Definition of "Dual listing"

Danny  Skelly  real estate agent

Written by

Danny Skelly elite badge icon

Orson Hill Realty

When you sign a Listing Agreement with a real estate broker or agent, he or she has a fiduciary responsibility to represent your interests exclusively. However, should another client of the real estate broker or agent want to make an offer on your house, the agent/broker would then find himself in a Dual Listing.

But how can he do his/her job of representing my interests exclusively if the home buyer is also his/her client? you ask.

Well, he can’t. Only if you (and the home buyer) agree so. A dual listing occurring without the knowledge of both the home seller and the home buyer violates the principal fiduciary relationship and therefore is illegal. So, whenever an agent/broker notices this conflict of interests happening, the first thing he/she needs to do is warn both clients. If both of them aren’t bothered by that… then game on!

Real Estate Secrets:

Dual Listing is yet another Listing Agreement ramification. Check out others like Net Listings, Open Listings, Option Listing and much more in our Glossary terms.

If that feels too advanced for you, go back to basics and try our Listings 101: What you need to know when you hire a Real Estate Agent or a Broker blog post.

Want no such thing? We’ll give you the TL;DR version: find a real estate agent and let him/her do all the heavy lifting.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

Right of an individual to be offered something before it is offered to others. For example, a tenant whose apartment is going to be converted to a cooperative has the first right of ...

The fire insurance term is a policy used in property insurance that ensures any damage or loss that was a result of a fire. Most affordable home insurances cover fire insurance but other ...

Mortgage for an extended time period (e.g., 25 years) Type of real estate investment trust (REIT) that gives long-term mortgages to real estate developers and contractors on new or ...

Early American frontier-style house constructed of logs. Since finished lumber was not readily available during the early frontier period of American history, homes were often fashioned out ...

Contract to act on the behalf of a principal in selling real estate. The principal agrees to pay a commission to the broker when a buyer is produced who is ready, willing, and able to meet ...

The meaning of commercial acre in the United States defines the remaining part of an acre of a newly divided land once curbs, streets, and boardwalks have been separated from the original ...

Created by law usually for the right to travel to landlocked parcel of land ...

Siding made out of aluminum, plastic derivates, or cement asbestos having ridges and valleys which is attached to the sides of buildings. ...

(1) Paved roadway constructed above lowlands such as a swamp. (2) Roadway in ancient Egypt connecting the valley temple with a pyramid. ...

Popular Real Estate Questions