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Choosing the right real estate brokerage to launch your career

Craig C. Rowe

Inman / Jim Dalrymple II

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This post was last updated Jan. 12, 2023.

The top brand in remote brokerage services, eXp, has a new CEO, Glenn Sanford.

Sanford was previously the chairman and CEO of its parent company, eXp World Holdings. Now, he’s moving into a more ground-level, market-facing position.

“Our model was designed to withstand varying market conditions, and we continue to have the most agent-centric model in the industry,” Sanford said in a statement. “This uniquely positions us to continue investing in our future and iterating on our industry-leading agent value proposition. I’m excited to be the hands-on leader for the next period of growth for the company.”

So, just how much should a CEO impact your choice to join a brokerage? Well, a lot.

After all, C-level leadership drives culture and helps position a brand among its competitors. Agents should pay attention to what their CEO says about the industry at large to determine if that perspective overlaps with their own. The distance between them and you isn’t as far as you might think.

Look at The Real Brokerage (Real), a much smaller but fast-rising star in the same orbit as eXp: Office-less, agent-centric and committed to technology.

Its CEO and founder Tamir Poleg said he wants to tap into the entrepreneurial spirit of agents. He’s pushed for from-scratch in-house technology solutions and recently hired industry leadership vet Sharran Srivatsaa to serve as President, known for holding the reigns of  Teles Properties as it grew 10x in five years and was acquired by Douglas Elliman.

The team-based brokerage Side, which recruits and rebrands high-producing teams, hired a president recently too. Like Real, it’s a new position.

Stephen Capezza will serve as the first president of Side and was previously at Zillow. In a statement, Side said Capezza’s new job will see him drive the company’s “continued growth” as it “pursues its mission to transform the best real estate professionals into companies that are the service leaders in their communities.”

For the agent looking for a new place to hang your license, recent moves by eXp, Side and Real might suggest that these places are seeking growth-focused, innovation-minded sales professionals. It might suggest they want to move quickly and will do what it takes to assimilate their new agents into that kind of mindset.

Starting your career at one of these fast-moving, aggressive up-and-comers could offer you some brand credibility well before you attend your first closing. It’s certainly something to consider.

Still, you have options. Are you more drawn to the long-term success of Keller Williams and Coldwell Banker or the boutique appeal of independents like Howard Hannah and @properties, which also made a number of considerable leadership maneuvers in 2022?

Whatever brokerage you choose is important, but it doesn’t mean your first brokerage will make or break your ability to succeed. The truth is that you’ll learn a lot in those first few months, likely enough to know if your first choice was the best one. If not, you’ll learn enough to know where to go next. 

What follows is a breakdown of what you should look for when deciding which logo will be printed on your first business card.

Table of contents

Commission structure

How much of the deal you take home varies widely throughout the industry, and you should always push to base it on the value you’re going to bring to the brokerage.

Even before you get into the weeds on splits and payout structure, know what that potential brokerage typically charges for a listing (understanding that it’s never a hard cost) and how often they’ve been on the wrong end of a renegotiation of that fee. Commission disputes and challenges are common, and you want an office leader with a track record of going to bat for their agents.

Those new to the business have less room to negotiate on pay structure, but if you possess unique professional skills or expertise (built and sold a business, strong history in sales, etc.) see where it can take you.

New agents need to grasp quickly that your pay won’t be consistent and that you’ll be quite surprised at the final outcome printed on your check. That’s the nature of the industry and why alternative pay models exist.

To reiterate, 100 percent-commission brokerages and salaried positions are designed to attract new agents. You should still benchmark the comfort they provide with the longer-term earning potential of a traditional pay model.

Some brokerages offer mentorship plans specifically for new agents, and these will deal with how to manage money and best understand the financial ups and downs of being a real estate agent.

If you’ve succeeded in another industry before making the switch and have an economic cushion to sustain your first year or two that will put you at an advantage, reducing the strain of having to chase every possible lead to get by.

