A listing agreement is a contract in which you hire a
real estate firm to find a ready, willing and able buyer for your home
in exchange for a set fee.
Four types of listing agreements:
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With an "exclusive right to sell" agreement, you pay
fee regardless of who produces the buyer. This fee covers many
important services that the sales professional performs above and
beyond finding a qualified buyer. 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 or her job is to market your home to other agents who 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. An exclusive
right to sell is the only type of listing an effective real estate
agent will accept. This is because they have a reasonable expectation
of earning back any money they spend on promoting and marketing your
property.
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In an "exclusive agency" listing, if you find a buyer,
he or she is not obligated to pay the fee. If the sales
professional finds a buyer, then the fee is paid to the real estate
company. An "exclusive agency" listing allows an agent to list
and market your home, guaranteeing them a commission if the house
sells through any real estate agent or company. It also allows sellers
to seek out buyers on their own. This is not a popular type of
listing agreement. The reason is that there is not much incentive for
agents to spend money marketing your home. If you come up with your
own buyer, they have spent money they cannot earn back through the
real estate commission. Plus, it is too easy for a greedy buyer to go
around the agent and negotiate directly with the seller. If you
find an agent willing to accept such a listing, do not expect too much
from them. A good agent would never accept such a listing, and
you probably want a good agent.
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A "one-time show" is similar to an open listing in
many respects, as it is most often used by real estate agents who are
showing a FSBO (for sale by owner) to one of their clients. The home
seller signs the agreement, which identifies the potential buyer and
guarantees the agent a commission should that buyer purchase the home.
This prevents the buyer and seller from negotiating directly later and
trying to avoid paying the agent’s commission. As with an open
listing, agents will not be spending money on marketing your home and
it will not be placed in the Multiple Listing System.
Note: Your home could also be included in a
multiple listing service (MLS) as part of an exclusive right-to-sell
listing. MLS gives your home greater exposure in
the marketplace.
Your Real Estate sales professional can help explain and
navigate the many choices you now face in selling your home. With
suggestions from your sales professional, you can better decide which
type of listing agreement is right for your needs.
Gathering the Facts
Buyers want to know details; having the answers is a powerful sales
tool. Your Real Estate sales professional will use the information
you provide to answer questions, create an advantageous listing and
devise an exciting marketing campaign that attracts the right kind of
buyer for your home.
Help your sales professional by collecting or providing the following
information:
- The legal description of the property
- The number of rooms and their sizes
- A list of things not attached to the house that you're offering
for sale, such as window treatments, carpet, fixtures, swing sets,
etc.
- Past utility bills, property taxes and insurance
- Information about your mortgage, including the type, terms and
assumability
- Financing assistance, potentially through your own lender
- Any liens against the property
- If you live in a condominium or a townhouse, include a copy of
the association's declaration, bylaws, and financial statement,
monthly fee's and special assessments
- Special items or improvements about the house (Point out things
that may not be apparent on a walk-through)
- The positive points about your neighborhood, such as demographic
information and proximity to services, shopping, schools and other
areas
- Any defects that aren't apparent (You should inform your sales
associate about defects so a buyer can be informed)
Find the Right Buyer
When you're selling a home, it's vital to know where the potential
buyers will come from. Statistics show that real estate professionals
are the best single source for bringing buyers to a home. More often
than yard signs, newspaper ads or any other type of advertising effort,
it's real estate professionals who will let buyers know about your home.
The same is true of buyers from out of town. Nationally, more than
one-third of all buyers come from out of town, so it's vitally important
for you to work with a real estate professional who can access all the
out-of-town prospects. At Real Estate, we mobilize the real estate
community to work for you.
In addition to mobilizing the real estate community and creating
maximum exposure for your home, we will also work closely with
prospective buyers. For instance, we know that a qualified buyer is
better able to make an offer, purchase a home and complete the sale.
Consequently, we'll only begin with those prospects that qualify -- the
ones with the motivation, authority and financial resources to buy your
home.
Though each agent has his or her own style, all Real Estate
sales professionals possess one thing in common: extensive resources,
family service expertise and support only Real Estate can bring to
successfully marketing your home.

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All Rights Reserved Gaslight Real Estate
Listing broker does not guarantee the information describing these
properties.
Parties are advised to verify the information through personal inspection.
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