Transaction Coordination

Transaction Coordinator Intake Form: Agent Questionnaire

A copyable agent onboarding questionnaire for transaction coordinators (communication, systems, compliance, vendors, commission and CDA, signatures and boundaries), the per-deal intake fields, and how to use both.

Ijharul Islam October 21, 2026 8 min read

A transaction coordinator intake form, in short, comes in two parts: a one-time agent onboarding questionnaire (about 30 questions in 8 sections, answered before the first file) and a short per-deal intake form sent with every new contract (side, property, acceptance date, executed contract and parties). The first sets up how you work together; the second opens each file.

More on this topic: TC and brokerage operations, every guide in one place.

Most intake templates online mix the two, so agents re-answer the same preference questions on every deal. Below is the questionnaire to copy, the per-deal fields, how to run the onboarding, and which answers change how you set up a file. To let agents send you new deals in one step, see Closingbird's intake links.

Key takeaways

Ask preferences once, in an onboarding questionnaire; ask deal facts every time, in a short intake form.
The questions that save the most rework: brokerage compliance system and required documents, commission and CDA instructions, and who may sign or send what.
Go through the answers on a short call, then confirm them in writing; they become part of how you run that agent's files.
Don't collect passwords, client Social Security numbers or wiring details on a form.
Review the answers after the first few files and whenever the agent changes brokerage or team.

What is the difference between an onboarding questionnaire and a deal intake form?

The onboarding questionnaire captures how an agent likes to work and is answered once; the deal intake form captures the facts of one transaction and is filled in for every contract.

	Agent onboarding questionnaire	Per-deal intake form
When	Once, before the first file	Every time there's a new executed contract
Length	About 30 questions, 20–30 minutes	A few minutes, plus the contract
Covers	Communication, systems, compliance, vendors, commission, signatures, boundaries, billing	Side, property, acceptance date, contract, parties, anything unusual
Changes when	The agent changes brokerage, team or preferences	Every deal

What should the agent onboarding questionnaire ask?

It should ask everything you'd otherwise have to ask on the first file. Copy these questions into your form tool or a document and remove what doesn't apply.

1. About you and your brokerage

Your name as licensed, license number, mobile and email.
Brokerage name and office address; broker of record or managing broker.
Team name and team lead, if any; who else should be copied on your files?
Which states and areas do you work in? Which deal types (resale, new construction, land, leases)?

2. Communication preferences

Preferred channel for updates: email, text, phone or a shared status page?
How often do you want updates: at each milestone, weekly, or only when something's wrong?
Hours you don't want to be contacted, and your time zone.
For urgent issues, who's your backup if you're unreachable?

3. Forms, e-signature and systems

Which forms platform and e-signature tool do you use?
Which transaction management or compliance system does your brokerage require, and who uploads to it: you or me?
Do you want files emailed to you, shared in a folder, or only uploaded to the brokerage system?
Do you use a CRM I should update, or would you rather I didn't?

4. Brokerage compliance

Can you share your brokerage's required-document checklist for buyer and listing files?
When must a file be submitted for review (at contract, before closing, after closing)?
Who reviews files, and who should I contact when something is returned?
Any brokerage-specific forms or disclosures on every file?

5. Preferred vendors

Preferred lenders, title or escrow companies, and closing attorneys (if used in your state).
Inspectors, home warranty, surveyors, movers or cleaners you recommend to clients.
Should I recommend vendors to clients, or only send your list when asked?

6. Commission and CDA

Who prepares the commission disbursement authorization (CDA): your brokerage, or me for your review?
Your split, team split, franchise or transaction fees, and any referral fees to show (see commission split structures).
Should my TC fee appear on the CDA, or will you pay my invoice directly?
Who signs the CDA, and where does it go?

7. Clients and the other side

Should I introduce myself to clients by email, text or both? Do you want to approve the first message?
May I contact the other agent, lender and title or escrow directly for documents and scheduling?
Closing gifts, review requests or post-closing follow-up you want me to handle?
Anything clients should never hear from me? (Questions about terms or price go to you.)