Use your position to focus on creating work systems and learning the market. Advocate for yourself, and don’t move until you are 100 percent certain of your earning potential.

Know that independent brokerages are typically more flexible with easier-to-understand pay models because they don’t have corporate-established standards to abide by or esoteric financial goals to reach. (Obviously, they’ll have annual revenue goals and standard business obligations.)

Real, for example, publishes its commission plans and overall compensation incentives openly on its website:

“Our platform offers an 85%/15% commission split with a $12,000 cap. No monthly fees. With our industry-leading splits, you’re being rewarded for what you’re already doing — selling real estate — and you’re taking home 85% of your commission.”

This flies in the face of most legacy brokerages, which often empower local franchise owners to create pay structures and not set benchmarks at the national level. Know that the local broker knows what it takes for his or her office to make money, so expect to be met with some pushback if you ask for a break on desk fees, a better split or something your new colleagues didn’t receive when they started.

Earnings can get downright confusing under some franchises, especially if they employ annual caps (the maximum level of money that goes to your broker) that move over time, tenure-based tiers and other nonstatic factors that influence what you take home. 

Brokerages offering salaries or hybrid pay formats, Redfin being the prime example, can be attractive to new agents because they offer stability out of the gate.

These arrangements can work, but make sure you demand a penny-by-penny comparison with more traditional pay models. You may not make more money in a 100 percent commission or salaried agreement.

New agents will almost never be offered a significant signing bonus and likely none at all. The tactic is gaining steam for career agents looking to move. Know that signing bonuses are not always looked upon as ethical because they can create an unfair and erratic recruiting environment. But, like all things in real estate, if it’s disclosed in writing and agreed to by all licensed parties, it’s (usually) good to go.

Instead, look for passive income opportunities, such as profit (money after expenses) and revenue (money before expenses) sharing. A number of brands offer them, but the totals vary. Ask to see recent payout figures. Find out how a broker handles seller-paid bonuses. Some may split it; others let you keep the total.

If you’re being actively recruited out of your licensing class, use that to your advantage, and demand a clear picture of what you’ll earn on a median sale for your market. Don’t be distracted from the pay discussion by red herrings concerning websites, business cards or provided leads — those things should be a given.

Inman Ambassador, prop tech entrepreneur and industry coach Jeff Lobb assembled a comprehensive, evergreen breakdown of what’s offered by the industry’s major franchises, “The Guide to Finding the Best Brokerage for You.” We highly recommend reviewing it alongside this handbook.

Terms to know:

Additional resources: 

Leads and new business

New agents will likely depend on their brokers for leads and resources to find them. But, if your previous career left you with a healthy database of contacts and an active LinkedIn account, know those assets will make great starting points.

Sources of new business come in countless forms, but may include paid portal advertising, print marketing and postcards, email marketing, Google PPC, designated floor hours, community event sponsorships, Facebook (social media) advertising, a led-gen focused custom website and through various combinations of all of the above.

New agents may find value, providing your budget makes it plausible to pay for leads outright. Zillow, CoStar (Homesnap), Realtor.com and other portals provide paid-lead resources. Know that they can be very expensive and that, typically, lead quantity increases with dollar quantity. However, the same can’t always be said for quality. 

Vet all paid-lead sources thoroughly — this can’t be emphasized enough.

It’s important for the agent to know what percentage of that new business ends up in your database and how viable it is when it gets there. Not all leads are created equal, meaning there is no industry standard for what defines a qualified lead. Some may believe a “saved search” indicates a ready buyer or a newsletter sign-up means a person wants to list.

There’s a great deal of subjectivity underlying lead generation, so try to arrive at some sort of discernible baseline with your broker, such as you’re looking for leads who can prove buying power or have clearly stated interest in needing an agent. 

Agents should be quick to equate a brokerage’s local brand with its ability to land business and let that factor into their decision to join.

