--- title: "How to become the agent other agents want to split with" description: "What separates the Dubai agents who get called first on a co-broke from those who get ghosted after the deal closes — and how to be the former." category: "client-reputation" readingTime: 12 --- ## The call that does not come Picture the scenario. An agent across town has a motivated buyer — pre-approved, passport ready, wants to move fast. They have a shortlist of units and one of yours is on it. They have two listing agents to call. One they have worked with before: the split was agreed before viewings, Form I was signed that morning, and payment arrived the same week the deal closed. The other agent, they have also worked with before: a verbal percentage, a week of WhatsApp messages arguing about who introduced the buyer to which unit, and eventually a cheque that cleared three months later. Guess which agent gets the call at 8 a.m. on a Sunday? Co-broking is the circulatory system of Dubai real estate. In Dubai's highly competitive real estate market, agent-to-agent collaboration is not only common — it's essential. The market runs on shared listings, dual-agency dynamics, and deals where the buyer's agent and the listing agent sit at two different brokerages. There is no centralised MLS with enforceable cooperation rules. A property owner can sign up to three Form A agreements at a time and deal with a maximum of three brokers. The same unit is often on three portals under three different Trakheesi permit numbers. That is the environment. In it, your reputation for being easy to split with — clean, fast, documented, reliable — is worth more than a strong listings pipeline. This article is about building that reputation deliberately. ## Why the split is the deal inside the deal When a buyer's agent walks into a showing with their client and the listing agent holds the keys, there are actually two deals running simultaneously. The first is between the buyer and the seller. The second is between the two agents — or more precisely, between their two brokerages. That second deal often gets less attention than it deserves, and the consequences of that neglect are predictable. When multiple agents are involved in a single listing, the commission is typically split among them. This can sometimes complicate the transaction, so clear agreements should be in place from the start. The complication is not abstract. It shows up as real friction at real moments: - The buyer wants to negotiate on price. Who has the mandate to go back to the seller — the listing agent alone, or both agents together? - The client upgrades to a higher floor unit at the last minute. Is the split percentage still the same on the new price? - The deal stalls for six weeks because of a NOC delay. Which brokerage's accounts team is chasing which payment? - The commission invoice is raised. Whose name is on it — the listing brokerage, the buyer's brokerage, or one combined invoice? None of these questions are complicated to answer if the split was agreed, in writing, before the viewing happened. All of them become arguments if it was not. ## The paperwork that protects both of you Dubai gives agents a specific tool for this: Form I. An efficient real estate market should ensure that agents across the industry can work collaboratively together in a professional manner. For this reason, RERA created Form I, which is used when two RERA-certified agents agree to work together. A Form I ensures that both agents' listings and clients are protected and promotes agents working together, regardless of which real estate company they represent. The form does more than record a handshake. The agent-to-agent agreement specifies the property in question, the names and RERA registration details of both agents, the commission split arrangement, confidentiality obligations regarding client information, and terms governing how the agents will cooperate through the transaction. That last part — terms governing cooperation — matters enormously in practice. It means both agents know, before a single viewing, who is doing what. Who communicates with the seller. Who manages the Form F (the MOU). Who raises the VAT invoice. These are not bureaucratic details; they are the difference between a deal that closes smoothly and one that generates a complaint. In fast-moving markets like Dubai, agents sometimes proceed on trust or a phone call agreement when time is short. This almost always creates problems if the deal becomes complicated. A verbal commission split agreement is not enforceable under RERA regulations. If a dispute arises between two agents over who is owed what, the agent without a signed Form I is in a very weak position. Making Form I a standard part of any co-brokerage arrangement is not excessive caution. The protecting dynamic runs in both directions. By signing a Form I, the buyer's agent is protected against the other agent taking their client, and the seller's agent is protected against either losing the listing or being cut out of the deal should the buyer wish to proceed. The form makes the relationship bilateral and documented — not because agents do not trust each other, but because clients change their minds, deals restructure, and memories differ. ### What goes into a properly drafted split agreement The split percentage is usually the first conversation and sometimes the only one agents have. That is not enough. Before the viewing, the agreement between agents — whether via Form I alone or supplemented by a separate written exchange confirmed by both agency principals — should cover: - **The exact