and out constantly, which puts even more of a strain on your HVAC system.

Furthermore, you’ll be supplying the electricity needed to run those table saws, nail guns and other power tools, not to mention the water for bathroom breaks and end-of-the-day cleanup. You might even have to pay for port-a-potties if your bathrooms are being demolished, or if they’re off-limits to workers.

Figure on paying a higher homeowner’s insurance premium, too, for your improved property. And don’t forget to tell your insurer about the project ahead of time, so you’ll be covered if an accident injures an uninsured worker while on your property.

If you are yanking out walls, you might run into some unforeseen, yet costly, problems. For example, you could have a termite infestation, or you could find snakes or rodents living behind the drywall. Faulty wiring, old plumbing and hidden asbestos or lead paint will have to be taken care of, as well, and any further work will be delayed until they are.

Finally, consider the disruption that a major remodeling project will be to you and your family. Workers will show up early in the morning, upending your usual routine. If you ask that workers don’t arrive until later -- say, 9 a.m. instead of 7 -- that will only serve to lengthen the project and cause even more turmoil.

If you’re redoing your kitchen, you could be without a stove, oven or even a refrigerator for days, if not weeks. That means you’ll be eating out -- a lot -- or ordering tons of takeout. Depending on the size of your family and their tastes, that could run into the hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars.