Real Estate Agents & Brokers Bookkeeping in Montana

A commission is earned gross and banked net. Between those two numbers sit the brokerage split, desk or franchise fees, E&O insurance, and per-transaction fees — and in Montana the brokerage will report the gross figure on a 1099 while your account only ever saw the remainder. Recording the deposit as revenue understates income and makes every one of those costs invisible, which is why the split has to be booked as its own expense rather than netted away. Montana has no statewide general sales tax, so the fee stack is an income question rather than a sales tax one.

A Montana real estate licence is issued and renewed by the state, and the licence, continuing education, association dues, and multiple listing service fees are recurring costs that arrive at different points in the year. Tracked as one lump they tell you nothing; tracked separately you can see what simply holding the licence costs before a single deal closes. The business entity itself, if you hold one, is registered with the Montana Secretary of State, and where you have employees rather than working solo, registration runs through the Montana Department of Labor and Industry.

Most agents are paid as independent contractors, so nothing is withheld and quarterly estimated payments cover both the federal liability and Montana's. That makes the fourth quarter of a strong year genuinely dangerous — a December closing can create a payment due in January that nobody set aside for. We keep the books current enough that whoever calculates your estimates is working from real figures rather than a guess; the calculation itself belongs with your CPA or enrolled agent.

Montana is one of thirteen states with no real estate transfer or deed tax, so a closing here carries fewer line items to classify than in most states. Recording fees and title charges still need a consistent capitalize-versus-expense treatment, and that consistency across years is what actually matters.