Real Estate 101: Listing Statuses

The real estate transaction process can be overwhelming at times. The purpose of the Real Estate 101 blog series is to facilitate the process by helping you better understand the basics of the real estate industry through concise and easy to understand lessons.

This lesson will define various listing statuses, as there naturally is confusion on this topic:

Active: An active listing status means that the home is available for purchase and that the seller is accepting offers.

Contingent (Kick-Out): A contingent (Kick-Out) status means that the sellers have accepted an offer, but they still have the ability to “kick-out” the current offer for a better one.

Contingent (No Kick-Out): This means that there is an accepted offer on the listing, and the sellers are not accepting backup offers that would "kick out" the current offer. The listing is still contingent as the buyers still have contingency (obtaining financing, inspection, etc.). Contingency means that the contract has conditions that must be fulfilled before the contract can close.

Contract: When a listing is under contract, it means that the seller has accepted the offer, but the offer may still have contingencies. Other buyers may be able to submit additional offers in the event that the current contract falls through.

Pending: A home that is set to close and all contingencies have been waived. This is when the lender, the escrow agent or attorney will process the loan and title documents to make sure the deal will close on time.

Sold: This home has been purchased by another buyer. It is no longer for sale.

Expired: When a seller lists their house with an agent, there is a set duration on their relationship. If the agent is unable to sell the house within this time frame, the listing will expire. The seller may re-sign with the current agent, try a new agent, or give up on selling altogether.

Off-Market: This listing has been taken off the market by the seller, but may be relisted.

Withdrawn: This listing has been taken off the market by the seller, and may not be relisted.

Temporarily Off-Market: This listing has been taken off the market by the seller, but will probably be available again at some point. Sellers sometimes withdraw their listings to consider a new selling strategy, or to make repairs and improvements to the home before taking another shot at selling.

-Kevin Barbera