Q: I’m a broker associate, and I have a buyer who may make an offer on a residential single-family home by the end of the month. The buyer wants the earnest money deposit to be held in my real estate brokerage company escrow account. Although the buyer has recently handed over the physical check for the earnest money, he’s asked me to hold the check (not deposit it) until he actually makes an offer on the property. May I wait until the offer has been made to deposit the earnest money check?
A: No. Rule 61J2-14.009, Florida Administrative Code (FAC), provides that any associate or broker associate must deliver the escrow deposit “to the broker or employer no later than the end of the next business day following receipt of the item to be deposited.” Then, the broker must comply with Rule 61J2-14.010(1), FAC, which requires the broker to immediately deposit the escrow funds in the escrow account. Immediately is defined in Rule 61J2- 14.008(3), FAC, as “…the placement of a deposit in an escrow account no later than the end of the third business day following receipt of the item to be deposited. Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays shall not be considered as business days.”