percentage split** of the total brokerage commission, and whether that is of the gross commission or net of VAT. - **Which unit or units** the agreement covers. If the buyer ends up in a different unit in the same building, does this agreement still apply? - **Who issues the invoice to the client**, and to whom — the buyer, the seller, or both sides separately. - **When payment is due** — on signing of Form F, on transfer at the DLD, or on developer confirmation in an off-plan deal. - **What happens if the deal restructures** — price renegotiation, unit change, payment plan variation. - **The names and ORNs of both brokerages**, not just the individual agents. When two brokers collaborate on a deal, the commission structure must be agreed upon in advance. Without a clear agent-to-agent agreement, many agents end up in costly disputes or losing their commission entirely. ## The mechanics of who gets paid what In Dubai, there is no official law dictating the exact split for agent-to-agent commissions. That means the number is entirely negotiable, which is both freedom and a source of friction. Understanding the norms prevents you from either undervaluing your role or overreaching in a way that makes the other agent reluctant to call you next time. On secondary market sales, if the listing agent and selling agent are from different brokerages, the 2% is typically split 50/50 — 1% each. On rental deals, where the market convention sits at 5% of the annual rent paid by the tenant, a similar 50/50 principle often applies in a co-broke, though this is more variable depending on who has the Ejari mandate and who brought the tenant. In large or complex deals, the commission split between agencies can be negotiated between brokerages before the deal closes. A listing agent who has spent three months managing a difficult seller's expectations, running viewings for multiple unqualified buyers, and coordinating a No Objection Certificate with a developer might reasonably negotiate a different split than an agent who sent one buyer on a same-day viewing for a clean freehold unit. Both positions are defensible. Neither should be decided on the day the buyer signs. ### VAT on brokerage fees: do not bury this conversation All commissions are subject to 5% Value Added Tax (VAT) under UAE law. In a co-broke, the VAT obligation must be part of the split discussion. Both brokerages are VAT-registered entities (assuming they meet the threshold — if one does not, that affects the invoicing structure). The split percentage should be clear about whether it applies to the fee before or after VAT, and who issues the tax invoice to the client. Leaving this vague leads to exactly the kind of dispute where one agency receives the full commission including VAT, pays the VAT to the FTA, and then tries to pass a net-of-VAT figure to the co-broker — who was expecting the gross. It sounds like an accounting detail. It regularly becomes a six-figure argument. ## Where the payment actually stalls — and why The signed Form I is the beginning, not the finish line. The more common failure point is not the agreement but the payment — specifically, what happens between the client handing over a manager's cheque (or a series of post-dated cheques on a rental deal) and the co-broking agent's brokerage actually seeing the money. The mechanics in Dubai are relatively straightforward on paper. The client pays the brokerage — typically the listing brokerage, since their Form A carries the mandate. That brokerage then pays the buyer's agent's brokerage its agreed share. The problem is the chain. Once the money is inside one brokerage's accounts, it has to move to another entity. That movement requires someone to approve it, someone to process it, and often someone senior to authorise a payment to a company that is not on the regular supplier list. This is not dishonesty. It is process. But it is process that can delay payment by weeks or months, and that delay is the single biggest reason agents in Dubai are reluctant to co-broke with agencies they do not know. On rental deals, the post-dated cheque convention adds a further layer. A tenant for a mid-range apartment in Jumeirah Village or Business Bay typically hands over two, three, or four post-dated cheques. The first cheque may be cashed immediately; the brokerage commission is often expected on collection of that first cheque. But if the split payment only happens when the last cheque is deposited and cleared, the co-broker can be waiting six months into a tenancy before being paid for work completed on day one. This is a legitimate source of frustration and should be addressed explicitly in the split agreement. On off-plan deals, the timing question is different again. Off-plan commissions are paid by the developer, not the buyer — on most primary off-plan launches the developer pays the brokerage, so buyers usually pay no agency commission directly. The developer releases commission to the selling brokerage according to its own schedule — typically a portion on booking, a portion at SPA signing, and possibly a tranche at handover. If an agent has co-brokered an off-plan deal, their brokerage is dependent on when the developer pays the listing brokerage, and the developer's commission payment schedule has nothing to do with the agent's split agreement. This is a genuine structural delay, not a bad-faith one — and both agents should be aware of it before the deal is agreed. Dubai's regulated escrow system for off-plan projects — governed by Law No. 8 of 2007 — requires developers to open a dedicated, project-specific escrow account with a DLD-approved bank, deposit all buyer payments into that account, and withdraw funds only in stages linked to verified construction milestones. This protects buyers, but it also means developer cash flow is milestone-gated. An agent should understand that a developer's commission release schedule is tied to that construction and payment framework, not to the agent's personal timeline. ## How disputes start, and what they look like when they do Most agent-to-agent commission disputes in Dubai do not begin with dishonesty. They begin with ambiguity, then silence, then entrenched positions. The pattern is predictable: 1. A verbal or WhatsApp split is agreed in haste before a viewing. 