8. Signatures, authority and billing

Which documents may I prepare and send for signature without asking you first?
Which messages must you approve before they go out?
Should my emails go out under my name, or say I'm writing on your behalf?
Who pays my fee, when is it due, and where should invoices go?

Keep the boundary questions in. What an unlicensed coordinator may say to clients is set by your state: New Jersey's Real Estate Commission, for example, says unlicensed assistants cannot discuss or explain a contract with anyone outside the firm, or answer questions on listings, title, financing or closings.

What goes on the per-deal intake form?

The per-deal intake form needs only what you can't get from the contract itself:

Agent name and which side they represent (buyer, seller or both).
Property address and acceptance (effective) date.
The fully executed contract and every addendum and counter-offer.
Other parties' contacts: clients, the other agent, lender, title or escrow.
Anything unusual: a sale contingency, a pending repair agreement, a rent-back, a short closing.

In Closingbird, an intake link is this form. You create a link (one per agent if you like) and choose who new transactions go to. The agent fills in their details and side, the property and acceptance date, attaches the executed contract and optionally the other parties, and clicks Send transaction: the transaction opens itself, assigned to that person, and the contract is read so its dates and parties are filled in for you to check. The intake link doesn't hold the onboarding questionnaire; keep those answers on the agent's contact in your CRM, using custom fields for the ones you sort by.

How do you run onboarding with a new agent?

Send the questionnaire as soon as the agent agrees to work with you, with your TC agreement.
Book a 20–30 minute call to go through the answers. Agents skip questions on forms but answer them out loud.
Send a short written summary of what you agreed: channels, approvals, CDA process, fee.
Turn answers into setup: vendor contacts in your CRM, the brokerage's required documents on your checklist, email templates in the agent's preferred tone (see TC email templates).
Send the agent their intake link and ask them to use it for the next contract.
After the first few files, ask what to change, and update the answers.

Which answers change how you set up each file?

If the agent says	Set up
Updates by text, milestones only	Text from the file at each milestone; no weekly email
Brokerage requires documents in its own system	Add “upload to brokerage system” to the checklist with a due date
Compliance review before closing	A checklist step to submit a few days before closing, not after
TC fee on the CDA	Add your fee as a payee line when the commission is entered (see how a CDA works)
Approve the first client email	Draft it and send it to the agent, not the client
Clients see progress without asking	Share a no-login status page with each client
The seller is selling in a 1031 exchange	Add the qualified intermediary as a contact, and put the 45-day and 180-day dates from the free 1031 exchange deadline calculator on the file once the sale closes

Frequently asked questions

What is a transaction coordinator intake form?

A form agents fill in to hand a TC a new deal: side, property, acceptance date, the executed contract and the parties. Many TCs also use a one-time onboarding questionnaire for the agent's preferences.

What questions should a TC ask a new agent?

Communication preferences, forms and e-signature tools, the brokerage's compliance system and required documents, preferred vendors, commission and CDA instructions, what the TC may send without approval, and how the fee is paid.

Should I use Google Forms for TC intake?

You can. A form tool collects answers, but someone still has to re-enter the deal. A transaction tool with its own intake link opens the file from the submission instead.

Should the intake form ask for wiring instructions?

No. Wiring instructions should come only from the title or escrow company through its secure process. Don't collect them, passwords or Social Security numbers on a form.

How often should I update an agent's onboarding answers?

Review them after the first few files, then whenever the agent changes brokerage, team or systems, and at least once a year.

Let agents send you deals in one step

Give each agent an intake link: they attach the executed contract, and the transaction opens itself, assigned to you, with the contract read. Start a free trial (14-day free trial, no credit card required) or see pricing.

Sources

Checked in October 2026. Rules and prices change, and many vary by state, so confirm with the source, your state's real estate commission or your broker before you rely on them.

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