# E-signatures for real estate agents

> Brokerage agreement, withdrawal notice and commission agreement go out as a signing link and satisfy the text form under § 656a BGB, from exclusive listing to notary.

Source: https://smartdocs.de/en/industries/real-estate-agents/

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SmartDocs digitizes the contracts in real estate brokerage: the brokerage agreement, the withdrawal notice and the commission agreement go to the client's phone as a signing link and satisfy the text form under § 656a BGB (German Civil Code). Almost everything in brokerage only requires text form and can therefore run entirely online, with no mail and no appointment.

## Typical documents and signature levels

- Brokerage agreement and exclusive listing (sale): AES recommended. Satisfies the text form under § 656a BGB; without text form the agreement is void and the commission claim is lost.
- Withdrawal notice (notice of the consumer's right of withdrawal): SES. Mandatory for contracts concluded by email or phone; the audit trail proves delivery and timing. Without the notice, the withdrawal period extends to twelve months and 14 days.
- Commission agreement with the buyer: AES recommended. Text form applies here too; the commission split under §§ 656c, 656d BGB (the party who engaged the agent pays at least half) is properly documented.
- Extension and price adjustment: SES. Amendments signed in minutes from a template.
- Handover report: SES on site. The one document signed at the property, via [in-person signing](/en/in-person-signing/) on a tablet, with meter readings and key list.

The real estate purchase contract itself stays with the notary (notarization under § 311b BGB). For brokering rental apartments, § 2 of the Housing Brokerage Act (Wohnungsvermittlungsgesetz) also requires text form.

## How a listing runs

1. Exclusive listing at the first meeting: signing link to the owner's phone, text form and withdrawal notice documented.
2. Buyer under contract: the commission agreement goes out as a link and is signed before the next appointment, commission split under §§ 656c, 656d BGB included.
3. Complete file for the notary appointment: extensions, price adjustments and amendments go the same way; every signature is in the file with a timestamp.

## Matching features

Templates for the brokerage agreement, withdrawal notice and commission agreement, automatic reminders to signers who have not yet signed with real-time status, documented identity verification in the audit trail (real estate agents are obliged entities under the German Money Laundering Act, Geldwäschegesetz) and the signing link, which, unlike a loose email chain, proves who agreed and when.