No: the broker does not receive three additional business days after the associate hands over the check. For a deposit received by the brokerage, the associate's delivery deadline and the broker's escrow-deposit deadline run from the original receipt. Receipt by the associate or another brokerage representative counts as receipt by the broker.

Rule 61J2-14.009 sets the associate's next-business-day handover requirement. Rule 61J2-14.008(3) defines the broker's immediate deposit requirement as no later than the end of the third business day following receipt. Both exclude Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays; the text is also reproduced in DBPR's real estate law book.

Worked example: The associate receives the check on Friday. Saturday and Sunday do not count, and Monday is a legal holiday. Tuesday is business day one: the associate must deliver the check to the broker by the end of Tuesday. Wednesday is day two. Thursday is day three: the broker must place it in escrow by the end of Thursday. Tuesday handover does not move that deadline to the following week.

For a second check, suppose there is no Monday holiday. The same Friday receipt produces a Monday handover deadline and a Wednesday deposit deadline. Writing a small calendar is safer than mentally adding 24 or 72 hours.

Pitfall: These are brokerage handling rules, not a substitute for reading the purchase contract's deposit-due provision. A transaction using an attorney or title company as escrow holder also raises separate delivery and verification questions. Identify the recipient and the action being tested before counting.

Review the Chapter 6 escrow guide, then try Chapter 6 practice.