Can I cancel my listing agreement?

The first working day right

Section 130 of the Real Estate Agents Act 2008 applies when you sign a sole agency agreement for residential property. You may cancel it by 5pm on the first working day after the day a copy of the agreement is given to you.

Two details decide whether you still have this right. The clock starts on delivery of the copy to you, not on the moment you signed, and the cancellation must be in writing. An email saying plainly that you are cancelling the agreement, sent before the deadline, does the job. Keep a copy of what you sent and when.

The 90 day right

Section 131 covers longer terms. Where a sole agency agreement for residential property runs longer than 90 days, either party may cancel it once 90 days have passed from signing. It is a right of exit, not a limit on how long the agreement can be written for. There is no statutory maximum term, and the widely repeated idea that sole agencies are capped at 90 days is not correct.

If your term is shorter than 90 days, section 131 does not give you anything, because the agreement ends on its own before the right would arise.

Cancelling at any other time

Outside those two rights, ending the agreement early is a matter of asking the agency and reaching agreement. Many agencies will release a client who genuinely wants out, but they are not obliged to, and any release should be confirmed in writing with the date it takes effect.

When an agreement is cancelled, rule 9.11 of the Client Care Rules requires the agent to give you the name of each customer for whom the agency would claim commission if that customer went on to buy the property. Ask for that list in writing and keep it.

The reason it matters is what comes next. The Real Estate Authority standard clauses for residential agency agreements provide that if you sell within 6 months of the agency ending to a person that agency introduced, commission is payable, and the period is 12 months for rural property. Not every agency uses the standard clauses, so your own wording governs. If one of the named people comes back as a buyer, check the position with your lawyer before you sign a sale and purchase agreement.

Marketing already spent is a separate question again and is normally payable whether or not the agreement continues.