Free Download: Comprehensive Listing Agent Checklist
Real Estate Agents LOVE helping their clients sell their homes.
Why?
Because it is so much easier and therefore more profitable than being a buyer’s agent.
But this also means that competition to be a seller’s agent is much fiercer. Opportunities are often scooped up by only the best, most experienced agents.
So how can you help potential clients choose you over other real estate agents?
By highlighting your foolproof transaction process that’s free from mistakes, delays, and missed deadlines.
To help you do this, we’ve provided a free comprehensive listing agent checklist that you can download and use for every transaction.
This is part of a series of articles. You can also check out our buyer’s template checklist.
Prospective listing
This is where you sell your capabilities and encourage sellers to choose to work with you.
Prepare the listing presentation
A killer listing presentation tells a client why they should choose to list their home with you and not sell it themselves or go to another agent.
Before you begin creating the presentation, you should:
Research your client online: Look at their Facebook page or company website. This will help indicate their home life, financial position, and interests. Understanding the client in this way helps you build a relationship with them.
Know their local market: Perform a comparative market analysis. How much have similar homes sold for in the area? Is the area attractive? Does it have good amenities? What is the crime rate like? Factors like this will help you value their home.
It’s up to you what format you want to use for your listing presentation. However, it should include key information like:
Deliver the listing presentation
A listing presentation is your chance to sell yourself. But avoid making it a one-hour sales pitch. Instead, use it as a chance to show off your expertise by talking your client through the sales process, listening to their problems and questions and providing solutions.
Send a follow-up or thank you email to the seller
The chances are your prospective client is talking to lots of real estate agents. You need to make sure you stand out and that they remember you.
One way to do this is by following up the listing presentation with a friendly, personalized email.
You can speed up this process by:
Clients want to get messages from you—not a generic email from your transaction management tool. So be sure to add personalized elements that show it was meant for them only.
This might include:
- Your step-by-step marketing strategy.
- A map showing properties recently sold in the area (highlight the ones you sold).
- A guide to selling your home.
- Your success statistics, client testimonials, reviews, etc.
- A brochure introducing your team.
Advise the seller on staging (if applicable)
Home staging is both an art and a science. You may wish to partner with or employ a home staging specialist who can manage this for your client.
However, if your client wants to do it themselves, it’s a good idea to provide them with a checklist of tips.
These might include:
Pre-Listing
There’s a ton of admin to perform before you can begin selling someone’s home. The next section of the checklist helps you navigate this.
Send the seller the listing agreement to be signed
A listing agreement is a contract between you and a property owner. It gives you the authority to act on their behalf in selling their home.
There are three main types of listing agreements:
- Exclusive right to sell listing: No real estate professional other than you can sell the property for the duration of the contract.
- Exclusive agency listing: No one other than the seller can sell the property for the duration of the contract.
- Open listing: The seller can work with multiple real estate agents and whoever finds a buyer earns the commission.
Your listing agreement should include:
Add the seller information to Paperless Pipeline
Now that you’ve signed an agreement with the seller, it’s time to set them up on your transaction management system and record their details.
Go into your transaction management platform and create a new transaction. For Paperless Pipeline, you do this by “clicking “➕ Add Transaction” in the upper right corner of any page.
There are a number of different fields to complete. Some of these will be required but others can be left blank until you have the required information.
Here are some that are essential at this stage:
- Under the “Status” drop-down menu select “Active”.
- Add the seller’s name and the lead source (if relevant).
- Click “add seller as contact” and add their details.
Schedule a photographer and videographer
Good-quality photos and videos are crucial for generating interest in a property. You may also want to create 3D tours and aerial drone footage.
Ensure that you have several property photographers available who can make your client’s home look amazing.
Ask your client what dates are not convenient for a photoshoot. This allows your photographers to choose a date that fits their and your client’s schedules.
Notify the sellers of the time and date for the photos
Your sellers will need time to prepare their home for the photographer, so give them plenty of warning that the shoot is happening.
Obtain the MLS data input information
Once you have the photos and videos, it’s time to add your client’s property to your MLS.
Here are some tips for this stage:
Obtain the sellers’ disclosures
The law generally requires sellers to disclose anything that may negatively impact a property’s value to potential buyers.
The rules for this differ from state to state, but a typical list might include:
Send the seller the estimated net and cost expectations
It’s important that your client understands how much of the money their home sells for will go to them and what it will be used for.
