Streamlining Compliance Tracking with Brivity Notes

Tracking Compliance with Precision: How We Use Brivity Notes to Stay Ahead

Transaction management in real estate is a high-stakes balancing act. Each deal involves numerous moving parts and people: buyers and sellers, their respective agents, transaction coordinators, and key collaborators such as escrow officers, title reps, lenders, and inspectors. Every party has their own responsibilities, timelines, and expectations, and every transaction comes with its own contingency deadlines, investigation periods, and closing dates.

On top of that, all documentation must be completed in accordance with strict state, local, and brokerage-specific compliance regulations. It’s a lot to keep track of—and even the most organized systems can struggle when faced with inspection delays, unresponsive third parties, or constantly evolving compliance rules.

That’s why our team uses Brivity Notes as a centralized compliance tracking tool. While Brivity’s Auto-Plans and Transaction Profiles help us streamline communication and task management, Brivity Notes allows us to visually track document status in real-time and ensure nothing falls through the cracks.

Why Brivity Notes?

Think of Brivity Notes as the transaction’s living checklist—a clear, easily accessible breakdown of what’s required, what’s been completed, and what’s still pending.

At the start of each transaction, we create a note that outlines the required documents at every phase of the deal, customized based on the property's location, the brokerage’s requirements, and the transaction type. Here's a simplified breakdown:

🔹 Listed Stage

• Residential Listing Agreement (RLA)

• Seller Advisory (SA)

• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) Disclosure

• Wire Fraud Advisory (WFA)

• Any additional state/local disclosures or brokerage forms

🔹 Under Contract

• Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA)

• Any counter offers

• Contingency Removals (CR)

• Request for Repairs (RR) & Responses (RRRR)

• Seller Property Questionnaire (SPQ)

• Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS)

• Escrow instructions, preliminary title, inspection reports

🔹 Closed

• Final Settlement Statement

• Full Closing Package

• Disbursement Checks

• Any post-closing agreements or addenda

This initial note gives us a crystal-clear overview of what’s needed and what to expect. From there, as each document is created, sent for signing, uploaded to Command (our compliance software), or sent to collaborators, we update the note with its current status.

Example: From Listing to Contract

Let’s say we take a new listing. The Brivity Note might begin like this:

Listed:

• RLA – uploaded

• SA – uploaded

• CCPA – out for signing

• WFA – out for signing

Under Contract:

• RPA

• Counters

• CR

• RR

• RRRR

• SPQ

• TDS

Closed:

• Final Statement

• Closing Package

• Disbursement Checks

As documents are returned and uploaded, we update the note:

✅ “CCPA – signed & uploaded 4/10”
✉️ “SPQ – sent to buyer’s agent 4/15”
📌 “CR – due from buyer’s agent 4/25”

This real-time tracking helps everyone involved—coordinators, agents, compliance officers—stay in sync. There’s no need to dig through emails or dig around in the CRM. The entire document flow is visible in one place.

Tracking Document Status and Compliance Approval

Once the transaction enters the under-contract phase, the Brivity Note becomes even more active. Here’s what a mid-transaction note might look like:

Listed: ✅ APPROVED
Under Contract:

• RPA – uploaded

• Counters – uploaded

• CR – due 4/25

• SPQ – sent 4/15, follow-up scheduled for 4/22

• TDS – signed & uploaded 4/16

• RR – in negotiation

• RRRR – pending response

Closed:

• Final Statement – awaiting delivery from escrow

• Closing Package – receiving 4/26

• Disbursement Checks – receiving 4/26

If compliance kicks back a document—say, a missing initial—we make a clear note:

⚠️ “CR – missing buyer initial on page 1, sent back to buyer’s agent for correction 4/25”

Once that’s fixed and re-uploaded, we update again:

✅ “CR – corrected, re-uploaded 4/26”

This level of transparency not only helps us stay compliant but also builds trust within the team. Agents know we’re on top of every detail and can rest assured their commissions won’t be held up due to paperwork delays.

The Final Stage: Compliance Cleared = Check Ready

Once all documents are accounted for, uploaded, and approved by our compliance team, the Brivity Note gets its final update:

ALL APPROVED!!

This is our green light to notify the agent that their commission check is ready for release. Ideally, this happens within 1–2 business days of COE (Close of Escrow), but if there are delays from escrow, we’ve already tracked that in the note—and the agent knows exactly where we stand.

Why This Matters

Compliance in California is no joke. With dozens of required disclosures, frequent updates to regulations, and zero margin for error, it can easily become the most overwhelming part of the real estate transaction—especially when managing multiple deals at once.

Using Brivity Notes gives us a reliable, consistent way to stay ahead. It ensures nothing is missed, helps us avoid last-minute surprises, and protects our agents and clients alike. Most importantly, it creates a better experience for our clients. We minimize unnecessary back-and-forth by sending complete, accurate documents the first time and by explaining everything clearly up front.

This system has saved our team hours of guesswork, countless follow-ups, and more than a few headaches—and it's made a huge difference in both compliance and client satisfaction.