Idaho (ID) · Open house rules

Open house rules for Idaho agents

What Idaho asks of an agent at the door: handing over the Agency Disclosure Brochure at first substantial business contact, checking a number against the do not call list before you dial, the point where a buyer agreement starts to matter, and the three year clock on visitor records.

Last reviewed August 31, 2026Every claim links to a primary source

This is not legal advice

We are software people, not lawyers. This page is a plain reading of public Idaho sources, gathered so you can go read them yourself. Rules change, and how any rule applies to your situation is a question for your broker, your association, or an attorney licensed in Idaho.

When do you hand a visitor the agency disclosure brochure?

Idaho's required disclosure is the Agency Disclosure Brochure adopted or approved by the Idaho Real Estate Commission, and section 54-2085 fixes the timing as the first substantial business contact with a prospective buyer or seller. At an open house that moment can arrive at the door, well before anyone writes an offer, so keep copies where you greet people rather than reaching for one later. The brochure itself has to carry a conspicuous notice that no representation will exist absent a written agreement between the buyer or seller and the brokerage, so handing it over is also how a visitor learns that talking with you has not made you their agent. Capture a receipt when you hand it over, because the brokerage is required to keep a signed and dated record that the person received the brochure.

A licensee shall give to a prospective buyer or seller at the first substantial business contact the agency disclosure brochure adopted or approved by the Idaho real estate commission. The commission by motion shall establish the form and contents of the brochure in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Each brokerage shall keep a signed and dated record of a buyer or seller's receipt of the agency disclosure brochure.
Idaho Code 54-2085 (opens the source in a new tab)

Checked at the source on August 31, 2026

Can you call an open house visitor afterwards?

Check the number against the do-not-call registry before you cold call someone who signed in. Idaho runs a no telephone solicitation contact list under section 48-1003A, the federal do-not-call registry may serve as that list, and calling a listed Idaho number is a violation once that number has been on the list for at least three months. The civil penalties are imposed by the district court and rise with repetition: up to $500 for a first violation, up to $2,500 for a second, and up to $5,000 per violation for the third and any after that. The exemption for an established business relationship is defined in section 48-1002 and turns on an application, purchase, ongoing contractual agreement or commercial transaction, so a name on your sign-in sheet is not automatically it. The clean answer at the door is a recorded yes: ask on the sign-in form for permission to call, and keep the timestamp with the lead.

It is a violation of the provisions of this chapter for a telephone solicitor to make or cause to be made any telephone solicitation, as defined by section 48-1002(11)(a), Idaho Code, to any telephone number which is assigned by a telephone company to an Idaho resident listed on the Idaho "no telephone solicitation contact" list when that telephone number has been on such list for at least three (3) months prior to the date the telephone solicitation is made.
Idaho Code 48-1003A (opens the source in a new tab)

Checked at the source on August 31, 2026

Does an open house visitor have to sign a buyer agreement?

Not to walk through the house you are holding open for your seller. Idaho REALTORS answers this one directly: hosting as the listing agent, or on the listing agent's behalf, you are working for the seller, so you do not need a written agreement with every potential buyer at the open house. It changes the moment a visitor asks you to show them a different house, or asks you to represent them in buying this one. At that point a signed RE-5 or RE-14 is required before you show them any property. The test is whether you are working with the buyer, and simply talking with someone at an open house is not.

No. In this case, since the REALTOR® is only working for the seller, and not the buyer, the REALTOR® does not need to enter into a written agreement with every potential buyer at the open house.
Idaho REALTORS, NAR Settlement and IR Forms FAQ (opens the source in a new tab)

Checked at the source on August 31, 2026

What happens to the visitor list you collect?

Treat your sign-in list as a brokerage record, not a personal contact list. Section 54-2049 says every record the license law requires a broker to keep, transaction files and other records included, belongs in the broker's files, and it puts a three calendar year clock on the records it lists, counted from the year the event occurred or the transaction closed. So once your sign-in doubles as the signed and dated receipt for the Agency Disclosure Brochure, or a visitor turns into a transaction, that record needs to sit where your designated broker can produce it rather than only on your own laptop.

All records required in this chapter to be kept and maintained by a real estate broker, including trust account and financial records, transaction files and other records are to be kept in the broker's files according to this section. The following records must be kept by a broker for three (3) calendar years after the year in which the event occurred, the transaction closed, all funds were disbursed, or the agreement and any written extension expired:
Idaho Code 54-2049 (opens the source in a new tab)

Checked at the source on August 31, 2026

How this page is put together

  • Every claim above carries a link to a primary source, plus the exact words from that source that support it. If a claim cannot be quoted, it is not on this page.
  • Each claim shows the date a human last opened that link and confirmed the quote still says what it says.
  • We only cover what we could source. A topic you were hoping to find may be one we have not confirmed yet, so treat this as a starting point rather than a complete list of everything Idaho expects of you.

Found something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we will fix it or take it down. support@openhouseconsole.com

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