Congratulations, if you’re reading this, you’re probably a licensed Massachusetts real estate agent and you have your first real estate deal! Top real estate agents in Boston, and across Massachusetts, create real estate transaction velocity and Stuart St James supports that deal flow with smart deal closing technology.
This “how-to” close your first real estate transaction in Massachusetts content comes directly from answering the questions of Stuart St James real estate agents, both newly licensed and experienced real estate agents in Massachusetts.
How to Do a Massachusetts Real Estate Deal (Contract Flow & Process)
Real estate agents, especially newly licensed real estate agents in MA, oftentimes have anxiety with real estate contract flow and a nagging feeling around whether they’re doing it “right”. Even experienced agents appreciate validating their process against a tested and proven formula of how to do real estate deals.
To set yourself up for success in closing your first real estate deal, there’s no better place to start than the online video real estate training course we give to all agents called “How to Evaluate & Negotiate Real Estate Offers“.
The training is approximately 1 hour of content spread across 7 modules of video (screen sharing) and audio accompanied by written content and links to supporting documents. It’s online, self-paced, and available to Stuart St James agents 24/7.
Because this real estate training course literally walks you step-by-step through a deal, it provides a tremendous amount of value and support, especially on your first deals.
The course is packed with “pro tips” and real-world examples, so it’s like you have a seasoned mentor walking you through one of their deals showing you the contract flow, a detailed walkthrough of all the real estate forms, how and where to negotiate, and proactive steps you can take to prevent a deal from falling apart – everything you need to bring value to your clients as a real estate agent in Massachusetts.
Supporting Documents Needed to Close a Real Estate Transaction with Your Brokerage in MA
We have a streamlined transaction file checklist for each transaction type (sale, rental, referral). Stuart St James agents can access these checklists in our corporate Box account.
License holders have record-keeping requirements mandated by the state (at least 3 years) and our all-digital deal closing process pulls together a tidy copy of all transaction documents for your agent records too.
Massachusetts Buyer’s Agent Commission Disbursement Instruction (formerly the “Commission Statement”) and W-9
Formerly known as the commission statement or invoice for services, the Commission Disbursement Instruction is used on buy-side transactions where a formal request of commission needs to be made to the settlement agent or closing attorney. Generate it at https://stuartstjames.com/cdi/ one per transaction, as soon as you have a firm closing date. The instruction is emailed directly to the settlement agent, with copies to you and the brokerage, under a unique instruction number the settlement agent can use to verify authenticity. It states exactly what is due and that payment is made to Stuart St James, Inc. per https://stuartstjames.com/remit/. Our Form W-9 is available to settlement agents and payors at that same page, and in the Documents & Forms folder of our corporate Box account.
Proactively Protect Your Client, Yourself, and Your Brokerage from Wire Fraud
Well before closing, advise your client to stay vigilant to avoid wire fraud schemes. Here are some tips on how real estate agents can avoid wire transfer fraud:
- Confirm wire instructions via an independently confirmed phone number, not over email or via a phone number provided in an email
- Be suspicious of any changes in processes, particularly when it has anything to do with money
- Advise clients to not trust instructions solely communicated over email, as emails can be spoofed (i.e. hackers can make it look like an email is coming from a real estate agent or closing attorney when it’s really not)
- Confirm everything in advance, including asking your bank to confirm the name listed on the account number before sending a wire transfer
- Verify your transfer immediately after you send funds via wire transfer – we do not recommend closing on a Friday due in part to the fact that authorities like the FBI may not be able to help with wire transfer fraud over the weekend non-banking days
- This applies to our commissions too: settlement agents and closing attorneys receive Stuart St James payment details only from https://stuartstjames.com/remit/; never from an individual, including the agent of record
Massachusetts Buyer’s Agent: Follow the Money from Closing Table to Your Bank Account
Buyer’s agents, especially those who practiced real estate in another state before Massachusetts, often ask how commission actually moves at closing. Here is the entire flow of funds, step by step, so there’s no mystery.
