Closing dates can always be negotiated. Why not list in January and let the negotiating chips fall where they may? As a buyer, I wouldn't want an agent to make me decide when I will agree to close before I even see a house. Her suggestion could exclude buyers who are flexible but don't want to commit upfront.

And I should add that if an agent would tell me before seeing the house that I need to agree to close in late June, I would automatically know that I could potentially use this knowledge as a bargaining chip on the price. I don't think it does you any favors.

Does "exclusive listing" also mean that no other realtors can show the house? If so, no way in heck would I agree to that.

I think if I listed in January and had to have it showing ready for 6 months, I may self-destruct!

I see your point on the negotiations, but I also see the other side where someone would think to accept an offer 4-5 months before closing, it would have to be a pretty good offer. And the neighbors sold pretty close to asking (asked $675 and sold for $660)

The OP needs to come back and define "exclusive" listing.

The term "exclusive right to sell" or "exclusive listing" is a term used in many real estate contracts with agents. It does NOT mean only the listing agent can sell it or show it. It does mean that the seller cannot contract with another agent simultaneously to sell it or sell it by owner. It means that only the listing agency can broker the selling of the house.

Jewel - it means she'll put up a sign but not put it on MLS until April. She would then show to mainly her clients. She states she has currently 5 clients looking for houses in our smallish development who may be interested.

Benefit for her - double commissions!
Benefit for us - ?? Supposedly better vetted showings and serious buyers only, and only people who don't mind waiting til June.

Not sounding like a great idea, the more I think about it. I am not sure why she is tying the "exclusive listing" to telling buyers upfront we are leaving in June. I guess we could decide to do a normal listing early, but possibly more work for us.

If you would otherwise not list the house until April and she would put in on MLS in April if it is not already sold, then I don't see that it really hurts you if you are ready to show. You won't have a flurry or flood of activity early on, and it saves you the showings for those who aren't serious buyers.

Where it could have a negative impact is on the dollar amount of offers you receive. First issue is reduced exposure -- your agent has no incentive to bring in lower offers, but you have less exposure to bring in a counter if you are in a popular area. Second is that listings that sell in February through April or May tend to set the pace for homes that sell in May through August or September. If prices are expected to or do rise, you may not see the impact of that increase by being both early and exclusive. If your market is pretty stable, not as big a concern.

There is also a possibility that a buyer might really want your area and/or home and will offer well to get it and to be sure they don't get into the summer frenzy. At the same time, getting and early contract would make your life easier by letting you focus on your move and search for new home without the added stress of if and when the current house sells.

If you try this, be sure to do your own homework and be sure of your listing price and what you are comfortable accepting.

This post was edited by lascatx on Sun, Jan 4, 15 at 18:39

Usually the best time for a seller to sell is when they are emotionally, mentally and physically ready to sell.
IMO, I would not want my agent to be telling buyers what my preferred closing date was nor why. That is a big loss of leverage.

I'd be a bit concerned about a buyer being able to get a mortgage contingency lifted 4 months in advance. Mortgage rate locks are typically only good for 60 days. If your buyer is on the higher end of their mortgage preapproval, and then interest rates rise, they could well end up unable to secure financing. And then your sale falls thru.

If your re agent currently has 5 people interested in your neighborhood, I'm guessing she will have 15 buyers interested in April. List on a Thursday in April, book a romantic b&b for the weekend, let your broker have open houses and showings all weekend, evaluate your offers on Monday. Little stress for you!

"it means she'll put up a sign but not put it on MLS until April. She would then show to mainly her clients. She states she has currently 5 clients"

No, thank you. This arrangement only benefits the realtor, not you. The more competition for your house, the better. If any of her 5 clients wanting your neighborhood come through, that's great, but they're not going to get it without some competition (or threat of competition).

Now that you have shared how this is being defined, I would say "No." I would recommend you list in March though and negotiate a closing in June. If your neighborhood is as popular as the agent is claiming, it will work out for you better with potentially a higher selling price.

One house that sold this way last year does not guarantee anything for you.

This post was edited by rrah on Sun, Jan 4, 15 at 19:58

I only see how this benefits her, not you. If you're ready now, then list it, and negotiate the closing date. If your area is hot enough that you know it will sell quicklly (and look at neighborhood comps, don't just take her word for it), then wait until March and then do a full listing.

Do realize that the fact that she knows you'll be selling soon already allows her to share that with her buyers, and there's always the option, if one of them is willing to wait, to do a one-time-showing agreement before you're officially listed. But then you're not yet locked in to the agent.

Our last house had a 4+ month closing, at the buyer's option, not ours. They wanted to lock it in, but weren't relocating until then. It enabled us to hold out for a higher price because they were requesting the time. You might also have potential buyers who are keeping their eye on the market for a summer move, and would jump to lock something in early but wouldn't need to move yet.

Sounds perfect. Congratulations, and here's to smooth inspections, closing and moving.

Did you get the photos you were hoping to?

Lascatx - I haven't asked yet. I wanted to wait til this looks like it's definitely going through so it didn't look like I was trying to save the photos to use with another agent or something sketchy.

Understandable, but with the interest you had, the agent should feel pretty good about closing a deal for you. Good luck with it all!

Thanks for taking the time to give an update. The outcome also helps those that have the same question in the future. Congratulations on your quick offer!

Did your agent bring the buyer, or another agent?

And if anyone cares; the correct definition of Exclusive Listing vs. Exclusive Right Listing has been represented incorrectly here.

An exclusive right listing means that only the Brokerage that the listing agent works for owns the listing. But other cooperating buyer agents are encouraged to show the home and bring in buyers. The owner of the home can not claim to be a procuring cause of the sale, even if they bring in the buyer by word of mouth or any other means. If they do, the listing agent still gets paid the full commission. This Exclusive Right Listing scenario is probably how 99% of listings in the MLS are set up as.

An Exclusive listing means that the listing brokerage and the owner both are able to market and sell the property. Either party can be the Procuring Cause of the sale. If the owner brings the buyer, the agent is out with no commission at all. First one to bring a buyer wins.

I have done one sale as an Exclusive listing. Neither I nor the owner were successful at selling the property. It has been a rental for 5 years now.

Another agent brought the buyer.

We actually took pixie_lou's suggestion and skipped town for the weekend. It worked out well.

And she is sending me a download link for the photos :-)

The power of the MLS!

Glad to hear it all worked out.