The Listing Contract

One of my jobs a  Northwood Realty Services Real Estate Sales Executive is to sell your Home. To perform this service in Washington County Pennsylvania, as anywhere else in the United States, you must enter into a agreement with the customer who wishes to sell their home. Also referred to as a listing agreement, the listing contract gives a licensed real estate professional such as me Joe Rasel of Northwood Realty Services, authorization to act on your behalf in the sale of your home. Listing contracts come in all shapes and sizes, but there are characteristics which are common to all.  Among the elements of any valid listing contract are:

Writing

All real estate contracts must be in writing. Usually I get a call from Washington County Pennsylvania area customers interested in selling their home, apartment building, Commercial property, farm or investment Real Estate, We then set a time where we can tour the property, record all the pertinent information, sit down and view marketing material and then together, review the contract. In  Pennsylvania, there are forms (PAR Forms)that have been drafted by attorneys which have been designed to protect the consumer. We will sit down together, review the PAR forms and fill in the appropriate blanks according to the terms we negotiate.

Employment 

The listing contract is a personal services contract between the customer and the broker of record for a Real Estate Company(Northwood Realty Services). As a Real Estate Sales Executive with Northwood Realty Services in the Washington County Pennsylvania area, the broker of record assigns me as a designated agent (Designated Agency) to represent the customers I develop and which contact me. The listing contract contains all of the terms and conditions of employing the broker and authorizing the broker to represent you in marketing and selling your home. Also, since Northwood Realty Services practices Designated Agency, sales Associates such as myself, Joe Rasel, represent the customers needs in luie of the actual broker representing each and every consumer personally.

Compensation 

For any contract to be valid, there has to be compensation.  The listing contract will specify the amount and timing of payment to your broker.  Typically, payment is an agreed upon percentage of the sales price, payable at closing.  It is important to note that your obligation to pay your broker may not absolutely depend on a finalized sales transaction.  For example, if the broker finds a bona-fide buyer who is willing to pay your asking price and agree to the terms you have offered, but you get cold feet at the last moment and decide not to sell, the broker has done his job and is entitled to be paid under the terms of the listing contract.

Title

All listing contracts will ask who has title to the property.  Property can not be sold unless everyone with a title interest in the property,  are part of the sale.

Termination date

You shouldn't sign any listing contract without a specific termination date.  The most common duration is 360 days.  In the State of Pennsylvania it is unlawful for a Broker to enter into a listing agreement for a duration in excess of 365 days, in addition, it is also unlawful that at the expiration date of an listing agreement that there is any type of specific clause for the automatic renewal of a listing period. The listing contract is a legally binding document and you don't want to get locked into one with no clearly defined termination date.  If the contract expires before your home sells and you still want to keep using the same broker, you can simply sign a new contract.

There can be and often are other elements to a listing contract.  As with any legal document, you should read the listing contract very carefully and be sure you understand exactly what you are agreeing to before signing.  If you have any questions about your listing contract it would be wise to consult a lawyer for clarification.

Listing The Home

When the consumer makes their choice as to the Real Estate Brokerage and individual Real Estate Sales Associate they would like to enter into an agreement with, there are several Forms associated with the listing agreement as a total Listing Contract. In the State of Pennsylvania, most of the forms are for the purpose of informing the consumer of their rights, in addition to the disclosure issues involving such things as the property condition and the costs involved with the selling of the property. Below are links to PDF files of the actual forms used by Northwood Realty Services in Washington County Pennsylvania.

Consumer_Notice_Form.pdf

Seller_Estimated_Closing.pdf

Listing_Agreement_Form.pdf

Res_Input_Form.pdf

Seller_Disclosure.pdf

Potential_Duel_Agency.pdf