New Listing Checklist (Listing Agent) Template

What the New Listing Checklist Covers

1. 1
   Phase 1 — Two weeks before go-live

   Phase 1: Prepare & Value the Property

   5 tasks

   The first task sets every due date from the target go-live date and decides which tasks appear: where the property is, how it is owned and, in the US, whether the home was built before 1978.

   • Record the property, the seller and who is working on the listing — the address, every seller, where the property is, how it is owned, the valuation date, the target date for the listing to go live and the people on your side; later tasks are assigned from these fields
   • Research the comparable evidence — recent sales of similar homes nearby, similar homes on the market now and any that failed to sell, with their prices and dates
   • Visit and value the property — rooms, condition, improvements, outside space and parking, and what the seller wants from the sale and by when
   • Send the seller your price recommendation in writing — the recommended asking price, the range you expect it to sell in and the evidence behind both
   • Record the seller’s decision to instruct you — the date the seller asked you to sell, the asking price they want to start at and any instructions on timing, viewings or what is included in the sale
2. 2
   Phase 2 — Before the agreement is signed

   Phase 2: Seller Identity & Ownership Checks

   5 tasks

   Check ownership first, so you know who has to be identified and who has to sign. In the UK the seller’s identity is verified before the business relationship starts, which HMRC says is usually when the property is marketed and no later than when there are contractual liabilities.

   • Confirm who owns the property and who must sign — every owner on the title, and anyone acting for them under a power of attorney, as an executor or for a company or trust
   • Identify and verify every seller — UK only: customer due diligence under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 on every owner and anyone acting for them, using reliable independent documents or information, before the business relationship starts
   • Record the money laundering risk for this seller — UK only: low, medium or high under your firm’s own risk assessment, with the reasons and whether enhanced checks are needed
   • Refer the concern to your nominated officer and hold the listing — shown only when a check raises a concern or cannot be completed; do not take the instruction forward, and the nominated officer decides whether a report is needed
   • Confirm the seller’s identity as your brokerage and local rules require — US and other countries: check that the people signing are the owners or have authority to act for them, and keep a record of what you checked
3. 3
   Phase 3 — Before the agreement is signed

   Phase 3: Agency Agreement & Terms

   4 tasks

   The seller needs your fees and terms in writing before they agree to anything. In the UK, section 18 of the Estate Agents Act 1979 requires it. In the US, use the listing agreement your state and brokerage require.

   • Give the seller your fees and terms in writing — the fee and when it becomes payable, any other charges and when they are due, the length of the agreement, how to end it and the type of agency
   • Use the prescribed wording for sole agency and sole selling rights — UK only: if the agreement uses the terms sole agency, sole selling rights or “ready, willing and able” purchaser, or terms like them, explain each in the wording the 1991 Regulations set out, as prominently as the rest of the terms
   • Tell the seller about services you offer buyers — UK only: any services you, a connected person or another firm that earns you a fee will offer buyers of this property, such as mortgages or conveyancing, in writing before the seller is committed
   • Get the agreement signed by every seller who must sign — the listing or agency agreement signed and dated, with a copy back to the seller and the start and end dates recorded
4. 4
   Phase 4 — Before marketing starts

   Phase 4: Property Information & Disclosures

   9 tasks

   Collect what a buyer needs to know before the listing is written. Where the property is and how it is owned decide which certificate, form and disclosure tasks appear.

   • Ask the seller for the property information — boundaries, alterations, guarantees, services, disputes, parking and anything else that affects the property, on your firm’s questionnaire
   • Gather the material information for the listing — UK only: the price, the council tax band (domestic rates in Northern Ireland), the tenure and anything else the average buyer needs to decide whether to view or buy
   • Check there is a valid EPC, or commission one before marketing — England or Wales only: a valid energy performance certificate, or one commissioned from an accredited assessor before the property goes on the market, then obtained within seven days of going on the market
   • Record the rules for Scotland or Northern Ireland — Scotland or Northern Ireland only: the home report, energy certificate and other documents needed before marketing differ from England and Wales, so record what applies and when it will be ready
   • Ask the seller to complete your state’s disclosure form — US only: seller disclosure forms and the rules on them vary by state, so use the form your state and brokerage require
   • Tell the seller about their lead-based paint duties — US homes built before 1978 only: the seller gives buyers the EPA pamphlet, discloses any known lead-based paint or hazards with any records or reports, and allows a 10-day inspection opportunity
   • Prepare the lead-based paint disclosure — US homes built before 1978 only: the seller’s statement of known lead-based paint and hazards, a list of records and reports, the pamphlet and the agent’s statement, ready to attach to any contract
   • Collect the lease or association details — leasehold, shared ownership and condominium or association properties only: the lease length or rules, ground rent, service charge or association fees, and who manages the building
   • Record the local rules for this listing — other countries only: what the law or your licensing body requires on agency terms, identity checks, disclosures and energy certificates, and who checked it
5. 5
   Phase 5 — The week before go-live

