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EXp eyes growth with leadership team shuffle

eXp Realty Credit: Jim Dalrymple

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In the wake of two new C-suite appointments, eXp this week announced that it has also juggled a larger leadership group with an eye toward future growth.

The brokerage announced the changes in a statement, saying that Amy Weaver has been promoted to the role of senior vice president of U.S. growth. Weaver joined eXp in 2021 from Keller Williams and was previously serving as a vice president, according to her LinkedIn profile.

EXp also appointed Frank Panunto, Russ Laggan and Tony King as regional vice presidents, all three of whom will work in roles supporting Weaver.

Credit: eXp Realty

In addition, Sean Murphy — who also joined eXp in 2021 from Keller Williams — has been promoted to senior vice president of commercial growth, and the company promoted Nadia Habib to senior vice president of Canadian growth.

Michael Valdes

In the statement, Michael Valdes, eXp Realty’s chief growth officer, said the “leadership changes are designed to harness the potential of our talented team and align with our mission to provide exceptional service and support to our agents worldwide.”

The leadership shuffle comes just days after eXp hired industry veteran Wendy Forsythe to serve as chief marketing officer. And in early April, the company appointed Leo Pareja to serve as CEO. Founder Glenn Sanford remains with the company as CEO of parent eXp World Holdings.

The leadership changes all come during a period of significant change for the real estate industry. Those changes began more than two years ago when soaring mortgage rates slowed the market. As the number of transactions fell, once fast-growing companies such as eXp saw their expansion slow, as well. In eXp’s case, specifically, the company saw its total agent count fall quarter-over-quarter for the first time in late 2023.

At the same time, the industry has been assailed by numerous lawsuits focused on agent commissions. The National Association of Realtors and a slew big brokerage companies have filed proposed settlements in many of the cases, but the results of the litigation are likely to include significant changes to the way agents and their brokers get paid. Some observers have also speculated that the lawsuits could ultimately lead to a significant reduction in the number of working Realtors.

All of which is to say that growth at this particular moment remains exceedingly challenging for companies across the housing industry.

Nevertheless, Valdes struck an optimistic tone in his comments.

“As we navigate a fluctuating economic landscape, it is crucial that we continue to innovate and double down on our growth efforts, ensuring that eXp Realty remains a leader in the real estate industry,” Valdes continued. “I am confident that with our new team in place, we can drive significant growth and help our agents to thrive in any market condition.”

Email Jim Dalrymple II