Selling in South Florida · September 2026 closings, figures as of October 26, 2026, refreshed daily
How to choose a listing agent in Florida
Choose the agent whose asking price is backed by closed sales and whose own record beats the local numbers, not the agent who quotes the highest price. The benchmark: in September 2026, the typical South Florida house sold at 95.3% of its original asking price, and only 20% sold at or above it.
Five checks take one evening: the agent's Florida license record, their sale price against original asking price and days to contract, the brokerage relationship you will have, the listing agreement's end date and cancellation terms, and the closed sales their price is built on.
Key takeaways
- Choose the agent whose asking price is backed by closed sales and whose own record beats the local numbers, not the agent who quotes the highest price.
- The South Florida benchmark for September 2026: the typical house sold at 95.3% of its original asking price, and only 20% sold at or above it. Condos and townhouses: 93.2% and 11%.
- Houses that never cut their price went under contract in a median 18 days; houses that cut first took 92.
- In Florida, check the license on the state record, ask whether the agent will work as a transaction broker or a single agent, and read the listing agreement's end date and cancellation terms before you sign.
- No Florida law sets a commission rate. The fee is whatever you and the brokerage agree in writing.
How do you decide which real estate agent should sell your house?
Check five things, in this order, before you sign anything.
- The license. Look the agent and the brokerage up on the Florida DBPR record. It takes two minutes. How to check a Florida license.
- Their results against the local numbers. Ask for their own listings from the last 12 months: sale price against the original asking price, days from listing to contract, and how many expired or were canceled. Compare them with the South Florida benchmark below, houses and condos separately.
- The relationship you will have. In Florida an agent works for you as a transaction broker or as a single agent, never as a dual agent. What each one means.
- The listing agreement. Read the end date, the fee, the cancellation terms and the protection period clause before you sign. What it must include.
- How the price was built. Ask for the closed sales behind the suggested price, by address and date, in writing. A price you cannot trace to sales is a guess. Why the highest quote is a warning sign.
What matters most when choosing a listing agent?
Proof that their asking prices hold. The local benchmark: in September 2026 the typical South Florida house sold at 95.3% of its original asking price, and the typical condo or townhouse at 93.2%. An agent whose listings sell closer to the original asking price, in fewer days, priced them closer to what buyers would pay. Ask for their own numbers, from the MLS, including the listings that expired or were canceled. Then compare them with your county:
Single-family houses, September 2026
| County | Sales | % of original ask | At or above original | Days to contract, no cut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palm Beach | 1,000 | 94.9% | 18% | 16 |
| Broward | 967 | 95.7% | 21% | 19 |
| Miami-Dade | 835 | 95.2% | 21% | 20 |
| Martin | 122 | 94.8% | 16% | 17 |
| St. Lucie | 436 | 95.7% | 22% | 18 |
Condominiums and townhouses, September 2026
| County | Sales | % of original ask | At or above original | Days to contract, no cut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palm Beach | 933 | 93.2% | 12% | 22 |
| Broward | 916 | 92.4% | 10% | 29 |
| Miami-Dade | 949 | 93.9% | 11% | 32 |
| Martin | 73 | 92.5% | 5% | 23 |
| St. Lucie | 103 | 94.8% | 12% | 32 |
Medians per county and segment, from 3,360 house sales and 2,974 condo and townhouse sales across the five counties. "% of original ask" = sale price against the first asking price, before any cut. "Days to contract, no cut" = median days from the listing contract date to the purchase contract date for homes that never cut, derived from the dates, never the MLS day counter. City-by-city figures: sale price versus original asking price by city.
Questions to ask a listing agent before you hire them
Ask these seven, and listen for evidence rather than adjectives. Each comes with what a strong answer sounds like.
- How did you determine the suggested list price?
- A strong answer names the closed sales it rests on, by address and date, the homes competing with yours today, and why your home sits where it does between them. Houses and condos are priced from their own sales, never a blend. You get it in writing.
- How many homes have you sold in my area, and how close to the original asking price?
- A strong answer gives real numbers from the MLS for the last 12 months: sale price against the original asking price, days to contract, and how many listings expired or were canceled. Compare them with the county benchmark.
- Will I be working with you directly?
- A strong answer tells you who will show the house, who will negotiate the offer, and who answers when you call, by name.
- Will you work as a transaction broker or as a single agent?
- A strong answer explains the difference in plain words and puts it in writing before you sign. The Florida rules.
- How does your commission work, and is it negotiable?
- A strong answer says the fee is negotiable, states it in the listing agreement, and explains separately whether you are being asked to offer anything toward a buyer's agent's fee. How Florida commissions work.
- When does the listing agreement end, and how can I cancel it?
- A strong answer points to the end date and the cancellation terms on the page, and explains the protection period clause. How canceling a Florida listing agreement works.
- What will you change if there is no contract in the first few weeks?
- A strong answer gives a date and a plan tied to showing activity and buyer feedback. Half of the South Florida houses that sold without a price cut in September 2026 were under contract within 18 days.
Seven numbers to bring to the same meeting, each linked to its source: seven data points to ask any agent for before you list.
Check the agent's Florida license
Search the agent's name on the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation's Verify a Licensee page. Confirm the license is current and active, whether it is a broker or a sales associate license, and that it is held under the brokerage named on the listing agreement. The record also shows any public disciplinary action. Do the same search for the brokerage itself.