If it’s an upstart indie looking to make waves, what evidence do you have that shows it can? If it’s a major franchise, will you be shadowed by its visibility and entrenched top producers? Do you risk becoming a small name under a big yard sign?

Brand marketing needs to matter to you when looking to choose or switch brokerages; it’s what knocks on the door, makes the introduction and gets you invited inside. The broker relies on you for the closing. In short, hold the broker accountable for their provided lead sources.

Questioning brokers on how they source revenue is going to lead into granular topics like the company website, ad creative, public partnerships and the like. Is there an in-house marketing team handling it? Is the company blog outsourced to someone’s nephew?

It can be hard for you, a new agent, to believe you are in a position to question lead quality or distribution hierarchy. In terms of quality, use your best judgment.

If you’re following your instinct and the sales tactics your broker encourages, then you’ll have a good reason to ask about lead quality. Remember, lead quality is by no means a given. The industry is rife with weak lead sources and providers who look to push them on busy brokers who hired too quickly.

Be optimistic, but wary when necessary. If you’re not closing, your broker will know soon enough. Thus, if you let them know as soon as possible that securing new clients is more challenging than you expected, the sooner you’ll be able to work together to remedy the situation.

Brokers want new agents because of the business they generate. If you’re entering a workplace that in any way stifles your proven sales and marketing systems, you become less valuable to everyone — most importantly, to yourself.

Brand-new licensees should pay careful attention to the lead services competing brokers offer, as they’re likely going to be the primary source of your business early on in your tenure. 

Know which leads you own and which ones are “rented.” Brokerage-paid leads don’t always belong to the agent who worked them and, therefore, aren’t yours to take should the new relationship not work out, and you have to look elsewhere.

New, alternative brokerages, such as Torri, Prevu and Luke, use consumer-facing technologies to pull in leads and transfer them to salaried agents. The agent isn’t doing as much to find the new business as they would in a legacy model, but there is satisfaction to be gained by serving in what can be described as a more consultative position. The lead-gen tools use a good deal of sales chat automation to qualify and nurture leads, as well as service deals as they evolve.

Regardless of brokerage type, upon coming aboard let your broker or team leader know what or who you’re bringing to the table. Your sphere of influence is of value to the people whose pockets you’re going to fatten, so be clear with colleagues when someone in your circle (or within its orbit) becomes a client. If you’re plugged into a local network of high-net-worth individuals, share that and use it.

You may also want to consider leveraging your contacts in your split negotiation, asking for a better cut in transactions you bring to the brokerage on the basis of your database’s buying power. 

Know that the industry is littered with the expired real estate licenses of people who were confident they could succeed with the business generated by “friends and family” they bring with them into the industry. Sadly, it takes only a few months to learn that the people in your book club or your fellow hockey parents “totally forgot you started in real estate” or “already have an agent.”

Look for those brokers who can show how and where leads are originating; but remember, too, that you’re not likely to earn leads in the higher ends of the market. Leads are an investment, and brokers want returns on them. You’ll learn by working leads that aren’t as far down the path. They’ll annoy you, abandon you and, thankfully, often surprise you. 

The better you handle that rollercoaster, the sooner you’ll earn the better-quality prospects and the deeper and more valuable your own database will become.

Additional resources

Technology

Kari Chalstrom is an agent in Truckee, California, which became a very popular pandemic relocation destination for San Francisco-area homebuyers. After almost three years at her old brokerage, Chalstrom recently switched to Compass to join its Palisades Tahoe office with team leader Kristina Bergstrand.

“I was attracted to the tech initially,” she told Inman in a text message.

But then it became more than that, such as working with people she knew and the lifestyle/ski-resort focus, which has long been part of Chalstrom’s personal brand.

“It’s one of those things, you don’t know what you’re missing, lacking, until you start exploring what else is out there,” she added. “I thought I was fine where I was, until I learned more.”

In the same way that commission splits shouldn’t alone be why you change brokerages, nor should the technology they offer as Chalstrom indicated. But it sure is important.