2. The deal closes and the client pays. 3. One brokerage receives the money. 4. The paying brokerage interprets the original agreement differently from the receiving brokerage — on the percentage, on the VAT, on the timing, or on whether one additional viewing changed the scope. 5. Messages are exchanged. They are not responded to quickly. Someone escalates. 6. By the time a formal complaint is considered, both agents are spending time on a dispute rather than on new deals. RERA enforces Dubai's real estate rules and offers a formal path for grievances outside the courts. Agent-to-agent commission disputes that cannot be resolved bilaterally can be escalated to RERA or, for matters involving rental transactions, to the Rental Disputes Settlement Centre. The Rental Disputes Center in Dubai is an integrated judicial system that prioritizes the creation of a safe real estate environment by swiftly resolving disputes, conclusively settling cases with speed and precision. But reaching any formal body takes time, money, and energy that could have been spent closing the next deal. The RDSC handles disputes between landlords and tenants primarily — agent-to-agent commission claims sit within a different jurisdiction and typically require RERA's complaints mechanism. The practical reality: agents who find themselves in a formal dispute over a split have usually already lost, regardless of outcome. They have lost time, they have lost the relationship with the other agent, and they have marked themselves in their agency's network as someone whose deals end in arguments. That reputation travels. ## What the agent worth calling actually does differently The agents who get called first — the ones other agents want to split with — are not necessarily the ones with the biggest social following or the most listings on Bayut. They are the ones who have made being easy to work with a repeatable system. Here is what that looks like in practice. ### They qualify before they co-broke Before agreeing to a co-broke arrangement, they confirm the basics: the other agent's BRN, the listing's Trakheesi permit number, and whether the listing brokerage's Form A is active. Practising agents must be registered with RERA and hold a broker card with a broker registration number (BRN). An unlicensed agent cannot legally collect commission, and any commission paid to an unlicensed agent is not protected under UAE law if a dispute arises. Checking these takes two minutes. Not checking them can create a situation where a deal closes and there is no regulatory basis for the co-broker to be paid. ### They initiate the Form I, they do not wait for the other side to do it Waiting is a positioning mistake. The agent who sends Form I first sets the terms of the discussion. It is not aggressive — it is professional. The form creates the framework; whatever specific split terms are agreed get captured in it. The agent who waits is always reacting. ### They spell out the payment mechanism, not just the percentage Before a single viewing, the productive agent confirms in writing: which brokerage issues the client invoice, when the split payment is triggered (Form F signing, DLD transfer, developer confirmation), and who the accounts contact is at each brokerage. This is not unusual to ask for. Any serious brokerage has an accounts process. The question signals that you have one too. ### They do not re-negotiate after the fact Nothing destroys a co-broking relationship faster than trying to change the agreed split because the deal took longer than expected or because the buyer renegotiated the price down. The agreed percentage applies to the final transaction value, unless both parties explicitly agreed otherwise before the price changed. Trying to revisit the split after the client has paid is the single fastest way to make sure that agent never calls again. ### They keep the client relationship clean between the two agencies One of the hidden tensions in a co-broke is the client. Both agents have a relationship with the buyer or tenant. Agents are required under RERA rules to disclose their commission arrangement to all parties. That disclosure is not just a regulatory requirement; it is also a signal to the client that this is a professional, transparent process. Agents who use the co-broke as an opportunity to undermine the other agent in the client's eyes — subtly or otherwise — are poisoning their own well. A client who sees two agents behaving professionally together has more confidence in both. A client who senses friction between the two agents loses confidence in the entire deal. ### They make the post-deal debrief a habit After a split deal closes and both parties are paid, a brief conversation about what worked and what could be smoother is worth its weight in future business. Which part of the process felt slow? Was the Form F handled efficiently? Did the client get any confusing signals from having