Revenue for eXp World Holdings, the parent company of virtual cloud-based real estate brokerage eXp Realty, jumped 153 percent year-over-year to a quarterly record high of $157 million, according to the company’s first-quarter earnings report.
Despite that massive growth, the company operated at a net loss of $6.3 million, or a net loss of $0.10 per share in the first quarter, compared to a net loss of $10.7 million in the first quarter of 2018. EXp World Holdings slightly beat the consensus estimate of a net loss of $0.11 per share.
EXp Realty has been in growth mode, with agent count climbing to 17,929 at the end of the first quarter of 2019, an increase of 93 percent compared to the first quarter of 2018.
The increase in agent and broker count was a key reason the company closed 22,307 transactions in the first quarter of 2019, a year-over-year increase of 136 percent. Sales volume in the first quarter was $5.8 billion, an increase of 149 percent year-over-year.
Much of the focus in the first quarter was on agent tools, including the implementation of a safety check-in tool powered by Facebook and the launch of an on-demand home tour mobile app, which is live in Austin and Nashville.
“As the most agent-centric real estate brokerage on the planet, eXp kicked off 2019 with new and expanded agent programs and tech initiatives to ensure every agent and broker at eXp Realty has the tools and training to establish or grow their business,” eXp World Holdings CEO, Chairman and Founder Glenn Sanford said in a statement. “This has helped us to continue our rapid growth with our ongoing commitment to creating a seamless, tech-enabled and incredibly rewarding agent experience that is unparalleled within the industry.”
EXp World Holdings also implemented its revamped agent equity program in the first quarter, offering agents a set dollar amount’s worth of shares instead of a certain number of shares when they hit certain milestones.
“We believe agents and brokers deserve the benefits of being a shareholder and income based on the level of their contribution – no matter where life takes them,” said Sanford. “We are happy to report that we are starting to see the benefits of the plan for both agents and the company reflected in revenue this quarter.”
The company recently has been contending with some management turnover in top executive roles and is also currently under investigation in California for dozens of state regulatory violations.
