Guide on Electronic Signature for Estate Agents: Full Mobility and Validity in the Deposit Contract

The Office Is at the Viewing

The real estate sector is, by definition, a mobile business. A sales agent spends 80% of their time away from the agency: showing properties, listing new ones or negotiating terms in a café.

Yet many agencies are still tied to closing processes that require “going back to the office to sign”. That delay is the enemy of the sale: the client goes cold, gets another offer or simply has second thoughts.

For a real estate manager or a Proptech, choosing an electronic signature platform is not a technical decision but a conversion one. Solutions that require card readers, qualified certificates or biometric hardware (dedicated tablets) are not practical in the field and do not fit the speed and convenience signers expect. Below we look at the 4 key factors for choosing a tool that closes deals “on the spot” with full legal certainty.

1. Signing Experience: Mobility and “Bring Your Own Device”

The estate agent cannot carry a portable office. The solution you choose must make it possible to formalise agreements on the spot, using the device the client already has in their pocket: their smartphone.

The key criterion: Multi-device signing
Avoid solutions that require installing an app.

• The ideal flow: The client, happy with the property they have just viewed, receives a link by SMS or email. They open the reservation document or viewing sheet in their mobile browser, check the details and sign with their finger on screen.
• Security without friction: To give that stroke legal weight, the platform must apply Advanced Electronic Signature with OTP. The client receives an SMS code to validate the action. This links the signer and their device to the document, creating evidence that is far stronger than a paper form signed on the bonnet of a car.

2. The Deposit Contract and Remote Reservation

The real estate market is increasingly global. It is common for the buyer or tenant not to live in the same city as the property. Sending deposit contracts by courier or waiting for the client to travel to sign puts the deal at risk.

What the solution must allow:

• Asynchronous remote signing: Send the deposit contract to a buyer in Madrid, the seller in Barcelona and the agent in Valencia, and have everyone sign within minutes.
• Legal validity: A private sale contract (deposit/earnest money) signed electronically is fully valid and binding in law. The platform must generate an Audit Trail (evidence certificate) that proves the identity of all parties and protects the amount paid on account.

3. Beyond the Sale: Rental Management and Notifications

The life cycle of a property does not end at the signature. Rental management generates a heavy administrative load that is often handled inefficiently (ordinary post) or expensively (certified mail).

The hybrid strategy:
Look for a platform that is not only for signing contracts but also for certifying communications.

• Rent increase notification: Instead of sending a letter the tenant can claim never to have received, use certified email. It is cheaper than certified mail and legally proves that you notified the rent update on time.
• Unpaid rent claims: Before starting eviction proceedings, you must prove that you attempted amicable collection. Certified email content is admissible in court to show the owner acted in good faith.

4. Integration for Proptech and Large Networks

If you run a franchise network or a high-volume Proptech platform, you cannot rely on agents manually uploading PDFs to a website.

The technical criterion: Signature API
Signing should happen inside your real estate CRM (such as Prinex, Inmovilla or in-house systems).

• Automation: When the agent marks a property as “Reserved” in the CRM, the system automatically sends the reservation contract to the parties.
• Data control: The signed document is stored only in the property record. This avoids contracts with sensitive data (GDPR) being left in agents’ email inboxes.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can it be used to sign the final property purchase?
No. In Spain, transfer of property ownership for registration requires a notarial deed. However, electronic signature is fully valid and secure for all prior private documents: sales mandate, viewing sheet, reservation, deposit contract and tenancy agreements.

Can I use it to notify non-renewal of the tenancy?
Yes, and it is best practice. Using certified email to notify the end of the contract or your decision not to renew lets you prove the date of sending and the content of the communication, meeting the notice periods under tenancy law without the cost of certified mail.

What if the tenant has no email or does not open it?
For critical notifications, certified email proves that the message reached the recipient’s mail server (delivery). Legally, if the tenant refuses to open it, courts generally consider the notification valid because the owner fulfilled their duty to communicate through an agreed channel. You can also use certified SMS as an alternative, which has a 98% open rate.

Is it suitable for anti-money laundering compliance?
Yes. Advanced signature platforms allow documents to be attached during the process. You can ask the client to upload a photo of their ID and beneficial ownership form at the time of signing, with everything stored in the audited digital file.

Conclusion

For an estate agency, signature technology is both a closing tool and a protection tool. Choose a solution that lets you secure the deal at the viewing (mobility) and also use it to manage day-to-day rental notifications in a legally reliable way. Agility in the field and legal certainty in management are the keys to real estate profitability.