two agents involved? This conversation converts a one-off transaction into a working relationship. ## The listings reputation you did not realise you were building There is a second dimension to co-broking reputation that agents underestimate: the quality of what you offer when you are the listing agent in the co-broke. Agents who co-broke well attract better co-brokering agents. When the agent community knows that calling you means getting a signed Form I before the viewing, a clean Trakheesi-permitted listing, an organised Form A, and an accounts process that pays on time, they bring you their best-qualified clients. They bring you buyers who are ready to move, not browsers who need six months to decide. With over 12,000 registered brokers now operating in the city and international agencies entering the fray, it's no longer enough just to have a RERA card and a car. In a market that crowded, differentiation comes from operational discipline as much as from property knowledge. The agent who takes three days to send Form I, argues about percentages after the client has committed, and whose brokerage's accounts team is unreachable — that agent's listings are available in theory. But they are not the listings other agents prioritise. When a buyer mentions a unit and the agent has two listings in that building — one with a reliable co-broker and one with a difficult one — the buyer sees only one option on that morning's WhatsApp. ### Your Trakheesi permits are your credibility RERA has stepped up compliance measures. Agents must renew their licences annually, pass mandatory exams, and follow strict rules for marketing under the Trakheesi system. Every listing in Dubai should carry a valid Trakheesi permit number. When a co-brokering agent checks your listing before calling you, that permit number is the first thing they verify. A listing without a valid permit is not a listing — it is a liability. Running a clean listing book, with every property on the market under a properly issued permit, signals to co-broking agents that dealing with you will not create compliance problems for their own brokerage. For rental deals, the Ejari registration — the mandatory online tenancy contract registration with the DLD — also falls within this discipline. When a tenancy closes through a co-broke and the Ejari is managed cleanly, the tenant, the landlord, and the co-broking agent all experience a professional conclusion to the transaction. When it is managed poorly, it becomes a point of conflict that reflects on both agencies. ## The friction that kills deals before they close Co-broked deals have an additional vulnerability that purely single-agency deals do not: they can collapse not because of a client problem or a property problem, but because of a breakdown between the two agents. This is especially dangerous at the Form F stage. Form F is the Memorandum of Understanding between buyer and seller. It is signed by the two parties when the buyer agrees to buy a property at a given price. Form F lists the terms and conditions, rate, commission split for buyer's and seller's agent, and other vital details of the property. Form F records the commission split on the document itself. If the two agents have not agreed the split before Form F is prepared, the Form F becomes the moment of conflict. One agent, whose brokerage is preparing the form, fills in a number. The other agent sees it for the first time and disagrees. The client, who is sitting there ready to sign, now witnesses two agents arguing about money in front of them. That scenario ends deals. The solution is not complicated. Agree the split, sign Form I, and confirm the numbers that will appear on Form F — before anyone is in a room with a client and a cheque. ## The principle that changes how you work The cleaner truth underneath all of this is that co-brokerage commission disputes are, almost without exception, a documentation and timing failure — not a character failure. Most agents in Dubai are honest. Most brokerages want to pay what they agreed to pay. The disputes happen because the agreement was vague, the timing was unaddressed, and the payment mechanism was never spelled out. The version of this that works — the version that earns an agent the reputation that makes other agents reach for their phone on Sunday morning — rests on a single organising principle: the split is agreed in writing before the client pays, every party knows when and how they will receive their share, and the payment happens simultaneously or as near to simultaneously as the deal structure permits. When the listing agent receives the commission, the co-broker's share should move within a defined, pre-agreed window — not when the accounts team gets around to it, not when the principal authorises it after a reminder, and not when the last post-dated cheque clears six months later. The timing of payment is part of the agreement, and it should be treated with the same precision as the percentage. Agents who build their co-broking reputation around this principle — upfront agreement, signed documentation, fast payment — stop chasing co-brokering agents and start being sought by them. Their listings move faster because more agents are motivated to bring them buyers. Their buyers get shown more inventory because listing agents know the deal will be clean. And their commission disputes become, over time, a problem they read about rather than one they experience. That is not a feature of any system or tool. It is a standard of practice. And it is available to every licensed agent in Dubai starting with the next deal they agree.