Is Private Sale (FSBO) Legal in New Brunswick?
Yes. Selling your home without a realtor is fully legal in New Brunswick. The Real Estate Agents Act governs licensed agents but does not require sellers to use them. You can handle your own listing, showings, and negotiations. You will need a real estate lawyer for closing and for discharging any existing mortgage.
New Brunswick Disclosure Requirements
New Brunswick does not have a legislated mandatory seller disclosure form for private sales. Common law applies, meaning sellers must disclose known material latent defects. These are hidden defects that make the property unsafe or unfit for use and that a buyer would not discover through a normal inspection.
New Brunswick sellers should document and disclose:
- Basement moisture issues or flooding history (common in older NB housing stock)
- Roof condition and age
- Septic system age, condition, and any known failures (widespread in rural NB)
- Well water quality and any contamination issues
- Foundation problems
- Presence of asbestos, vermiculite, or urea-formaldehyde foam insulation
- Previous grow operations or illegal drug labs
New Brunswick has a significant proportion of rural properties, and buyers often attach conditions for well and septic inspections. Be prepared to accommodate these and have recent documentation available if possible.
How to List Your Home in New Brunswick
Realtor.ca is the primary platform for NB buyers, though New Brunswick is also one of the provinces where Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace drive real buyer traffic. To list on Realtor.ca without a full-commission agent:
- PropertyGuys serves Moncton, Fredericton, Saint John, and surrounding areas. Flat-fee packages typically run $500-$1,200.
- Local flat-fee MLS brokers operate in the major NB cities. Search "flat fee MLS New Brunswick" for current providers.
- Kijiji generates strong traffic for private sales in NB, particularly in smaller cities and rural areas.
- Facebook Marketplace is active in New Brunswick and worth posting on in addition to Kijiji.
- Yard signs are standard in NB neighbourhoods.
New Brunswick has seen increased demand from out-of-province buyers (particularly from Ontario and BC), who tend to use Realtor.ca. If your property is priced at or above the provincial median, a Realtor.ca listing is worth the flat fee.
New Brunswick Purchase Agreement
New Brunswick does not require a specific FSBO contract form. The New Brunswick Real Estate Association (NBREA) produces a standard Agreement of Purchase and Sale used in most transactions. You can use that form or have a lawyer prepare the agreement.
Key clauses for a New Brunswick agreement:
- Financing condition with a removal date
- Home inspection condition
- Well and septic conditions (important for rural and suburban properties)
- Included and excluded items (appliances, firewood, outdoor equipment)
- Completion (closing) date
- Deposit held in a lawyer's trust account
French-language transactions are common in New Brunswick, particularly in Acadian communities. If you are dealing with French-speaking buyers, your lawyer should be able to handle a bilingual transaction.
Closing in New Brunswick
Closing is handled by a real estate lawyer. New Brunswick does not use notaries for residential property transfers. Your lawyer will review the purchase agreement, search the title, discharge your mortgage, register the deed at Service New Brunswick's land registry, and disburse funds.
Land Transfer Tax (LTT): New Brunswick charges a provincial LTT of 0.5% of the purchase price. This is one of the lowest land transfer taxes in Canada. On a $300,000 home, the LTT is $1,500. The LTT is paid by the buyer.
Lawyer fees for a residential sale in New Brunswick typically run $800-$1,400.
Typical closing timelines in New Brunswick are 30-60 days from accepted offer.
How Much Can You Save?
New Brunswick's median home price is approximately $300,000 (2025-2026 provincial average; Moncton is higher, rural areas are lower).
On a $300,000 sale:
- Typical total commission at 4%: $12,000
- Listing agent portion (2%): $6,000
- Buyer agent portion (2%): $6,000
If you sell to an unrepresented buyer, you save the full $12,000. If you offer 2% to a buyer's agent, you save approximately $6,000 on the listing side. After flat-fee and lawyer costs of roughly $1,100-$1,600, net savings on the listing side are in the $4,400-$4,900 range.
In Moncton, where prices in many areas now exceed $400,000, savings are proportionally larger.
Bottom line
New Brunswick has a straightforward private sale process, a low land transfer tax, and active platforms including Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace alongside Realtor.ca. Disclose what you know about the property, particularly for well and septic systems, and use a real estate lawyer for closing. The process is accessible for any motivated seller.
Get everything you need to complete your New Brunswick private sale with the Complete FSBO Toolkit.