When the seller stalls, here's how to protect your commission

On a recent call, an agent named Jacqueline brought me a “protect your commission” situation that stopped a lot of heads from nodding and started them thinking. She is a listing agent with more than 20 years in the business, and she had never seen anything quite like it.

Here is the setup. She listed a home. She brought a buyer. That buyer signed the contract 10 days prior. The seller is represented through a power of attorney, the owner’s niece, and the niece has not signed.

The excuse coming back through the attorney is that they need to visit the principal in the nursing home to confirm she is competent to authorize the sale. The catch is that the power of attorney already grants real estate authority. It is right there in the document. There is nothing left to confirm.

So, let me say plainly what is really happening: They are stalling. And when you strip away the legal costume, the reason is simple. The niece is having second thoughts about selling.

Before we go further, one honest note: What follows is general guidance from my experience, not legal advice, and every agent should confirm their own state’s rules with a local attorney. Laws vary, and this is one of those moments where local law matters.

Fiduciary runs both ways

Jacqueline said something that a lot of good agents say, and it’s that instinct that we need to talk about. She felt her fiduciary responsibility meant she should keep showing the home. I understand the reflex. 

Fiduciary to your seller means protecting your seller’s best interest. It is not in their best interest to keep parading buyers through a home that already has a signed, ready, willing and able buyer. Every new showing is a new risk, not a favor.

Here is the part agents forget. Fiduciary does not mean you surrender your own rights. It is not a one-sided relationship where you give and give and quietly hand back everything you have earned. You still deserve to be paid. You still get to protect yourself. Serving your seller and standing up for yourself are not in conflict. They live side by side.

Once the buyer signs, the ground shifts

The moment that buyer signed, the buyer became committed. In New York, a single party can be bound before the other one signs. You obviously need both signatures for a fully executed contract, but once one party signs, that party is held responsible, and until the other signs, they are not. Laws vary by state, so check yours.

That means Jacqueline is standing in an uneven relationship right now. The buyer is essentially locked in and wants the home. The seller is not locked in at all. When you see that imbalance, you do not keep opening the front door to strangers. You close it and protect everyone standing on the committed side.

The sequence to run to protect your commission:

Here is exactly how to protect your commission when a seller stalls.

• Stop showing the property. You already have a signed, ready, willing and able buyer. More showings only create more risk for your seller, not more value.
• Take it off the market until it resolves. If you keep showing it and a second buyer wants it, your seller could face two commission obligations at once, because you brought a buyer who is ready to be paid.
• Advise the seller in writing. Put your reasoning on the record. You are protecting them from a possible lawsuit and from double commission liability, and the paper trail protects you, too.
• Send a bill for your commission. You brought a ready, willing and able buyer. You earned your fee. Bill for it and say so plainly.
• Let the seller make their choice, with eyes open. If the niece decides the aunt should stay home and not sell, that is her right. But she still owes the fee, and she needs to hear that before she decides.
• Consider a mechanics lien on the property. In many places, you can file a lien for an earned commission, which means it must be satisfied before the home can ever be sold. This one absolutely varies by state, so verify locally before you act.

Serving your seller and getting paid are not opposites. A stalling seller is exactly when both matter most.

This is not aggressive; it’s professional

Some agents read a list like that and feel a knot in their stomach. It feels pushy. It is not. We are in the service industry. When you perform a service and produce a buyer who is ready, willing and able, you have a right to be paid, the same as any professional who delivered what they promised.

Holding a stalling seller accountable is not you being difficult. It is you protecting yourself while you protect them. In Jacqueline’s situation, the niece was not just risking Jacqueline’s fee. She was risking the buyer broker’s fee and a $200,000 bill from the care facility, all because she would not sign a document she already had the authority to sign. Signing, selling and then making her next move was the sensible path for everyone.

So, say it kindly, put it in writing and mean it: “I understand that you are having second thoughts, and as you decide what you want to do, know that you owe me a fee.” That is clarity.

I told Jacqueline to hold steady, and I will tell you the same. Not out of anger, but out of respect for the work she did. She did her job and brought the buyer. Now let the seller do theirs, and make sure your name is protected either way.