First, the most important concept: on the ALTA Settlement Statement and Closing Disclosure, there is one gross commission line item per brokerage — one for the listing brokerage and one for the buyer’s brokerage. Your commission is not split into a “brokerage portion” and an “agent portion” at the closing table. The closing attorney disburses a single gross commission payment to each brokerage named in the Purchase & Sale Agreement. The split between you and Stuart St James happens after closing, through our deal submission process.
Why? According to Massachusetts General Laws, Part I, Title XVI, Chapter 112, Section 87RR, all compensation must be made payable to the brokerage. As a salesperson, you may not accept compensation directly from any person except your licensed broker — the closing attorney legally cannot cut a check or send a wire to you personally.
Here’s the complete flow of funds on your buy-side deal:
- Well before closing, publish your commission disbursement instruction (CDI) to the settlement agent or closing attorney at https://stuartstjames.com/cdi/. This is your “commission statement” — effectively an invoice telling the closing attorney the gross commission amount and that it is payable to Stuart St James, Inc. (the CDI has our EIN and W-9 and will also point to https://stuartstjames.com/remit/ so the closing attorney or settlement agent has everything they need and it’s verified and legit as it sits on our domain).
- At closing, the closing attorney disburses one gross commission payment to Stuart St James for your side of the transaction — via check or wire per your disbursement instruction.
- You facilitate the deposit of that gross commission into our Bank of America business operating account (wire, ACH, and Zelle transfers are accepted at no charge to you, or deposit a physical check per our Agent Commission Deposit memo in Box). Wires typically clear the same banking day; check deposits typically clear in one (1) banking day.
- Submit your deal at https://stuartstjames.com/deal/ with your supporting documentation and tell us how you’d like to be paid.
- Get paid your net commission via free next-banking-day Intuit Direct Deposit once your transaction file is reviewed and gross commission deposit clears.
In short: closing attorney → one gross commission to Stuart St James → you deposit it → submit at /deal → net commission Direct Deposited to you. If you see the phrase “two (2) commission payouts” in the listing agent section below, note that refers to one payout per brokerage (listing side and buyer side) — not a split of your individual commission.
Massachusetts Listing Agent Reminders for Escrow Deposits and Commission Checks at the Closing Table
In our continued efforts to (a) increase the efficiency of real estate transactions (b) reduce or eliminate the possibility of funds not being available at close and (c) eliminate erroneous fees agents or their clients must bear, Stuart St James does not hold earnest money deposits in escrow – all earnest money deposits that accompany an Offer to Purchase, along with additional Purchase & Sale Agreement (P&S) deposits, are held in escrow by the seller’s real estate attorney or the closing attorney, not Stuart St James.
Simply guide buyers and/or their agents at the time they make an Offer to Purchase on your listing to make initial earnest money deposits payable to the seller’s real estate attorney or the closing attorney, and, guide the attorneys involved in the drafting of the P&S that the additional P&S deposit will be made payable to the seller’s real estate attorney or the closing attorney.
Furthermore, how do commission checks at the closing table work? It is your responsibility as a listing agent to work with the seller’s real estate attorney, who is responsible for and has the pen on creating the first draft of the P&S, to write into the P&S that the closing attorney will disburse all commissions at closing on the settlement statement. On the ALTA/CD, each brokerage has its own line item in the Commission section: the closing attorney disburses one gross commission payment to Stuart St James for the listing side, and, separately, one gross commission payment directly to the cooperating buyer’s brokerage for its side. Payment details for the closing attorney are published at https://stuartstjames.com/remit/.
Two things Stuart St James does not do, and why:
- We do not accept a combined gross commission and pay the cooperating brokerage. Some markets still practice the closing attorney paying a single gross commission to the listing brokerage, which then cuts a check to the buyer’s brokerage after closing. We don’t operate that way — it creates tax and 1099 reporting burdens and delays everyone’s payout. Each brokerage must be paid its own gross commission directly by the closing attorney, as its own line item on the settlement statement.
- We do not accept commission paid out of deposit escrow. Because Stuart St James holds no earnest money or P&S deposits, there is never a scenario where commission is netted out of escrow held by the seller’s attorney or paid by any party other than the closing attorney. Deposit escrow transfers to the closing; the closing attorney disburses all commissions from the closing.