As you know your commission structure, fees, and the estimated value of their home, you should be able to give them a fairly accurate projection.
Submit the documents to your brokerage
At this stage, you’ll need to submit all listing documents to your brokerage so they can be approved and stored for auditing purposes.
Send the seller a reminder about the listing going live
Once a property is listed it tends to generate a lot of interest. Potential buyers might walk by and look at it from the outside. It might also appear on social media.
Remind your seller that the property is going live on the MLS. This way they won’t be surprised when they see it online or when people show interest in their home.
Change the status in Paperless Pipeline to Active Listing
It’s critical to move the deal to the “Active Listing” category in your transaction management tool now that the property has been listed.
Do so and ensure that everyone in your real estate business can see the property is being marketed.
This is easy in Paperless Pipeline—open the transaction, scroll down to the drop-down menu labeled “status” and choose “listed”.
Active Listing
Set the listing to Active in your MLS
This ensures agents and prospective buyers can find and view it. It also makes it viewable on any third-party websites that have access to your MLS.
Update the showing instructions
By this point, you should have agreed a marketing plan with the seller that includes how you will stage the property. Add instructions about how to view the property to your listing. It’s usually a good idea to vet any potential viewers to ensure they are serious and can finance the property.
Add the offer instructions
Include clear instructions on how to submit an offer in your listing.
Ask them to include details like:
Upload property disclosures
For complete transparency, add the list of property disclosures to the MLS for all potential buyers to see.
Send the live listing email to the seller
Let your seller know that the listing is live and to expect to receive offers in the coming days and weeks.
Post a JUST LISTED photo to social media
Your MLS relies on buyers actively looking for a property and coming across yours. However, if you post about your new listing on social media, it’s likely to appear in relevant buyers’ feeds.
Here are some tips for writing great just listed posts:
Install a sign and lockbox on the property
Get that “For Sale” sign up, to generate interest from passers-by and help those looking to drive or walk by the property.
Add a lockbox with a key. This means that once you have booked viewings, buyer’s agents can access the property while your client is out to show prospective buyers around.
Submit any additional advertisements
Your brokerage probably advertises properties using a range of different sources. Now’s the time to get them booked. Examples include:
Schedule an open house
Arrange a date for your client’s open house. You should also:
Pending
Once your buyer has received all their offers and negotiations are complete, it’s time to begin the closing process.
Change the status in MLS to Pending
Go into your MLS and change the listing’s status from active to pending. This ensures that no one else will try and view the property or put an offer in.
Change the status in Paperless Pipeline to Pending
Once again go into Paperless Pipeline, open the transaction and scroll down to the drop-down menu labeled “status”. This time choose “pending”.
Retrieve any missing documents or signatures
Make sure all the documentation that you have received so far from the buyer and seller is complete and that there are no missing signatures.
For example, it may be that a couple is selling the property but only one of them has some of the documents.
Complete and send the title order
You or they buyer’s mortgage lender need to instruct a title company to perform a title search. This ensures your buyer has the right to sell the property. The title company often holds the earnest money deposit as well.
Once a title company has been instructed, it will contact the buyer and ask them to pay the deposit into its escrow account.
Confirm earnest money or collect the receipt
Contact the title company and ask if the earnest money has been deposited. If it has, ask for a receipt to send to the buyer and to keep for your records.
Confirm that the appraisal has been ordered by the lender
Your buyer needs to ask their lender to order an appraisal. This is when and inspector visits the property to ensure it is worth what the buyer is paying for it. It does not count as a home inspection.
Verify that all the title work is complete
Check that you have received the title report and that everything is in order. If there are any problems with the title then inform your client as soon as possible.
Your client or the buyer (or both) may have to hire an attorney to sort the issue out. A title issue could even be cause for a buyer to back out of the deal.
Confirm repair negotiations
Once the inspections and title search have been completed, the buyer will study the reports and decide whether the property is still worth their original offer. If they think it isn’t then they will issue a new offer, a list of requested repairs or both.
Your client can either accept or reject the buyer’s requests or issue their own counteroffer. The buyer and seller can continue issuing counteroffers indefinitely until one is accepted or rejected.
Verify that the appraisal has been passed
It’s important to check that the lender is still happy to fund the property before proceeding beyond this point. If it isn’t then your client may have to consider accepting a lower offer on the property.