For decades, websites and a local multiple listing service defined the typical brokerage tech stack. Maybe you were given a branded template to customize with no support for professional copywriting, image-editing or even a blog. Databases thrived in Excel, desktop Rolodexes and maybe Salesforce and earlier iterations of Act.

Then brokerages started to change things. Gary Keller went so far as to say his eponymous brand is a “technology company.” Compass rose to prominence on its promise to offer best-of-breed technologies. Coldwell Banker, eXp and Redfin all followed suit, finding ways to leverage web-based efficiencies to better in-house productivity and how they met the challenges of consumers.

There’s little debate that today’s tech, ranging from multi-lens smartphone cameras and digital tours to remote online notarization and street-specific, map-based list-building, has fundamentally changed how the real estate industry finds and conducts business, a fact made even more evident by a tragic, economy-altering virus.

Agents are working in a period of rapid technological advancement, making their brokerage decisions all the more challenging. Overlapping with our previous chapter, technology plays a big role in a brokerage’s lead generation strategies, as well as its day-to-day operations.

Recent licensees should know that most brokerages have partnered with nationally reputable tech vendors to offer agents the latest in lead generation and nurture, listing marketing, customer oversight, transaction management and virtually every other aspect of running your business. 

However, the trend of proprietary, brokerage-developed enterprise software is not slowing down. Major franchises are often leading off recruiting pitches with their very own software products, many of which are as technically sophisticated and business-comprehensive as what’s found in the open market. 

Real, for example, has given its CTO Pritesh Damani top billing on its website. In an interview with Inman, Damani said he has a great deal of autonomy to develop tools for its agents and hire the talent to do it, and with that authority, built from scratch software that enabled nine transaction coordinators to oversee more than 11,000 deals.

“For every $100 we spend, $70 of that goes to automation, generally speaking,” Damani said.

Generally speaking, expect most brokerages to offer the use of a CRM solution, which will likely include lead generation tools, email marketing, listing promotion and long-term lead nurture campaigns. Added value will come in the form of online advertising capabilities, individual listing and agent profile pages and maybe virtual home tour tools. 

Make sure that contacts you bring from your previous career can be moved cleanly into the CRM your broker provides. On that front, it’s likely best that you choose to work with the CRM your broker offers, because with it comes support, reduced cost and colleague input and feedback. 

Know that today’s software-driven efficiencies are powerful ways to empower your business. Honing your sales and prospecting skills should be paramount, but know that the faster you embrace the technology you’re offered, the faster you’ll reach self-sufficiency. 

Remember, brokers invest a great deal of time and internal energy to determine what products will work best for their business. It stands to reason that your broker sees their technology investment as a reflection of their culture and would expect new agents to embrace it with that in mind. In terms of brokerage-provided tech, look for the following basics in your due diligence:

Test your potential brokers for their commitment to technology. Are they offering (i.e. reselling) you all kinds of CRM and marketing options, or are they dedicated to one — maybe two — CRM solutions? This matters a great deal, as does how they integrate their agents into technology decisions.

In the same way some offices perpetuate the antiquated but nonetheless successful “butts-in-seats” profitability model, it’s not unheard of for brokers to leverage wholesale pricing for software and sell it to their agents at retail, essentially using software as another profit center.

This is good for only one person — the broker. Not only is it myopic leadership, it demonstrates a lack of dedication to technology, results in widely varied levels of user success and encourages agents to always consider what’s next.

Tech-savvy brokers seek partnerships that support their culture and the way they want their business to run. They involve agents in needs determination, talk to buyers and sellers and understand that innovation is always happening.

There’s no reason a modern broker should not have a clean, strategically driven website. Much of this starts with a tight, marketable URL, easy-to-find agent pages, smart search functionality, CRM-connected calls to action and complete mobile functionality.

Don’t let your presence on the company website lag. Once hired, do all you can to expedite your bio and contact information being published. Advocate for yourself. Brokers are notorious for their outdated websites. Heck, if you have to, volunteer to take the lead on cleaning it up.

