Having recently listed an exclusive listing I’ve heard the question about what exactly is an exclusive listing? Its different than an MLS listing but many people do not seem to know the difference. Real Estate Agents often think of it as second nature but you are not in real estate every day.
When someone wants to sell their home its often listed on the MLS. That’s why its called a listing. This means that it gets seen by all the other real estate agents who are a part of the MLS system. Here in the Barrie real estate market that can mean both the Barrie MLS and the Toronto MLS. When its listed on the MLS it means that an a REALTOR you are required to cooperate with other real estate agents on your board. That means allowing them reasonable access to the home as well as offering them commission if they bring an offer and their client buys.
An exclusive listing means that its not being listed on the MLS. Its exclusive to the brokerage that the seller has agreed to deal with. So we are not required to allow other real estate agents access or pay them commission if they bring an offer. However that means the property can’t go on MLS which also means it won’t appear on Realtor.ca.
Sometimes an exclusive listing is signed to negotiate a specific deal between two specific people. As an example; I have buyers who want to buy a townhouse in the south-end of Barrie. I will knock on doors in the south end of Barrie to find someone looking to sell if no home is on the market that they want to buy. If I find a home willing to consider selling I will often say an exclusive listing agreement with them while we negotiate a deal. If no deal is reached we can cancel the agreement, they could choose to switch to an MLS listing, or choose not to sell at all.
Next time you see a sign saying “Exclusive Listing”, now you know you will not see it on Realtor.ca and your agent may not even know about it as it doesn’t get listed anywhere.
