FOR BROKERS AND AGENTS
Broker guide
Set your commission when the transaction is created, have both parties see it before they accept, and get paid at the same moment the seller does. No invoice, and nobody to chase after the deal has closed.
Commission set up front
Visible to both parties
Paid at release
Written authority required
Three parties, one record
Before this page is published. The verification requirements for a broker account, any cap or limit on commission, and whether a licence is required for particular categories must be confirmed by Rbcpay and must match the terms and conditions. Brokerage is a regulated activity in many places, and this page must not imply otherwise.
The problem this solves
Getting paid stops being the awkward part of the deal
The hardest moment in a brokered sale is usually not finding the buyer. It is the week after completion, when the money has moved and your commission is somebody’s outstanding invoice.
A brokered transaction on Rbcpay records your commission alongside the price, before the buyer funds anything. Both parties accept it as part of the terms. When the buyer approves the release, your commission is paid out at the same moment as the seller’s proceeds, out of the same held funds.
What changes for you
- Your commission is agreed before the deal is funded, not after
- Both parties see it, so it is never a surprise
- It is paid from held funds, not from goodwill
- You are not holding client money at any point
- The full record exists if anyone later disagrees
How a brokered transaction works
Six steps. The commission is decided at step three, not after step six.
1
Create the transaction
You set it up as the broker, naming the buyer and the seller.
2
Record your authority
Say which party you act for and on what written authority.
3
Set your commission
Amount or percentage, and who bears it. It becomes part of the terms.
4
Both parties accept
They see the price, the fee and your commission together, and accept or do not.
5
The buyer funds
Everything is held, including your commission, while the deal completes.
6
Release
The buyer approves. Seller proceeds and your commission are paid at the same moment.
A commission that is not recorded on the transaction before it is funded cannot be released with it. There is no way to add it afterwards, and that is deliberate.
What to record before the transaction is funded
A brokered deal has three parties and three sets of expectations. Write all of them down while everyone is still agreeable.
Your commission
- The amount, or the percentage and what it is a percentage of
- Whether the buyer, the seller or both bear it
- Whether it is payable if the deal completes at a different price
- What happens to it if the buyer rejects after inspection
- Any expenses you are recovering, itemised
- That there are no other fees you have not disclosed
Your authority
- Which party you act for, named clearly
- The written authority you hold to act for them
- Whether you may agree the price, or only present it
- Whether you may change delivery, terms or the inspection period
- Whether you may accept or approve on their behalf
- When your authority ends
The deal itself
- The description both parties are agreeing to
- Price, currency and who pays the Rbcpay fee
- Delivery or collection, and by when
- The inspection period and grounds to reject
- Who pays for a return if it is rejected
- Any condition the deal depends on
STOP
Never take the client's money through your own account
The point of a brokered transaction here is that you never hold client funds. The buyer funds Rbcpay, and you are paid from the release. A broker who receives the purchase money personally has taken on every risk and every obligation that comes with holding client money.
- Do not ask a buyer to pay you and say you will pass it on
- Do not take a deposit outside the transaction to hold an item
- Do not give a buyer payment details other than the ones on the site
- Do not accept a commission arranged privately with one side only
- Do not approve a release on a buyer's behalf without written authority
Disclosure
Both sides see the same numbers, and that is the point
Your commission appears on the transaction alongside the price and the Rbcpay fee. Both parties see all three before either of them accepts. Nothing is netted off quietly and nothing appears later.
Brokers sometimes worry that visible commission invites negotiation. In practice it removes the conversation that damages deals, which is the one that happens after completion when somebody discovers a number they were not expecting.
Conflicts to declare
- You are acting for both the buyer and the seller
- You have a personal or financial interest in the item
- You are related to, or connected with, either party
- You are receiving a payment or benefit from anyone else in the chain
- You are also the seller, through a company or another name
Acting for both sides is not automatically wrong, but it has to be disclosed to both, in writing, before anyone accepts the terms.
Keep the deal on the record
As the broker you are usually the one both parties talk to. That makes you the person most likely to end up holding the only copy of something important.
- Put agreed changes on the transaction, not in a private chat
- Confirm anything agreed by phone in writing the same day
- Send the same information to both parties, not a version each
- Keep your authority letters until the transaction is complete
- Never relay payment details that came to you by message
When a deal goes wrong
If a dispute is raised, the funds are held and that includes your commission. The record you built at the start is what the case is decided against.
- Your commission is released when the transaction is released
- A dispute holds everything until it is closed
- Terms you recorded are evidence, chats you did not are weaker
- Say plainly which party you act for when the case is reviewed
- Do not take sides beyond the authority you actually hold
Common brokered categories
The commission mechanics are the same. What changes is what has to be verified before funding.
Vehicles
Title, finance and inspection agreed before funding.
Property
Alongside the professionals, not instead of them.
Art and jewellery
Provenance and valuation recorded on the transaction.
Domains and digital
Transfer, escrow of credentials and confirmation.
Brokerage is a regulated activity for some categories in some places. Whether a licence or registration is required for your category is a question for your own regulator, and any Rbcpay requirement is To be confirmed.
Broker questions
When do I get paid?
At release. When the buyer approves, the seller’s proceeds and your commission are paid out of the same held funds at the same moment.
Can I add my commission after the transaction is funded?
No. It has to be recorded before funding so that both parties accept it as part of the terms. There is no way to attach it later.
Who pays my commission?
Whoever the parties agree, recorded on the transaction. It can be the buyer, the seller, or split between them.
Do both parties see my commission?
Yes. It appears alongside the price and the Rbcpay fee before either party accepts the terms.
Can I act for both the buyer and the seller?
Where the law and your own professional rules allow it, and only if it is disclosed to both parties in writing before they accept. Undisclosed dual agency is where brokers get into serious trouble.
What if the deal completes at a different price?
That depends on what you recorded. If your commission is a percentage, say a percentage of what. If it is a fixed amount, say whether it changes when the price does.
What happens to my commission in a dispute?
It is held with the rest of the funds until the case is closed, then released or not according to the outcome and the terms.
Can I hold the buyer's money and pass it on?
Not through Rbcpay, and it defeats the purpose. The buyer funds the transaction directly, which is what keeps you out of the business of holding client money.
Set the commission at the start, not at the end
Record it with the price, have both parties accept it, and be paid the moment the deal releases.
Rbcpay is a marketplace transaction platform and is not a bank, licensed escrow agent, insurer or law firm. Whether brokerage in your category and jurisdiction requires a licence, registration or professional insurance is a matter for you and your regulator. Nothing on this page is legal or regulatory advice.