Dear Forms Committee: The title company is asking for a commission form, is there one I can send them?

First, check with your brokerage to see if they have a specific in-house form they would prefer you to use.

If not, you can use OREF 091 – Notice of Real Estate Compensation. This form can be used as a written notice of compensation to notify the escrow agent of that agreement.

The form is carefully worded for an important reason: as it says at the top, it complies with ORS 696.582. That statute says that if, before closing, escrow receives both:

• a properly worded and completed notice of compensation, and
• instructions from the buyer and seller that say that the agent is entitled to an amount of compensation different from the amount stated in the notice,

then at closing, escrow has to hold the amount described in the compensation agreement until (1) the discrepancy between the instructions is resolved, (2) a court makes an order, or (3) the money is transferred by escrow to a court.

The statute also says that if the notice is delivered more than ten days before the scheduled closing date, the agent must deliver a copy of it to their client. Otherwise, escrow delivers it to the client.

As you can see, using this form helps to protect agents from receiving less than they agree to receive.

All comments and responses from OREF or its staff, managers, and volunteers are non-legal opinions made for general purposes. Each Forms subscriber must rely solely upon their Principal broker or personal legal counsel for specific advice and instruction. You and your client should independently confirm that the Form(s) you use are legally suitable for the purposes intended and that they are current with respect to all laws and regulations.