There are a number of differences when it comes to the listing agent vs the selling agent in real estate.
This blog explains the differences in the listing agent vs the selling agent with regards to what their roles are, how they differ, and why they should not be the same person.
If you’re looking for an agent to help you buy or sell a property, read this blog first for important information on the listing agent vs selling agent in real estate!
Broadly speaking, there are two different types of traditional real estate agents:
- Listing Agents: This is the agent that represents the seller of the property. They help you price, market, and sell your current home.
- Selling / Buyer’s Agents: Help you search for, make offers on, and purchase your new home. This type of agent is commonly referred to as the buyer’s agent.
When you are represented by a realtor and have that realtor working solely for you as your agent, then regardless of whether you are hiring a listing agents or a selling agent, you can expect:
- Loyalty to You
- Duty to Avoid Conflict of Interest
- Requirement to Fully Disclose Information
- Duty to Protect Your Confidentiality
Because representing both a seller and a buyer in a transaction is a clear conflict of interest (the seller wants the highest price, but the buyer wants the lowest price), most real estate transactions involve both a listing agent (rep of the seller) and a seller’s agent (rep of the buyer).
Now, let’s get in to the roles of the listing agent vs selling agent.
What does a listing agent do for a home seller?
There is a lot to do when selling your home, and all of that is managed by the listing agent. From the day you start thinking about selling and want a market evaluation to the day you close and move out of your home, the listing agent will be there for you every step of the way. Here are some of the duties you can expect from a listing agent:
- Offers local housing market expertise & a competitive market evaluation: A listing agent will be one of the firsts contacts when you consider listing your home. They will be able to prepare you with a competitive market analysis to help you estimate market value of your home. A great listing agent will have a strong understanding of the market in your neighbourhood and be able to offer local market expertise for your type of property. This knowledge will serve you further throughout the process, specifically when you receive an offer on your property and need to negotiate the price based on market comparables (aka comps) and stats.
- Recommends a listing price & strategy: Accurately pricing property is perhaps a listing agent’s most important role. After reviewing the competitive market analysis with you and providing you with market comps, the agent should be recommending a listing price based on your real estate goals. They should know whether you can push the envelope based on the supply and demand market trends in your area, or if it’s better to price to sell or at market. Listing strategy and pricing extremely important when it comes to selling quickly while yielding the maximum amount of profit, so it’s important that you work with an experienced agent that is familiar with your type of home and area and can recommend an appropriate listing price.
- Helps you to prepare your home for sale: Listing agents know what sells a house and what turns prospective buyers away. They can suggest quick home repairs that will disproportionately increase market value, or possible renovations that will result in a good ROI for you. They’ll be the ones supporting you with professionals to get the home ready to market, and should be coordinating professional photography, videography and floor planners that give your property a competitive edge on listing sites.
- Lists the property on the MLS & markets online: Your listing agent will be able to advertise your home on the realtor Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which is a comprehensive database of listings for sale by licensed real estate agents in the area. The MLS is run by the local Real Estate Board, and is the site that links to all other listing advertised sites to ensure maximum exposure of your home. Since the majority of all properties are discovered through this catalogue, it’s a great disadvantage for a property to go unlisted.
- Advertises on social media & increasing exposure: A great real estate agent should have a marketing plan to maximize exposure of your home listing. Make sure that the listing agent you choose advertises on social media outlets like Facebook, Instagram, or REW.ca, in addition to the basic MLS listing advertisement. Ask them what other types of marketing they do, like open house mailers or email marketing to their database.
- Handles showings and open houses: The listing agent will be the one that is responsible for organizing showings and open houses, and allowing potential buyer’s and their agents access to viewing your home. A great listing agent should be doing all of their showings and open houses in person (rather than on lockbox), so that the buyer’s know all of the benefits or your property or in case they have any questions about the property. Listing agents can talk up a property, keep it safe, and act as an objective presence to make prospective buyers comfortable (nobody feels comfortable wlaking through a house while an owner is watching them like a hawk, so it’s good to have a 3rd party that the buyer can feel comfortable around). The listing agent also knows what to disclose and what not to disclose, to ensure that there aren’t any issues down the line.
- Screens potential buyers: Because a great real estate listing agent will be there in person to do their showings and open houses, they should be able to screen potential buyers to make sure that you’re able to separate serious buyers from the not-so-ready or not-so-serious to avoid wasted time. Your listing agent is there to confirm that buyers are pre-approved and prevent a collapsed offer at all costs.
- Negotiates offers on behalf of the seller: While most seller’s goal is to obtain the most amount of money out of their sale, negotiations also typically include stipulations about closing dates, subjects, terms, warrants, and deposits. Even once an offer is accepted, the agent is there to represent and negotiate if required during subject removal and assist with legal obligations and financial due diligence until closing. A great listing agent will be a strong negotiator, and put the seller’s best interests first.
