Listing Agreement Content Index - Page 1

A listing agreement is a contract between a real estate broker and a seller or sellers of property to give the broker the right to offer the property for sale. The listing agreement may include a time limit, fees and other requirements. Learn more about listing agreements in the articles, columns, videos, radio shows and blog posts.

**Real Estate Buyers as Prospects** How do you know when real estate buyers become prospective buyers for your home? Does something magical occur when a specific real estate buyer knows your home or house is for sale? If you have your home listed for sale, does the listing broker keep count of prospective buyers so that you know who they are?

Get earnest money or down payment back after a short sale falls through. If you have the right to the return of your earnest money or down payment under a contract, the listing broker should have no problem sending your earnest money or down payment back. But you need to make sure you have complied with the terms of your contract to get your earnest money back. It may not be enough to just get the word of the listing broker.

If you put down earnest money or a down payment on a home and you have a seller disclosure issue, you better make sure you have a way to get out of the contract. If the seller disclosure form failed to disclose mold in a home, and you signed a contract to buy the home, you should have the right to also inspect the home to make sure you want to move forward in the deal. If as a buyer, you don't understand issues like contracts, earnest money, seller disclosure and home inspections, you might want to reconsider buying a house or hiring a real estate attorney and a home inspector before signing a contract to buy a home.

Under your buyer broker agreement you may be able to get out of a contract if your buyers agent shows a conflict of interest. A buyer was interested in a house, until she discovered that her real estate agent also owned the property. The buyer felt uncomfortable dealing with the agent and the owner, and wants to get out of the contract. With this conflict of interest, the buyer may be able to get out of the buyer broker agreement or get a different agent from the real estate company.

The homebuying process is full of surprises. Some homebuyers will find out that a home they are looking to buy has title defects, construction defects or, as in the case of this reader, the home to be purchased belongs to a homeowner's association. When a buyer is faced with these surprises, the buyer may see if a cancellation of the contract is possible. In some cases cancelling the contract is specifically permitted under the contract but in other cases the attempt to cancel the contract may lead to litigation.

When you buy a home in "as is" condition, you're buying it the way it stands. But for some home buyers, "as is" condition is a little confusing. They're not sure if it means they can go back and sue the sellers if something is wrong physically with the house, or if the house also comes with the furniture and fixtures the way they saw it when they made their offer. What does buying a home in "as is" condition really mean?

When you're buying a home you decide you want to include certain appliances in your home purchase. To ensure that you get the appliances you want they should be listed in your home buying contract. If the appliances, such as a pellet stove, aren't listed in the contract, the seller may be able to remove them before giving you, the buyer, possession of the home.

As your loved ones get older, discussing estate planning and the “what-if’s” is crucial to putting everything in place. Estate planning involves writing a will, establishing trusts and discussing what would happen if a person is not able to make decisions on his or her own. An estate attorney can guide you through the estate-planning process.

A home seller had her agent sign a listing agreement that stated the listing could be terminated upon the seller’s request. When the seller did cancel the listing, the real estate agent became very angry and yelled at the seller. This agent’s bad behavior could be reported to a local association.

Sandra F. Braunstein, Director, Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, Federal Reserve Mortgage lending reform Before the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, Committee on Financial Services, U.S House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. March 11, 2009

Chairman Gutierrez…