Who this is for
Independent agents who invoice their brokerage, brokerages that bill closing parties directly, transaction coordinators billing per closing, and ancillary providers like staging companies, photographers and 3D-tour shooters who issue invoices alongside a sale.
What belongs on a real estate invoice
Property identification at the top. Full street address (no abbreviations), MLS number when applicable, and sale price. These create the audit trail for the commission calculation and let the title company match the invoice to a specific file.
Closing date as the invoice anchor. Commission is typically earned at closing, not at offer acceptance. An invoice dated to closing keeps the broker, the title company and the IRS happy. Issuing it earlier creates a paper trail for a fee you have not yet earned.
Commission split disclosure. If you are billing on a split (say 70/30 with the brokerage) state that on the invoice or reference the agreement that does. It avoids future internal disputes about who is owed what.
Pay-at-close note in the terms block. For invoices that will be settled out of the closing statement, something like "Payable at close of escrow per instructions to [title company]" in the terms block keeps the timeline honest.
Fees agents commonly bill alongside commission
- Transaction coordination fee (typically $300 to $500)
- Marketing and professional photography
- Staging coordination
- Open-house signage and refreshments
- MLS or listing service fee, if not covered by brokerage
RESPA, 1099 thresholds, and what to keep clean (US)
The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act prohibits referral kickbacks between settlement-service providers. Invoices that look like they are paying for referrals rather than actual services attract attention. Make sure every line describes work that was actually done and reflects market-rate pricing. Vague "coordination fees" with no deliverable behind them are the kind of thing that gets flagged.
Commissions paid to an agent that exceed the IRS 1099 threshold ($600 in 2026 for most categories) require a 1099 from the brokerage. Keep your invoices consistent with what the brokerage will report, or the year-end reconciliation gets painful.
Pitfalls
- Issuing the invoice before closing. If the deal falls through, you have a paper trail of a fee you never earned. Always date the invoice to actual closing.
- Mixing seller-side and buyer-side fees on one invoice. Keep them on separate documents; co-mingling causes accounting issues for the brokerage.
- Forgetting the marketing pass-through. Photographers, stagers, sign installers paid out of escrow need their lines visible to be approved.
How to use this template
- Open the real estate template.
- Put the property address into Ship To and the MLS number into the PO / reference field.
- Add commission lines with the sale price visible.
- Itemise any marketing or TC pass-throughs separately.
- Date the invoice to closing day.
- Download the PDF for the brokerage's records.