If you find at least a single, contemporary CRM and appealing web presence within your brokerage, know that your next brokerage is at least aware of what it takes to compete. If you find some of the following value-adds, even better:

One caveat: Don’t allow technology to overwhelm you, in either the decision-making process or, once on board, your workday. Tech is there to support your business, not run it for you.

Terms to know:

Additional resources

Training and support

This should be a priority for new agents. A lack of training is not the sole reason agents drop out of the business, but more of it sure would reduce churn. And it all starts from Day One.

An attentive, preferably online solution for onboarding is a great tool for brokers to deploy. It smooths out a typically stressful, task-intensive process that no one likes nor should go through anymore. Look for systems that connect bank accounts, collect personal data and a bio for the website and clearly lay out what you should expect as a member of the team.

Look also for brokers that hold regular sales meetings and general updates on business performance. Enterprise technology solutions for regular training and performance grading are becoming more common and increasingly important as the industry evolves. New agents should leverage such tools to the fullest extent for both justification of your sales should they need defending and, of course, so you know where and how to improve.

Never overlook opportunities to learn the everyday tasks of an agent, such as filling out listing agreements, buyer offers and understanding the ever-shifting library of addenda. These documents are the arteries that carry oxygen to the real estate business, and it’s very easy for a newbie’s mistake to constrict that flow. Knowing your documentation is tedious and boring but totally critical. 

All national franchises offer training webinars, conferences, books and YouTube channels on how to be a successful real estate agent.

Some training programs are indeed better than others, and the bad ones can be spotted by the recency of their information and infrequent availability. Are trainings espousing sales tactics and industry ethics from 10 years ago? You should make sure the skills and tips you’re digesting for the long-term health of your career overlap with where you want to take it.

New agents should expect their licensing class to be up to date on recommendations regarding lead generation, client management and at least, the basics in one-on-one sales tactics. For example, if a brokerage recruiter visits a class and preaches about the benefits of their office’s door-knocking plans and grocery cart signage campaigns over digital display advertising and virtual tours, it would be safe to consider them slightly behind the curve. 

In short, new real estate agents need to use their best judgment when it comes to assessing how well you’ll be supported, given your lack of expertise. You can certainly inquire to speak to any agents who have started and remain at a particular company about their mentorship experience. 

Brokers have to make themselves available to you for general questions and critical deal situations. Ask them to provide sample scenarios where their involvement would be needed; and if a legal issue ever rises, what can you hope to rely on in addition to your E&O (errors-and-omissions) insurance?

Support also manifests itself in the staff your brokerage employs to assist its revenue producers. Marketing managers and creative staff are a sure sign of a smart, market-savvy broker. An active, tight relationship with an outsourced partner is also a good sign.

You may also find that some companies provide financial services and tax planning assistance. In some cases, they’ll provide software that can assist or at least connect you to preferred partners. 

Transaction coordinators can be invaluable business assets to real estate agents and should be treated as such, even if an ample software solution is in place to facilitate transactions. General administrative staff, ranging from team assistants to an intern program are also sure signs of a brokerage that wants its agents to focus on revenue generation, not getting on their feet. 

Inquire about mentorship programs, and it never hurts to ask around about helpful office mates and top producers who like to share wisdom. All the seminars, invited speakers and coaches can’t replace actual experience, so get yourself out there and make some mistakes (legal ones, of course).

Additional resources

Teams and culture

Overall, and despite the independent nature of the real estate profession, the culture of a brokerage can mean a lot to your success. It can range from creative and accepting of new ideas to overly rigid and corporate. Many approaches work, but always know what it is you’re walking into before you agree to hang your license with a brand. 

New agents especially need to grasp the critical nature of landing in the right place. You will be plied with pitches about mentorship, technology and aggressive income potential — none of which matters if the environment isn’t a match. 

Real estate does not require a boiler-room mentality; it’s not a place defined by crass, cash-driven competition or shark-and-minnow business ethics. Leave those ideas to the movies about Wall Street. 

