Sell Smart.
Walk Away Stronger.

The listing agreement defines the timeframe of our engagement (typically six months), our roles and responsibilities, your responsibilities as the seller, and our compensation structure. Read it carefully and ask questions before signing. This document matters.

This state-required document identifies the type of agency relationship we are practicing. In most cases, we act as your designated seller's agent — meaning our fiduciary duty runs entirely to you once the listing agreement is executed.

Coldwell Banker as a brokerage is designated to represent you through a specific agent — your team member — and not every agent in the firm. Your representation is personal and exclusive to the agent you have signed with. Massachusetts law requires this be disclosed and consented to in writing.

Dual agency arises when our brokerage represents both the seller and the buyer in the same transaction. In that situation, the agent cannot provide a competitive advantage to either party. This form gives you notice of that possibility and requires your informed written consent before it can occur.

We do not practice dual agency in standard transactions. There are specific circumstances where it can be appropriate — for example, a transaction between family members where both parties want a professional involved but are not seeking competitive negotiation. Your team member will explain clearly if and when this ever applies to your situation.

This form gives you the opportunity to disclose known defects and conditions of the property in writing. We recommend speaking with your real estate attorney before deciding whether to complete it. Attorneys have differing opinions on this form and roughly half of sellers choose not to fill it out. What does not change: if you are aware of a material defect, we are obligated to disclose it to prospective buyers regardless of this form.

For homes built before 1978, we are required to provide a Property Transfer Lead Paint Notification disclosing whether there is any known presence of lead paint within the property. Lead paint poses serious health risks, particularly to children under the age of six. The buyer will also sign and return this form at the time of an offer, as required by state and federal law.

If your home was built before 1978, buyers have the right to conduct a lead paint inspection. If a child under the age of six will be living in the property, Massachusetts law requires the buyer to test and remediate — that obligation falls on the buyer, not the seller.

Massachusetts law preserves every buyer's right to a home inspection under Chapter 93A. A seller may not knowingly accept an offer from a buyer who intends to waive their right to inspect. Violations carry substantial penalties. This form ensures you understand that obligation before your home goes to market. Your team member will handle this correctly on your behalf.

Certain homes in Massachusetts were built with a concrete foundation containing a mineral called pyrrhotite. Over time, exposure to moisture causes this material to oxidize, leading to foundation cracking and deterioration. This form discloses whether the issue has been identified at your property. Hopefully not — but buyers should be encouraged to have any foundation inspected as part of their due diligence regardless.

Massachusetts requires that homes with a septic system provide a Title V certificate confirming the condition and status of the system by a licensed inspector. Some municipalities have specific requirements around older systems that may require repair or replacement to pass. This process can take time — initiate it before your listing goes live, not after you are already under agreement.

Our team has exclusive access to a network of vetted contractors who can complete pre-listing projects from start to finish. Payment comes from your net proceeds at closing. No cash upfront, no liens, no obligation beyond the sale. It removes the barrier between knowing what should be done and actually getting it done — and it consistently helps clients go to market in stronger condition.

Our valuation process pulls from relative properties sold within the last 60–90 days, current market data, months of supply, absorption rate, and the average across multiple automated valuation models. We present a range of fair market value — not a single number — because pricing in real estate is genuinely subjective. A home is worth what a buyer is willing to pay.

On the median Boston-area price point near $900,000, a 5% AVM error represents a $45,000 swing in the wrong direction. That is why we do not rely on a single data point.

Product: Professional photography, 3D virtual tour, floor plans, dedicated property website, and listing copy written to tell a story.

Price: Lower end of fair market value to drive traffic and create competition.

Place: MLSPIN syndication to tens of thousands of sites plus Coldwell Banker's global network across 40+ countries.

Promotion: Digital advertising (Coldwell Banker Boost), social media, email flyers, print materials, just listed and just sold campaigns, and client reporting throughout.

Positioning: Your listing must read better, photograph better, and price more favorably than everything else a buyer is evaluating at the same moment.

We evaluate every offer on price, terms, contingencies, financing strength, and timeline. Nothing else. We do not pass along buyer personal letters (“love letters”) because personal details create real legal exposure for sellers, even unintentionally. Familial status is a protected class. Selecting or rejecting an offer because of it is a violation of state and federal law regardless of intent.

The cleanest offer evaluation is also the most legally sound one and the one most likely to produce the strongest financial outcome for you.

We typically go live on a Wednesday or Thursday. Scheduled open houses run Saturday and Sunday. Offers are held until after the open house weekend. This structure ensures every buyer who wants to see your home has the opportunity, then competes simultaneously rather than sequentially. In a market where a single additional offer can move the final sale price by tens of thousands of dollars, the timing of your offer deadline is strategy — not scheduling convenience.

Massachusetts law requires that homeowners who use recording devices within their property disclose this fact. Doorbell cameras, security cameras, and any other audio or video equipment must be disclosed to agents and buyers entering the property. Let your team member know about any devices before the first showing.

If you are ever present when a prospective buyer asks a question about the home or the neighborhood, refer them to your team member. Do not answer. Sellers occasionally share information during casual conversation that creates liability down the road. A common example: mentioning that the home falls within a specific school district when the district lines have shifted or the information is simply incorrect. That offhand comment can become the basis of a legal claim.

In a competitive offer situation, roughly 20% of the offers stand out meaningfully from the rest. One or two will go noticeably above and beyond on price, terms, or both. Knowing that pattern helps us evaluate the field clearly and focus attention on the offers most likely to produce the strongest result for you.

If offers are close but not identical, we may go to a final and best round — asking all parties to submit their strongest terms by a specific deadline. It surfaces the true ceiling of what the market will pay for your home.

Once you accept an offer, you choose between two MLS statuses. Contingent means there is an accepted offer but you continue to show the property. Under Agreement means the property is off the market. Our recommendation is almost always to go directly to under agreement. Days on Market stops accumulating the moment we make that change. Buyers rarely present competing offers on contingent listings — so the upside of staying contingent is limited and the cost in market perception is real.

Every home inspection produces a long list of findings. Every single one. Do not let it rattle you. That is exactly what a thorough inspection looks like. What we take seriously are safety issues and material defects — things like improper furnace venting, significant water penetration, active termite activity, or radon requiring mitigation. Cosmetic items and things a buyer can easily address themselves are not worth negotiating over.

Once an inspection identifies a material defect, that information does not disappear if the deal falls through. We are legally obligated to disclose known material defects to all subsequent buyers. The math almost always favors resolution over disclosure.

If the appraised value comes in significantly below the purchase price, the buyer may not have the additional funds to cover the gap between appraised value and offer price. Options are limited: the buyer covers the difference, the price is adjusted, or the transaction unwinds. This is one reason we exercise caution when evaluating offers that are significantly above projected market value when deciding what to accept.