Real Estate Listing Agreements

A Listing Agreement according to Real Estate Wiki (http://www.realestatewiki.com/) is a written employment agreement between a property owner and a real estate broker. 

The Listing Agreement authorizes the RE broker to find a buyer or a tenant for a certain property.  The most common Listing Agreement is the Exclusive-Right-to-Sell agreement.  Listing Agreements are considered to be personal service contracts and, therefore, cannot be assigned to another broker but may be delegated by the broker to his/her sales office to find a buyer for the property.  The agreement usually states the asking price for the property, amount or percentage of commission the Seller agrees to pay the broker once the property is sold, the way the total agreed-to commission will be shared with a selling broker, as well as the responsibilities of Seller and broker.

The different types of Listing Agreements are:

Exclusive Agency Listing:  An “exclusive agency” listing allows an agent to list and market a home, with a guaranteed commission if the house sells through any real estate agent or company. It also allows sellers to seek out buyers on their own.

Exclusive Right to Sell: Giving a real estate agent the “exclusive right to sell” your property does not mean that there will not be other agents involved. Your agent is the listing agent and part of his/her job is to market your home to other agents that work with buyers. Those agents will show your home to their clients. Regardless of who sells the home, even if you sell it yourself to a friend at work, your listing agent will earn a commission.

Open Listing:  An open listing lets an owner sell the home independently. It is a non-exclusive agreement, meaning the owner may execute open listings with more than one real estate broker and pay only the broker who brings a buyer whose offer the owner accepts.

Exclusive Right-to-Sell Listing: An exclusive right-to-sell listing is the most commonly utilized instrument. It gives the broker the exclusive right to earn a commission by representing the owner and bringing a buyer, either through another brokerage or directly. The owner pays both the listing and selling broker fees. The owner cannot sell the property without paying a commission, unless an exception is noted in the contract.

Permission to Show Unlisted Property or One Time Showing:  When an agent shows a property, which is for sale by the owner and is not listed through a broker but is a home that would meet a client’s needs, the agent may sign a one time showing agreement with the seller whereby the seller agrees to pay a commission; should that particular buyer place a contract on the home.

For more information about the home buying and home selling process visit Real Estate Wiki.