Thread: when can i change realtor?

The listing contract that you signed should have all the answers to your questions, such as when it expires and what happens if you want to list with another agent.

The 90 days your wife might be referring to is probably the protection period for your agent. This protection period only applies if you sell the property yourself to someone who looked at the house while this agent had it for sale.

The protection period does not apply if you re list with another agent. So, when the listing expires it is ok to go ahead and list with anybody you want and the protection period gets nullified even if a buyer comes back who looked at it the first time. This time try to find someone who won't try talking you into such a bad deal.

In NY I think the listing contract is usually 90 days; but you'll need to check the agreement you signed - you still have a copy, right?
As far as letting someone move into your house with the 'promise' of eventually getting a mortgage, what is your lawyer suggesting? My opinion would be to not do that.. what happens if they don't get a mortgage? Then you'll need to evict them.

Hi Thanks for your prompt replies!!, The lawyer was not suggesting this deal, in fact it was him who put us off it, it was the realtor who was trying to railroad us into it, this is why I want to change ASAP its just were clinging to the hope that these people may be able to come up with the money at the end of october, We are in a northern part of canada and the market is pretty slow, especially with winter just around the corner!,
Is it difficult to sell your own house? (thus save realtor fees and reduce price) Will i have problems with current realtor? Has anyone used Property guys.com or Comfree.com?
Again Thanks Grumpy!,

You would need to check the contract you signed. That would spell out the obligations of all parties.

I agree with everyone else. Review your listing agreement. It should have a start date, end date and protection time frame for any buyers the listing agent has brought in.

Everyone seems to agree that you need to check your contract however, I would suggest that regardless of what the contract says, try talking to your agent. Most real estate agents don't want to work with a client that doesn't want to work with them. Most real estate agents that I've worked with will cancel a listing agreement if requested by the client regardless of the contract duration. Some agents marketing high value homes won't cancel outside of the contract terms however, if it's a mid priced home they probably will.

As an agent, I definitely would not want to hang on to an unhappy client. I will turn down listings if the seller has unrealistic expectations to avoid this scenario in the first place. However, should a client become unhappy with me, I'd gladly go to my broker and get the listing cancelled. BTW even though you are dealing with a particular agent, I'm pretty sure the listing belongs to the brokerage, and it might be up to the broker of record to cancel it.

Would agree with Malcolm, I wouldn't want to hang onto an unhappy client either. But like the others stated, review the contract and make sure what you do is within legal limits and that the realtor does not have anything they can come back at you with in the case that they want to fight for charges or anything of the like.

In regards to your question of selling yourself, it is definitely done everyday but it is not a small feat and will still cost you fees (lawyers to draw up documents, and others). I personally would use a realtor but make sure you do your homework and decide on the correct one. Sorry to hear you are having an unpleasant experience, however.