What Is a Transaction Coordinator?

A transaction coordinator — often just called a TC — is the person who manages the administrative side of a real estate deal from the moment a contract is executed to the day it closes. They don't list, show, or negotiate. Their job is to keep the deal on the rails: tracking deadlines, chasing documents and signatures, coordinating with title and the lender, and making sure nothing slips through a contingency window.

If an agent is the person who wins the deal, the transaction coordinator is the person who makes sure it actually closes — cleanly, on time, and with a complete file.

What does a transaction coordinator actually do?

The role is narrow but high-stakes. A typical TC handles most of this on every file:

• Opens the file — sets up the transaction once the contract is mutually accepted.
• Reads the contract — pulls the price, parties, earnest money, and every date and contingency out of the executed document.
• Builds the timeline — earnest money, inspection, appraisal, financing, title, final walkthrough, and close, each with its own deadline.
• Collects and organizes documents — disclosures, addenda, and signatures, so the broker's compliance file is complete.
• Coordinates the parties — title/escrow, the lender, the co-op agent, and the client, keeping everyone moving.
• Sends reminders and updates — so a deadline never gets missed and the client never feels in the dark.

Done well, the work is invisible. Done poorly — or not at all — it shows up as a blown contingency, a late earnest-money deposit, or a closing that slips a week.

When in the deal does a TC start?

Most transaction coordinators step in at mutual acceptance — the moment a contract is signed by both sides — and stay through closing. That "under contract to close" window is where the deadlines live and where deals quietly fall apart. Some TCs also help on the listing side, opening files and managing disclosures before an offer comes in, but the core of the job is the executed-contract-to-close stretch.

A TC is generally not involved in lead generation, showings, pricing, or negotiation. Those stay with the agent.

The types of transaction coordinator

"Transaction coordinator" covers a few different arrangements:

• In-house TC — an employee on a team or at a brokerage, salaried, handling that team's files.
• Independent / contract TC — hired per file, paid a flat fee at closing.
• Virtual TC or TC company — a remote service that takes files from many agents.
• Brokerage-provided TC — coordination offered as part of the brokerage's services.
• AI transaction coordinator — newer software that reads the contract and runs the timeline automatically, alone or alongside a human.

What does a transaction coordinator cost?

Per-file fees most commonly land in the $350–600 range, though it varies by market and scope. Some agents pay a monthly retainer; teams often hire in-house. We break down every pricing model — and the hidden cost of a missed deadline — in how much a transaction coordinator costs.

Do you still need one?

That depends on your volume, your tolerance for paperwork, and how much of the job is genuinely judgment versus rote tracking. We walk through the decision — and where AI now fits — in do you need a transaction coordinator?