Whether under the banner of a national franchise or a 10-person family indie, the best brokers look to cultivate an environment of collaboration and service, a place where new and established agents alike can dispense as much expertise as they witness.

Look for offices that hold regular company events, show encouragement of new ideas and celebrate agent success. In general, are people happy when they’re working? Is it a positive place? 

However, know that the agents have to be on board with a broker’s efforts to bring people together. If a few agents tend to make the workplace (virtual or otherwise) unpleasant, take that as a sign to reconsider, or at least look deeper to determine if their behavior is deeply entrenched or an anomaly.

It’s likely you’ll know someone at each of the offices you’re considering, so rely on their feedback on what it’s like to work under the brand and brokerage.

New agents should ask about how often agents have left and about ongoing retention efforts, such as milestone-based bonuses, increased splits or similar incentives for agents. How brokers keep their agents in place will tell you a lot about a work environment. Also, specifically ask less-experienced agents what their first year was like and if their career goals include remaining with the same brokerage.

Inman Contributor and San Diego-based Compass agent Jason Cassity wrote that the first two years of an agent’s career are when they learn to either “sink or swim,” and who they choose to work for can make all the difference.

“When you’re ready to start working, make sure you interview with at least two or three different brokerages,” he wrote. “Unlike a traditional job environment, where the employer is interviewing you to see if you’re a good fit for them, you should be interviewing the brokerage to see if it’s a good fit for you.”

One advantage to the major franchise brands is that it’s easy to uncover their work ethic, business principles, websites, social media and reaction to nationally attended events.

“Working with a national brand will also give you some great name recognition that you need because you will not have any experience to lean on,” Cassity wrote.

Smaller, independent brokerages offer a shorter distance between new agents and top producers, providing more opportunities to learn.

“Generally, you’re going to be working directly with the broker and all of the experienced agents, Cassity wrote about independents. “The level of hands-on, on-the-job training is what will stand out. Because there are fewer agents around, you’ll have a shot at more of the office leads generated, as well.”

Yet, it’s understandable that a smaller, more personable office may not be what makes you productive. You can be good at real estate and a little introverted, despite what industry norms suggest. 

The key is to find a place that compliments your approach to business and has the tools and people in place to stimulate progress.

Don’t look for reasons to justify a culture you’re not convinced is the best option for your long-term needs. Never enter a work situation thinking it will be “temporary” or a stopgap — you’ll only suffer under a lack of commitment and lose valuable growth opportunities.

It’s easy to determine ahead of time if a brokerage you’re considering encourages teams. In fact, it’s often the success of a specific team that pulls new agents into a brokerage.

If you have your eye on a team, your best path to joining it is to reach out to the leader first. If after a few meetings, they think you’re a good recruit, they’ll likely lead the way for you to join the brokerage.

Teams have risen to power in the past few years, commanding exceptional market share and earning their parent brokerage a great deal of money. Some of them make their own technology and marketing decisions, develop proprietary lead generation tactics and essentially function as their own franchise within a brokerage.

Perhaps the most prominent drawback is that most new members to established teams end up having to earn their way into a position of authority, and it can be hard at times to balance applying your expertise in a tight-knit group. 

However, teams can be a great place for a new agent to land because they typically offer more attentive training and a faster route to growth. Teams are not always open to brand new agents coming on board unless they offer something outstanding. Maybe that’s you. If not, maybe it will be in a few years.

Additional resources

Choosing brokerages is a big deal for some agents. When you grow into the industry, the choices will be easier to make. The key is to make sure your decision isn’t made on a whim or comes as the result of an assertive recruiter. Be the reason you end up where you do.

Good luck out there.

Craig C. Rowe started in commercial real estate at the dawn of the dot-com boom, helping an array of commercial real estate companies fortify their online presence and analyze internal software decisions. He now helps agents with technology decisions and marketing through reviewing software and tech for Inman.


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