How it runs for real estate agents and brokerages
Prepaid MLS dues and insurance are spread across months, and staff payroll from Gusto is posted. A second accountant reviews the package through Two-Tier Review before company dollar, office P&L and the balance sheet reach the broker.
What is month-end close outsourcing?
Month-end close outsourcing means an external accounting team performs the steps that turn a month of transactions into finished financial statements: reconciling every account, posting accruals, prepaids and depreciation, checking cut-off, reviewing and locking the period. You keep your software and your accountant. The provider runs the checklist on an agreed calendar and hands you reviewed statements.
What we handle for real estate agents and brokerages
- Closings in the transaction platform reconciled to the ledger
- Commission receivable and agent payable balances agreed per transaction
- Referral fees accrued and franchise royalties posted for the month
- Prepaid dues, insurance and subscriptions spread across periods
- Close checklist reviewed and signed off by a second accountant
The KPI that matters here
Close package delivered by business day 8 with zero unposted closings for the month.
Real estate compliance notes
1099-NEC for agents and referral partners
Brokerages report commissions paid to licensed agents on Form 1099-NEC because agents who meet the IRC section 3508 tests are statutory nonemployees. Referral fees paid to other brokerages and payments to unincorporated vendors are reported the same way once they reach the annual threshold. We keep W-9s and cumulative totals current so the forms are prepared for your review and filing by the January deadline.
Commission splits and disbursement records
Each closing is documented from the settlement statement through the commission disbursement authorization to the agent payment, so the split, cap progress, franchise royalty and any referral fee are traceable. Many state commissions require these records to be retained for several years. We file the documents with the entry in LedgerDesk.
Earnest money and trust accounts
Most state real estate commissions require earnest money to be held in a separate trust account, never commingled with operating funds, with a transaction-level ledger and a monthly reconciliation. Some states require interest-bearing accounts or set deadlines for deposit and disbursement. We maintain the ledger and reconciliation; the broker signs and remains responsible under the license.
Client money in the UK, Canada and Australia
UK letting and estate agents must belong to a Client Money Protection scheme and keep client money in a separate account. Canadian and Australian agencies operate under provincial or state trust-account rules with regular reconciliation and audit requirements. We prepare the ledgers and reconciliations in the format the regulator or auditor expects.
Real estate software we work in
- QuickBooks Online
- Xero
- Gusto
- Bill.com
- Stripe
- Brokermint
- SkySlope
- dotloop
- Lone Wolf Back Office
- All 50 platforms
More for real estate agents and brokerages
Other services for real estate
Frequently asked questions
Why reconcile the transaction platform to the accounting file?
Because closings are recorded in SkySlope, dotloop or Brokermint by the transaction coordinator, and revenue is only correct when every one of them is posted to the ledger. The accountant compares the platform's closed list with posted commission entries each month and posts anything missing, so revenue and agent payables are complete.
How do you treat commissions on closings that fund next month?
A closing that settled in the month but whose commission arrives later is recorded as revenue with a commission receivable, and the matching agent payable is recorded at the same time. Pending transactions that have not closed are not booked. This keeps the month's revenue tied to settled sales rather than to bank timing.
What does the monthly package show a brokerage owner?
The package includes the P&L by office, company dollar and gross commission, agent count and production, cost per closing, agent receivables, the trust reconciliation summary, balance sheet and a short note on what changed. It is built from reconciled accounts so the same numbers can go to a lender, franchisor or partner.
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