Understanding Your St. Louis Real Estate Listing Status
When selling your St. Louis house, it is important to understand what the current status of your listing is. If your St. Louis listing is “active,” this means your house is currently on the St. Louis market and accepting offers. However, two other St. Louis listing statuses that are not quite as self-explanatory are “expired” and “withdrawn.”
When selling your home, it is important for St. Louis sellers to understand the status of your listing and what it means.
The St. Louis Listing Contract
When St. Louis home sellers begin working with a real estate agent, you will be required to sign a listing contract. This contract outlines the terms of the relationship that you have with the agent. The agent will not list your house on the St. Louis MLS until they have this signed contract from you.
One of the most important things that is included in the contract for the agent is the terms of how long your St. Louis house will be listed with them. Typically, this is a period set for six months or twelve months. What this states is that your St. Louis house will be listed with the agent for that amount of time.
During that time you are unable to go out and sell the house to a buyer that you found on the side. A listing contract is meant to protect the real estate agent’s commission.
St. Louis sellers should be aware that even if you do the work, your agent will still be able to take commission from the transaction until the contract period is complete.
A Withdrawn St. Louis Listing
A listing becomes withdrawn if your St. Louis house is listed with a real estate agent and you decide that you no longer want to sell. As a result, your house will no longer be listed on the St. Louis MLS for buyer agents to see.
Even though the listing is withdrawn, your St. Louis house is still under the contract of the agent. So if you withdraw your St. Louis listing and then decide to sell it to someone else, your agent will still get commission if the time on the original contract has not expired.
St. Louis homeowners can decide to withdraw a listing for many different reasons. Some may decide that they need to stay in their house. Others realize that they are not going to be able to sell the house for the amount they need to in order to sell. Still others take their St. Louis house off the market in order to make upgrades before relisting it on the St. Louis MLS.
An Expired St. Louis Listing
An expired St. Louis listing is simply a listing where the time has run out on the listing contract but the house has not yet sold. If the house is already in escrow, the real estate agent is allowed the time necessary to close the transaction and still receive the commission.
However, if the St. Louis house is not under contract with a buyer, the seller is able to stop working with the real estate agent. At this point, the St. Louis sellers are able to list with another agent or sell the house on their own.
Even though you have the option to find another partner as the St. Louis seller, if you like the agent you are currently working with, you can simply sign an extension to the original contract to continue working together.
Knowing the difference in the listings can help St. Louis sellers understand their rights. If at any point you find that you have questions, be sure to ask. It is imperative for St. Louis home sellers to pay attention to the status to know when you are able to make a change if you desire.