Confirm the buyer’s lender clear to close
Once the mortgage lender is satisfied that they have everything they need to release the funds, it will issue a “clear to close”. This triggers the final stages of a deal. After this, a loan officer will schedule a time and date for the closing meeting and assemble the final documents.
Some lenders move quite slowly, so it’s a good idea to contact your buyer’s and prompt them to issue a clear to close.
Confirm the closing time with the title company
Make sure your client knows when and where the closing meeting will be taking place. You should also tell them what to expect. Offer to attend the meeting with them for support and to celebrate the big day.
Send a reminder email to the seller (what to bring to closing)
Your seller needs to bring some critical items and documents to the closing table, including:
Purchase a closing gift or thank you card
Congratulations! Another sale is complete. Send your client a card and a present to congratulate them on selling their home and thanking them for choosing you to represent them.
This is usually a good time to ask them for a reference, get a photo with you to post on a social media platform or get them to rate you online.
Send a CDA to the title company or attorney
You’re responsible for paying anyone who worked for your client. This includes any inspectors, attorneys and the title company.
Here’s how to do this using Paperless Pipeline:
- Open the transaction and click “note/email”.
- Enter the email address of the contact you want to pay.
- Fill out the subject and body of the email. For more information on what to include check out our article on how to create a real estate CDA.
- Scroll down to the docs section and select the CDA.
- Click “send email”.
Ensure that no additional amendments are required
Real estate deals can take a long time and many things can change during the process.
This may mean that changes or modifications need to be made to the purchase agreement or contract.
Some examples include:
- An inspection revealed repairs need to be made to the property.
- The appraisal came in lower than expected.
- Delays in financing approval.
- Title issues.
- Personal scheduling conflicts.
Receive or distribute the closing disclosure and settlement statement
These are two documents.
- The settlement statement summarizes the financial details of the transaction, including the names of all parties involved, contingencies, deadlines, etc.
- The closing disclosure provides financial details about your client’s mortgage loan. It covers things like terms, monthly payments, fees, etc.
You should check both documents are accurate and send them to your clients to be signed.
Post-Closing
Change the status in MLS to “Sold”
Open the contract, click the status drop-down menu and choose “sold”.
Remove the sign and lockbox from the property
This is simple enough. Remove the lockbox and give the key to the new owners.
Send the seller a thank you email
You’ve already sent a gift, but it’s also worth sending an email to congratulate and thank your client.
Send the vendors a thank you email
Typically at the end of a real estate deal, it’s a nice gesture for agents to thank all parties involved in the transaction. This could include:
In other words, anyone who helped the process move smoothly.
This will help you foster good relationships—after all, you never know who you might end up working with again!
Add the seller information to your CRM
Just because your client has just bought a home, doesn’t mean the relationship ends there. Adding them to your CRM and staying in touch with them will pay dividends in the long run. According to ATTOM data, the average U.S. homeowner moves house every 5.59 years. It’s important to stay in touch with these existing clients. This way, when they come to sell their home, they’ll think of you.
Submit the final documents to brokerage compliance
It’s critical that all documents required by your broker are:
This step is critical for brokerage compliance. Also, some brokers won’t issue an agent’s CDA if they don’t do this. So it’s also important if you want to get paid!
Post a JUST SOLD photo to social media
This isn’t critical to the closing process, but it is important for your brand-building success. The ideal picture will show the property and the sold sign. It’s also a good idea to highlight if you managed to sell over the asking price or if there were any challenges you needed to overcome for your seller.
Change the status in Paperless Pipeline to “Closed”
That’s it! The final stage is to close off the transaction in Paperless Pipeline. As before, open the contract, click the status drop-down menu and choose “Closed”. Paperless Pipeline will store the transaction details for up to 10 years.
Make Every Deal Run Smoothly with Paperless Pipeline
The listing agent checklist in this article is a good spreadsheet-based system.
But there’s no guarantee your agents will hit deadlines or remember to submit documents because it’s written in a spreadsheet.
Mistakes may still be made, which leads to unhappy clients, an inefficient brokerage, and deals falling through.
The only way to avoid problems like this is to have a system that automates tasks and reminders, so your agents and admins don’t make a single mistake.
That’s where Paperless Pipeline’s transaction management software comes in.
We allow you to create customized and automated checklists that ensure:
Find out for yourself how Paperless Pipeline’s checklists can help you—sign up for a free trial today.