California Real Estate Practice Exam 2025 – The All-in-One Resource to Ace Your Licensing Exam!

In an open listing scenario, a property owner has the flexibility to work with multiple brokers without being tied to any one of them. This means that if one broker brings in a buyer and the sale occurs, that broker is entitled to a commission, while other brokers who showed the property but did not lead to a sale are not entitled to any compensation.

In this case, Broker A showed the home to a customer but did not complete the sale, and Broker B ultimately sold the home to the same customer. The key factor here is that Broker A did not have a successful transaction that resulted in a sale. Therefore, Broker A does not earn a commission since the arrangement was based on the understanding that only the broker who successfully sells the property is entitled to a commission.

Since Broker B completed the sale, Broker B is the only one entitled to a full commission. In an open listing, the seller only pays the broker who successfully closes the sale, which in this instance is Broker B.