Business ElementaryKeeping Sellers Informed: A Weekly Communication Plan
The short answer: A useful weekly update to a seller covers five things: showings and feedback, online activity, the competition, offers and their status, and the next decision the seller needs to make. Some of it isn't optional in New Jersey. Unless the listing paperwork says otherwise, every written offer goes to the owner within 24 hours of your firm receiving it (N.J.A.C. 11:5-6.4(g)). Brokerage firms must present all written offers and counteroffers in a timely manner and account promptly for money received (P.L.2024, c.32, s.2).
The listing appointment is where you set expectations (preparing your first listing presentation). This page covers what happens after the seller signs. Confirm your broker's policies too. Firms often have their own forms and timelines.
What does NJ require you to tell a seller?
| Rule | What it means for updates | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Written offers within 24 hours | Transmit every written offer to the owner within 24 hours of the firm's receipt, unless a writing confirming the listing terms says otherwise. This includes offers from other firms | 11:5-6.4(f), (g) |
| Oral offers and acceptances | Tell an oral offeror there's no duty to present an offer that isn't in writing. Get an oral acceptance in writing within 24 hours | 11:5-6.4(g) |
| All offers, even under contract | Present all written offers and counteroffers on time, and confirm receipt in writing to the other side, even if the property is already under contract (unless the seller directs otherwise in writing) | P.L.2024, c.32, s.2(d) |
| Back-up offers | After attorney review ends, advise the owner in writing to consult an attorney before acting on a back-up offer. Offers that arrive during attorney review aren't back-ups and are presented normally | 11:5-6.4(h) |
| Copies | Give the maker of an offer a clear copy right after they sign. Deliver fully signed documents to all parties immediately | 11:5-6.2(a) |
| Money | Account to the principal on time for all money and property received | P.L.2024, c.32, s.2(g) |
| Conflicts and expertise | Disclose conflicts of interest you can anticipate, and advise the seller to get expert advice on matters beyond your expertise | P.L.2024, c.32, s.6(a) |
A seller's agent must also keep making a "good-faith and continuous effort" to find a buyer, unless agreed otherwise in writing. That duty pauses once a contract is past attorney review (s.6(a)(5)).
What should a weekly seller update include?
Use the same five headings every week so the seller knows where to look:
- Activity. Number of showings, open house visitors and the feedback received. Report feedback accurately and don't soften or embellish it.
- Online interest. Views and saves from the MLS or listing sites, labeled with where the numbers came from.
- The competition. New listings, price changes, and pending or sold homes nearby. Explain measures like days on market and list-to-sale ratio and months of supply in plain words.
- Offers. None, received, or pending, with dates. Offers themselves go to the seller within 24 hours, not in the weekly email.
- Next steps. One or two decisions with a date: a price review, a staging fix, a repair estimate.
A simple email skeleton:
Week 3 update, [address] Showings: 4 (feedback below) · Open house: 11 groups Online: [source] shows 620 views, 31 saves this week Market: 2 new listings within the search area; 1 nearby sale closed at [price] Offers: none this week Decision for Friday: do we want a pricing review based on the updated CMA?
The numbers above are placeholders. Pull real figures from your MLS and an updated CMA.
How often, and by what channel?
Weekly is a sensible default (our suggestion), and offers are always immediate. Ask at the listing appointment whether the seller prefers email, a call or both. Follow any call with a short written recap so there's a record. A simple CRM or tracking system can remind you of the day and keep feedback organized.
How do you share showing feedback safely?
Feedback is opinion. Pass it along accurately and say who it came from, such as "the buyer's agent said." Leave out anything about a buyer's race, religion, national origin, familial status, disability or other protected traits. Those characteristics have no place in a seller update (7 fair housing mistakes new NJ agents should avoid).
Sellers sometimes ask why you showed buyers other homes. The law says showing properties the seller doesn't own, or listing competing properties, doesn't breach your duty of loyalty (P.L.2024, c.32, s.6(b)(1)).
What changes once you're under contract?
The weekly update becomes a deadline tracker covering attorney review, inspections, the mortgage commitment, the appraisal and closing. The contract-to-closing checklist lists the usual steps. Keep presenting new written offers during attorney review. Once the contract survives review, handle back-up offers with the written attorney notice described above.
What should you avoid?
- Predictions and promises about price or timing that you can't support.
- Legal opinions on contract terms. That's the seller's attorney's job.
- Disclosing the seller's confidential information to others, even after the listing ends, unless the seller expressly authorizes it (P.L.2024, c.32, s.6(a)(4)).
- Going quiet on slow weeks. A short "no showings, here's why and here's the plan" update still counts.
If you're still working toward your license, Business Elementary's 75-hour pre-licensing course is the first step.
Sources
- N.J.A.C. 11:5-6.4 (cooperation; offers within 24 hours; back-up offers) via Cornell LII: https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/new-jersey/N-J-A-C-11-5-6-4
- N.J.A.C. 11:5-6.2 (delivery of copies) via Cornell LII: https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/new-jersey/N-J-A-C-11-5-6-2
- P.L.2024, c.32 (Real Estate Consumer Protection Enhancement Act), ss.2 and 6: https://pub.njleg.state.nj.us/Bills/2024/PL24/32_.PDF
Last reviewed: November 9, 2026