Who a Florida listing agent represents
Only if you agree in writing to a single-agent relationship. Florida law presumes every licensee is working as a transaction broker unless a single-agent or no-brokerage relationship is set up in writing. A transaction broker gives limited representation to the buyer, the seller or both, and is not a fiduciary for either. A single agent works for one side, with duties that include loyalty, confidentiality, obedience and full disclosure, and must describe those duties in writing before or when you sign the listing agreement. Dual agency, one licensee representing both sides as a fiduciary, is not allowed in Florida (s. 475.278, F.S.). PBP Real Estate works as a transaction broker: Florida brokerage relationships explained.
Listing agent fees and commission in Florida
No Florida law sets a commission rate. The fee is negotiable, and it is whatever you and the brokerage agree in the written listing agreement, which must state it (s. 475.25(1)(r), F.S.). Buyer's agent compensation is now a separate question: since August 17, 2024, offers of compensation to buyers' agents no longer appear in the MLS, and buyers working with an agent sign a written agreement with that agent before touring. Whether you offer anything toward a buyer's agent's fee is a separate term you decide with your broker. Compare what each agent will actually do for the fee, not only the figure.
What a Florida listing agreement must include
Florida license law says a written listing agreement must include a definite expiration date, a description of the property, the price and terms, the fee or commission, and your signature, and you must get a signed copy within 24 hours. It also may not require you to notify the brokerage that you are canceling after the expiration date (s. 475.25(1)(r), F.S.). Before you sign, read how the agreement can be ended early and the protection period clause, which can owe the brokerage a fee if you later sell to a buyer it introduced. Canceling a Florida listing agreement. Whether a particular clause applies to you is a question for a Florida real-estate attorney.
The agent who quotes the highest price
Only if the closed sales support it. The highest quote often wins the listing and then becomes the first price cut. In September 2026, 43% of the South Florida houses that sold had cut their asking price first, by a median 5.3%, and they took a median 92 days to reach a contract against 18 days for houses that never cut. Right now 43.6% of the 17,194 houses for sale across our published cities have already cut. Ask every agent for the closed sales behind their number and compare the evidence, not the totals: another agent quoted a higher price; who is right? If your house is already listed and sitting, why is my house not selling shows what the data says to change.
Choosing a listing agent in Boca Raton
The same checks apply, with Boca Raton figures: how to check any Boca Raton agent before you hire them.
Where PBP Real Estate fits
Gia Freer, Broker of Record, prepares a written market analysis by hand: what has sold near you, what is competing with you now, and where your home lands against both. It is an opinion from a licensed broker, not a formula, with the as-of date, and it is yours to keep whoever you hire. Gia and Grant Freer are both licensed Florida real estate brokers and have closed 767 transactions totaling $203,762,527 since 2000, and PBP Real Estate holds a 5.0 rating from 89 Google reviews.
For sellers
Pricing a home is a skill. Start with the current competition and recent closed sales.
43.6% of active single-family house listings in South Florida have a recorded asking price below their original list price.
The data comes from the segment and recorded fields available in PBP Real Estate's BeachesMLS feed, as of the date shown. Gia Freer, Broker of Record, turns comparable sales and current competition into one written pricing opinion for your home, with the reasoning, before it goes live.
No website estimate, no automated number: a written opinion of value prepared by hand, within one business day.
Request a pricing opinion for your property
Already listed and not selling? Start with what the data says to change.
Selling? Pricing correctly is a skill. Gia Freer prices your home from this data before it goes live.
Ask Ava about this dataPrice my home correctlyQuestions sellers ask when choosing a listing agent
How do you decide which real estate agent should sell your house?
Run five checks before you sign: the agent's license on the Florida DBPR record, their own sale price against original asking price and days to contract compared with the local benchmark, the brokerage relationship you will have (transaction broker or single agent), the listing agreement's end date and cancellation terms, and the closed sales their price is built on. In September 2026, the typical South Florida house sold at 95.3% of its original asking price, so an agent's record can be measured against that.
What are the top 10 questions to ask when interviewing a real estate agent?
For a listing agent, seven matter most. Ask how they built the suggested price and which closed sales it rests on; how close to the original asking price their listings sold and how many expired or were canceled; who will show the house, negotiate and answer your calls; whether they will work as a transaction broker or a single agent; how the fee works and whether it is negotiable; when the listing agreement ends and how you can cancel it; and what they will change if there is no contract in the first few weeks.
What not to say to a listing agent?
Do not open with the price you hope to get; ask for the agent's evidence first, so the number you hear is theirs, not an echo of yours. And do not sign a listing agreement on the spot: take it home and read the end date, the cancellation terms and the protection period clause.
Source: PBP Real Estate analysis of BeachesMLS closed residential sales permitted for internet display, September 2026 closings, retrieved October 26, 2026, refreshed daily. Houses = single-family by tax legal description; condos = condominiums, townhouses and villas; never blended. Medians per closing; prices over $10,000; outliers beyond 50% of final or 60% of original asking price excluded. Aggregates are not a property-specific opinion of value. This data is not verified for authenticity or accuracy and may not reflect all real estate activity in the market. Based on information © 2026 BeachesMLS, Inc. Florida rules summarized from ss. 475.25(1)(r) and 475.278, Florida Statutes; general information, not legal advice. Equal Housing Opportunity. Prepared with AI assistance; a licensed broker authors every figure; no automated estimate.