Exclusive Right to Sell Real Estate in St. George Utah

As a St. George real estate agent, I help people buy and sell homes and properties but often times you will see the term “office exclusive” under real estate signs and notifications.  There are a couple of different terms that could be used synonymously even though they are slightly different. The term “Exclusive right to sell” and “Exclusive agency” are slightly different. When you hear the term “exclusively” or “exclusive” you might think that there is one agent that handles the entire transaction but this is not necessarily true. There are two different forms that the listing agent uses that look very similar but the terminology is actually different when it comes to the listing agent and the seller.

“Exclusive Right to Sell”

This means that the seller will pay the broker a certain percentage in cash if, during the term of the agreement, anyone (broker or not) produces a buyer ready, willing and able to buy the property. The seller must pay the listing agent regardless of who brought the Buyer.

“Exclusive Agency” 

This is almost the same thing except the seller will pay the listing broker if any other broker or agent produces a buyer that is ready, willing and able to buy the property. The right to sell means that anyone including Joe Blow down the street could come in and buy the property whereas the exclusive agency means that another broker or buyers agent would bring the buyer.

The situations where the “right to sell” could be challenged is if the seller sold a property to a relative that knew about it from a previous conversation. The real estate agent really had nothing to do with this conversation so the seller would probably argue that they don’t have to pay the broker. However, under the exclusive right to sell, the listing firm could claim entitlement to some compensation even if that relative learned of the properties availability without the use of a real estate agent or firm.

Yes, it can get very confusing and then there is the terminology “exclusive listing”. This is where the seller only allows the listing agent to sell the home. The seller agrees to “dual agency” with the listing agent represents both the buyer and the seller. This is very uncommon but sellers may choose this type of listing because they believe it will cause a listing agent to be more effective in selling their home since they received both sides of the commission. Most of the time these listings do not show up in the multiple listing service for your area. This can be quite challenging for a listing agent to get the property sold so most often you will find an exclusive agency or exclusive right to sell in the majority of property listings.

If you have more questions or still are on the fence about how to list your St. George area home or property feel free to give me a call at any time. I would be happy to answer questions and hopefully clear up any confusion on agency listings.