Understanding your contract with a real estate agent

Understanding your contract with a real estate agent

For home sellers in Massachusetts

At Metropolitan Boston Real Estate, we follow all professional standards established by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons and the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS®. These guidelines are designed to protect you and ensure a fair, transparent, and legally sound transaction.

⚠️ Before you sign, we don’t represent you

Until you sign a written listing agreement, we do not represent you and owe you no fiduciary duties. We cannot offer advice, negotiate for you, or protect your interests. Representation begins only when the agreement is in place.

✅ After you sign, we represent you fully

Once under contract, we become your fiduciary agent and are legally bound to act in your best interest. This includes:

• Loyalty – prioritizing your goals
• Confidentiality – safeguarding your private information
• Disclosure – informing you of all relevant facts and offers
• Obedience – executing your lawful instructions
• Reasonable care – applying our knowledge and diligence
• Accounting – ensuring transparency in all transactions and documents

📄 What’s in the listing agreement

The listing agreement defines:

• The asking price and key property details
• The duration of the agreement
• Commission terms and any co-brokerage sharing
• Our responsibilities in marketing and promoting your property
• Your rights to cancel or amend the agreement

🔍 Our duty: deliver a qualified buyer

We are obligated to make our best efforts to bring you a ready, willing, and able buyer — someone who is financially capable and agrees to the terms you outlined in the listing agreement or any terms you later accept in a written offer.

💰 No commission unless the sale closes

You do not owe any commission unless and until your sale successfully closes. All showings, marketing, negotiations, and time invested by our team are included in our service, with no upfront cost unless otherwise agreed.

🖼️ Optional presentation services

The only costs you may incur before closing are for optional services aimed at enhancing your property’s presentation. These may include:

• Professional photography or videography
• Aerial drone footage
• Staging services
• Open house catering or event enhancements

These services are always optional, never imposed, and will only be scheduled with your prior approval and written consent. You remain fully in control of whether or not to invest in these enhancements.

🛑 Dual agency requires your consent

If both the buyer and seller are represented by our brokerage, Massachusetts law requires that you are informed and give written consent before we proceed. You are never required to accept this arrangement.

🏡 You stay in control

You are the decision-maker. We guide, advise, market, and negotiate on your behalf — but you choose the price, review all offers, and make the final call on whether to accept, reject, or counter.