How to Submit Your Real Estate Deal and Get Paid Your Commission
Stuart St James has really leaned into technology and efficiency through automation and modern tools, the deal closing process included, which has led to a better agent experience.
When you close a deal, Stuart St James agents simply visit https://stuartstjames.com/deal/ and submit their deal information along with supporting documentation.
By law (M.G.L. c. 112, § 87RR), all real estate commissions are made payable to your brokerage, and it’s your responsibility as a Stuart St James agent to deposit gross commission into our Bank of America business operating account within two (2) business days of receipt for distribution to you. Account and transfer details are published at https://stuartstjames.com/remit/ — the only authorized source of the brokerage’s payment details.
Gross commission checks are not allowed to be mailed to the Stuart St James office — mailing checks to the office is inefficient and creates massive delays in processing your commission payout.
If you are not able to physically pick up and deposit your gross commission check or facilitate its electronic transfer into our account (at no charge to you, we accept wire, ACH, or Zelle — details at https://stuartstjames.com/remit/, you are welcome to have the gross commission check mailed to your personal address for deposit — with the check still made payable to Stuart St James, of course, and deposited within two (2) business days of receipt.
To ensure you’re depositing gross commission into our operating account properly, Stuart St James agents read and follow our Agent Commission Deposit memo (available in the Documents & Forms folder of our corporate Box account).
To make commission deposits easier and more convenient for agents, Stuart St James agents are able to request a Bank of America Deposit Only ATM card if you anticipate picking up gross commission checks and want a “contactless” way to deposit them into our operating account.
How Quickly Do Real Estate Agents Get Paid Commission After a Deal Closes?
Given the amount of technology and automation we’ve built into our deal closing process, Stuart St James agents are given the opportunity to get paid quickly and efficiently.
Deposits of gross commission physical checks typically take one (1) banking day to clear our operating account and inbound wire transfers typically clear on the same banking day yet sometimes clear the next banking day depending on the time of day sent.
It’s at https://stuartstjames.com/deal/ you will tell us how you would like your commission distributed to you. For your convenience, we offer next-banking-day Direct Deposit (free for our agents).
While we previously made use of mailing commission checks via BillPay, the delays along with the potential loss or theft involved with postal mail prompted us to invest in our agents and make Direct Deposit to any bank free to team members – the efficiency creates a far better agent experience too!
How to Close My First Rental Deal in MA?
What do you need to get a payout on a rental deal (in terms of paperwork)?
When you close a rental deal, and after you facilitate the deposit of gross commission or rental fee into our Bank of America business operating account, you will visit https://stuartstjames.com/deal/ and provide supporting documentation for your transaction and indicate how you would like to be paid (including providing your Direct Deposit information if it’s a first-time transaction).
For rental deals, the supporting documentation you upload includes:
- Rental brokerage fee disclosure, if the client refuses to sign the disclosure, you must still fill out the document completely, sign, date, and print the client’s name and check the box that the client refused to sign – if the renter is not paying a fee for some reason (i.e. landlord is paying it), our deal submission form is smart enough to accommodate that
- The fully executed tenant lead law notification, if applicable
- A copy of the fully executed lease
How do I handle rental fees with other brokerages?
Please have the renter send fees to the appropriate brokerages directly. SSJ does not transfer fees to another brokerage – we structure things in this way to avoid the administrative and tax-related burden involved, which keeps fees low for our agents.
Do you need my bank info for Direct Deposit?
Yes, you will provide that at https://stuartstjames.com/deal/ when submitting your first deal.
Can I accept a personal check from my client for the broker fee?
A client can write a personal check, but under no circumstances can that check be written and made payable to you personally. According to Massachusetts General Laws, Part I, Title XVI, Chapter 112, Section 87RR, all compensation must be made payable to the brokerage, Stuart St James, Inc. As a salesperson, you may not accept compensation directly from any person except your licensed broker. There should be no uncertainty or confusion around this very important matter.