- Helps with paperwork and closing: There is A LOT to know when it comes to real estate (believe me, I’ve written over 200 blogs on different topics… there’s a lot to talk about). Do you know the six most common subjects? Do you know what types of warrants to put in to a contract or cross out? How familiar are you with regional rules governing residential property disclosure? Do you know the difference in roles of a notary or a lawyer when it comes to completion? Selling a home is a high-stakes — and regulated — transaction. An experienced agent will help you navigate the sea of legal documents, contracts, and tax procedures to ensure you don’t inadvertently overlook an important detail that could result in an audit or lawsuit after closing.
What does a selling agent do a for a home buyer?
The selling agent, also known as the buyer’s agent, will help the buyer navigate through purchasing a home from start to finish. As a buyer, here’s some of the duties you can expect the selling agent to cover:
- Helps buyers find financing: One of the most important steps to avoid time and gain clarity for a buyer is to get pre-qualified for a mortgage. Selling agents can connect buyers with credible lenders and experienced mortgage brokers to ensure that the buyer has a clear picture of their affordability and what the mortgage payment is going to look like. This financial backing will ensure that when a buyer is ready to make an offer, they can do so quickly and with confidence. A great buyer’s agent will have a team that they can recommend to help the home buyer get a great rate and a mortgage that meets their needs.
- Discovers new properties: Many public sites like REW.ca or Realtor.ca have a lag from when the property is listed and when it actually hits the realtor MLS site. Furthermore, they often restrict the amount of information available (like pet or rental restrictions). Selling agents will have full access to all properties on the MLS (the biggest real estate listing database), as well as a wide network of agents and any private listings available to you. Using this comprehensive catalogue, selling agents are able to pick out the properties most suitable for their clients and expedite their house hunting journey, as well as set you up on auto notifications so that all new properties that match your preferences are emailed to you instantly without need of manually searching!
- Coordinates and guides property showings: This is the most visible role a selling agent plays: walking their clients through the prospective properties they’ve selected for them and organizing a tour with the listing agents. A great selling agent will know the area that you’re looking in and how other homes compare, so that they can provide you with an unbiased and informative opinion on the properties that you’re interested in.
- Offers you a comparative market analysis on properties you’re interested in: Great selling agents have the same in-depth knowledge of the housing market as their listing counterparts (ideally more), and understand whether a property has been fairly priced and how it can be expected to increase or decrease in value over time. They will be able to provide you with an estimate of market value based on the recent comparable sales for properties in the same area, as well as given you an opinion on what offered prices are too high or too low.
- Prepares & negotiates offers on behalf of the buyer: The selling agent acts as an objective legal representative for the buyer, and is responsible for presenting offers and counter-offers to the seller and/or seller’s agent on your behalf. The buyer’s agent writes the initial offer presented to the seller, so they will be able to guide you and recommend appropriate prices, subjects, clauses, terms, and dates to add to the contract of purchase and sale. In addition to a deep understanding of the complicated closing process, selling agents are capable of negotiating neutrally, absent the intense emotions that buyers can feel when bidding on a new home.
- Helps with subject removal and performing due diligence: The subject removal process requires a lot of reviewing, paperwork, correspondence and bookings to ensure that due diligence is done and you know what you’re purchasing. Whether it’s reading through strata documents, setting up a home inspection, calling the city, reviewing the title search and property disclosure, or helping you obtain a quote for home insurance, the selling agent is there to support the buyer during subject removal and make sure you are fully aware of what you are purchasing.
- Helps with paperwork and closing: Buying a home is a complicated process, and the selling agent is there to help with facilitating the accepted offer, subject removal, and closing process in addition to the team of a mortgage broker, inspector, and notary or lawyer. This process involves a huge amount of paperwork, disclosures, and legal documentation. Agents have extensive experience with paperwork, contingencies, and the other legal ins and outs of the home buying process. They’ll help ensure your closing goes smoothly and prevent any surprises down the road.
Listing Agent vs Selling Agent Commission
At the time of listing a home, the seller and their designated real estate agent agree to a gross commission; which in turn will be split between the listing agent and a buyer’s agent.
The seller then pays the buyer’s agent commission, also known as the cooperating brokerage commission, to the buyer’s agent. Offering a full cooperating commission is done to encourage Buyer’s Agents to bring their Buyers to see the property, and the agent whose Buyer actually purchases the property receives their split of the commission upon completion.
Just to reiterate – Buyers do not pay their Buyers Agents!
The Seller pays a commission to the Sellers Agent who then splits that commission with the Buyers Agent when the property sells! We buy houses in Topeka
A typical gross commission (split between the listing & selling agent) in the Lower Mainland is 7% on the 1st $100,000/3% on the balance, in which a typical portion of 3.255% on the 1st $100,000/1.1625% on the balance is typically given to the selling agent (buyer’s agent). The difference between the gross commission and the selling agent commission is what the listing agent receives as a commission.