AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
Rent, deposits and purchase money belong to your client, not your agency, so they go into a separate client account and are passed on promptly: Lagos guidelines described by Famsville Solicitors require a separate client account and remittance to the landlord within 14 days unless the landlord directs otherwise in writing. Real estate is a designated non-financial business, so agencies must also register with SCUML, keep records and report large and suspicious transactions.
Most disputes between agents, landlords and tenants are not about the property. They are about money that was paid to the agent and did not arrive where it was meant to go, or arrived late. The fix is old-fashioned: keep the client's money apart from yours, pay it on promptly, and keep records you could show a regulator tomorrow.
Client money versus agency money
- Client money
- Rent collected for a landlord, a tenant's caution or security deposit held under the tenancy, deposits and part-payments from buyers, and service charges collected for an estate.
- Agency money
- Your agreed commission or agency fee, management fees the landlord has authorised in writing, and reimbursed expenses you can document.
The test is simple: if the money would have to be paid to someone else when the transaction ends, it is client money. Tenants weighing up these payments may find the full cost of moving house useful context for how the bill looks from their side.
What the Lagos rules say
Lagos regulates estate agents through the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority (LASRERA). Famsville Solicitors' summary of the law and its guidelines (published on Mondaq, July 2020) lists these duties for practitioners:
- Keep records of business transactions and open a separate client's account.
- Do not collect money from more than one prospective tenant or buyer for the same premises.
- Remit money received to the landlord within 14 days, unless the landlord directs otherwise in writing, and issue a receipt.
- Do not act for two principals in the same transaction, and take payment only from your own principal.
- Help clients meet tax obligations such as withholding tax and VAT on property you handle.
The guidelines may have been updated since that summary; check LASRERA's current rules. Outside Lagos, the same practice protects you even where no state rule requires it. For licensing itself, see licensing a real estate agency.
Worked example: a new letting
Example figures. A tenant takes a flat at ₦3,000,000 a year, pays a caution deposit of ₦500,000 held by the agency under the tenancy, and an agency fee of ₦300,000 (10% of the rent). The landlord has agreed in writing to a management fee of 5% of rent collected.
| Payment | Into | Then |
|---|---|---|
| Rent ₦3,000,000 | Client account | Within 14 days: ₦2,850,000 to the landlord, ₦150,000 management fee to agency account, with a statement |
| Caution ₦500,000 | Client account | Held until the tenancy ends, then refunded less documented, agreed deductions |
| Agency fee ₦300,000 | Agency account | Agency income, receipted to the tenant |
Check: ₦2,850,000 + ₦150,000 = ₦3,000,000. The client account should always hold at least the total of what you owe clients; in this example, ₦500,000 once the landlord has been paid. If the client account balance ever falls below what you owe, money has been used for something it should not have been.
SCUML: the anti-money-laundering side
The Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML), which sits within the EFCC, lists real estate and estate surveyors and valuers among designated non-financial businesses and professions. Its registration guideline (2025) says registration and certification are free of charge and done only through its official portal, and that third-party agents are not authorised. SCUML's compliance checklist (2026) sets out duties including:
- Client payments above ₦5,000,000 for individuals or ₦10,000,000 for companies to go through financial institutions.
- Threshold transactions above those amounts reported within 7 days, with a stated ₦100,000 penalty for each unreported transaction.
- Occasional cash transactions above $1,000 recorded and reported, with a stated ₦50,000 penalty for each unreported one.
- Suspicious transaction reports filed promptly with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.
- Records kept for at least five years, and the SCUML certificate displayed.
In practice, collect identification for every landlord, tenant and buyer you take money from, refuse large cash payments, and ask where purchase money comes from when the amount or pattern looks out of line with the person. For cash limits generally, see cash payment limits for businesses.
When a deal falls through
Money taken for a letting or sale that does not complete is still client money. Refund it from the client account, in full or less any deduction the payer agreed to in writing before paying, and do it quickly. Holding a failed applicant's money while you look for another flat for them is how complaints start. Because the Lagos guidelines bar collecting from more than one prospective tenant for the same premises, take money only once an applicant has been accepted, so refunds are rare in the first place.
Steps to set up properly
- Open a separate account named as a client account, or clearly designated for client funds, in the agency's name.
- Pay all client money into it, and agency fees into your operating account. Never the other way round.
- Keep a ledger per client: money in, money out, balance.
- Reconcile the client account to the ledgers every month; the totals must match.
- Send each landlord a statement with every remittance.
- Register with SCUML, and keep identification and transaction records for at least five years.
Where Pryme fits
A Pryme Business Account supports multiple accounts, so client and agency money can sit apart under one login, and verifiable receipts through VerifyDoc.ai let a landlord or tenant confirm a receipt is genuine and unaltered.
Questions people ask
Can an estate agent keep the caution deposit?
Only as holder for the parties, under the tenancy agreement. It is client money, should sit in a client account, and is refunded at the end of the tenancy less any agreed, documented deductions.
How long does an agent have to pay rent to the landlord in Lagos?
Lagos guidelines summarised by Famsville Solicitors require remittance within 14 days of receipt, unless the landlord directs otherwise in writing.
Do estate agents need SCUML registration?
Real estate is on SCUML's list of designated non-financial businesses and professions. SCUML says registration is free and done only through its official portal.
Should an agent use a personal account for client rent?
No. Client money should be held in a separate account in the agency's name so it is never mixed with the agent's own money.
Sources
- Mondaq (Famsville Solicitors): Mandatory registration requirements for real estate practitioners in Lagos State (Jul 2020) · accessed Oct 2026
- EFCC SCUML: Registration Guideline (2025) · accessed Oct 2026
- EFCC SCUML: Service Level Agreement and AML/CFT compliance checklist (2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.