   Phase 5: Photos, Floor Plan & Description

   6 tasks

   Describe the property, not the kind of buyer you want. Every fact in the listing should be one the seller has confirmed or you have checked.

   • Book the photographer and floor plan — a date that suits the seller, the rooms and outside areas to shoot, and any video or virtual tour
   • Help the seller prepare the property for the photos — clear surfaces, lights on, cars off the drive, and personal items, documents and valuables out of sight
   • Take the photos and measure for the floor plan — every main room, the outside and any view, and the measurements the floor plan needs
   • Write the description and key features — rooms, measurements, condition, what is included in the sale and what makes the property stand out, with nothing a buyer could find misleading
   • Check every fact with the seller — measurements, tenure, what is included and excluded, parking, alterations and anything else the seller told you, corrected before anything is published
   • Check the listing against fair housing advertising rules — US only: the words, the photos and where you advertise must not show a preference for or against buyers because of race, colour, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin
6. 6
   Phase 6 — The days before go-live

   Phase 6: Viewings Plan & Seller Approval

   4 tasks

   Nothing goes live until the seller has approved the listing details and the asking price. The approval task stops the rest of the checklist until it is done, and a seller who does not approve hides the go-live tasks.

   • Agree how viewings will run — who accompanies viewings, how keys are collected, the times the seller cannot do, the notice they need and whether they will be at home
   • Check the listing file before it goes to the seller — the signed agreement, identity checks, property information, certificate or disclosures, photos and description all in place
   • Seller approves the listing details and price — the seller has seen the final photos, floor plan, description and asking price and approved them in writing; record their decision here
   • Agree the next step with a seller who has not approved — shown only when the seller does not approve; record what they want changed and agree a revised listing, a later launch or that they will not go ahead
7. 7
   Phase 7 — Go-live day

   Phase 7: Go Live

   5 tasks

   Publish the approved version and check it as a buyer will see it, on every site it appears on.

   • Publish the listing — on the property portals and your website in the UK, or on your MLS within the time its rules allow in the US, with the approved photos, floor plan, description and price
   • Check the live listing against the approved version — price, photos, floor plan, description, the energy rating where it is required and the material information, on every portal and site
   • Send the seller the live listing — the links to every site it is on, and how and when you will report on interest
   • Send the listing to matching buyers on your register — applicants whose budget and needs fit, by email or phone, with an offer of a viewing
   • Put up the board or sign — where the seller agreed and local rules allow, with a photo of it in place
8. 8
   Phase 8 — The first week

   Phase 8: Launch Marketing & Viewings

   5 tasks

   Book viewings quickly, record every one and pass feedback to the seller as it comes in. Offers go to the transaction file, not here.

   • Post the listing on social media and in your newsletter — the approved photos and description, without saying when the seller is away or that the property is empty
   • Book and confirm viewings — each buyer’s name and contact details, their position, such as a home to sell or a mortgage agreed in principle, and the time agreed with the seller
   • Decide with the seller whether to hold an open house — if they want one, run it with the Open House Checklist and record the date here
   • Record feedback from every viewing — what each buyer liked and disliked, what they thought of the price and whether they want a second viewing
   • Pass feedback to the seller as it comes in — after each viewing, in the way and at the times the seller asked for
9. 9
   Phase 9 — A week after go-live

   Phase 9: First-Week Report & Next Steps

   4 tasks

   Report to the seller after the first full week, using the numbers and buyers’ own words, and agree what happens next.

   • Gather the first week’s numbers — portal views and enquiries, viewings booked and held, second viewings and any offers
   • Send the seller the first-week report — the numbers, what buyers said about the property and the price, and your recommendation for the next week
   • Agree the next steps with the seller — keep the current plan, change the price or the presentation, add an open house or move to the offer stage, recorded in writing
   • Hand over to the transaction file when an offer is accepted — offers, the buyer’s checks, the memorandum of sale or contract and progress to completion or closing run in their own checklist