Finding the best real estate company to work for in 2021 can be difficult. Real estate is an industry that continues to grow, and there are many different companies with different approaches to this growth.
Some companies focus on hiring new agents and bringing them into a team environment, while others focus more on developing experienced agents who have been in the field for years. Real estate has changed significantly since it was first introduced – after all, we’re now living in the digital age!
This blog post will discuss six of the best real estate agencies out there right now so you can make your decision easier about what’s best for your professional development needs.
What to consider when looking for real estate companies to work for
There are many different ways to measure the success of a real estate company.
Real estate agents who are new to the industry will likely have very different needs than experienced ones, and those with experience may be looking for something entirely different from what their newer counterparts need as well. We’ve broken down some things you should consider when deciding which one is right for you:
Commissions
The primary way that an agent earns money is by getting a commission on any sales they make in their career. A low commission rate can mean a lower salary over time, while high rates might require more work upfront but lead to higher earnings later on.
Office Environment
Some offices are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so agents can schedule times that work for them. Others operate on a traditional Monday-Friday business hours schedule and may not be as flexible when planning time off or holidays.
Real Estate Market
Some real estate companies specialize in specific markets like commercial, residential, etc. In contrast, others have a more diverse portfolio of properties they sell across all different types of property that are up for sale.
Real Estate License
Real Estate agents need licenses from the state they live in to get paid commissions, so this is a vital detail to keep track of if you’re looking at relocation opportunities.
You’ll want to make sure your new employer either offers qualification courses or has affiliations with certifying agencies that will allow you to complete their licensing requirements efficiently without having to do it on your own.
Company Culture
The best real estate companies have an established culture that new agents will thrive in. Real estate is an industry that can be hard to break into and manage, so when you find a company where you’re sure it’s the right fit, stick with them!
Employees should feel like they are appreciated at work whenever possible. Company culture includes things like creating opportunities for all members of staff as well as how family-friendly the office environment feels.
Independent or Franchise
Your real estate career depends on choosing the right company to work for. Some companies offer a more independent experience, while others operate as franchises and have strict policies about how their agents can conduct themselves in the field.
Real estate agencies with a franchise model are usually better at attracting new, inexperienced agents because they often look for people who want to start working right away without any previous experience.
Independent real estate firms may be willing to spend time investing in you, so you may get more opportunities for professional development if this is what you desire.
6 Best Real Estate Companies to Work for Reviewed
The real estate business keeps changing, and a real estate agent must be ready to adapt. New real estate agents face the difficult task of finding where to start their real estate journey.
Different companies offer different benefits for real estate professionals, which seem overwhelming. Luckily, we have selected six top companies to make your work easier.
1. eXp Realty - Best Stock Awards
Work for eXp Realty Estate and be rewarded with an exciting career in real estate while growing your equity. You’ll have the opportunity to work independently or as part of a franchise, giving you flexibility so that you can find the best company culture for your needs. With offices located in 14 countries worldwide, there’s always one close by.
Commission Splits
If you are looking for a brokerage firm that offers the best commission, go for eXp Realty. Real estate agents with eXp Real Estate get an 80/20 commission split upon reaching the $16,000 annual cap.
Training
eXp training for commercial real estate agents is a comprehensive and dynamic learning experience that offers you the skills, knowledge, tools, and confidence necessary to succeed in today’s real estate market.
To address that, eXp has developed a proprietary training program through its eXp University. Each week, eXp University holds 50 live classes where agents can participate online for free.
The classes are conducted by top-performing eXp agents and invited industry experts. Recorded classes are also available for those who missed the live training.
Topics covered include working with buyers and sellers, generating leads that convert, CRM and other technological tools, and using social media for marketing, to name a few.
Support
eXp Realty aims to support agents and real estate brokers alike in every aspect of their journey with the company. Apart from providing real estate professionals with the training they need, there’s also a live support team that’s available 24/7 to provide technical assistance for non-tech savvy agents.
Company Stock
There are various ways to acquire company stock if you join eXp Realty. This is one of the main boosters for the professional growth of any real estate agent.
One of the many benefits agents can enjoy being part of eXp Realty is the opportunity to participate in the Sustainable Equity Plan.
This stock awards program rewards agents with shares for meeting specified goals such as their first closing, reaching a yearly cap, sponsoring an agent through their company, and closing their first home.
2. Keller Williams - Best Training Program
Keller Williams was founded in 1983 and is currently the world’s largest real estate franchise in terms of agent count. The franchise brokerage has grown substantially over the decades, now having over 900 offices globally.
KW Commission Splits
Keller Williams employs a cap split model as a compensation plan where its agents get a 70/30 commission split at an average annual cap of $20,000.
However, since Keller Williams is a franchise brokerage with offices in various locations worldwide, compensation models vary from one branch to another. Some offices have an annual cap that’s higher than the average, while others have lower.
Training at Keller Williams
BOLD Training Program
Keller Williams’ BOLD coaching and training program is a results-oriented training program for real estate agents. It focuses on helping real estate agents become adaptable to the changing landscape of the real estate industry.
Under the program, agents learn up-to-date and powerful scripts, lead generation techniques, and effective business strategies that they can use in their careers. The BOLD training program has three types: BOLD Leader, BOLD Experience, and BOLD Technology.
To accommodate real estate agents from other parts of the world, Keller Williams has upgraded its training program and launched the BOLD Pivot. Currently, there are over 40,000 real estate agents across the globe enrolled in the program.
We have an in-depth review of Keller Williams and eXp Realty if you’re interested in learning more about the difference of these two companies.
Support
Keller Williams follows a traditional real estate team structure with hierarchical leadership. The franchise owner takes care of the legalities, hiring process, licensing, training, and assigning team leaders.
Assigned team leaders, on the other hand, would attract and bring new agents into the brokerage. It’s their responsibility to provide their agents with the needed training, coaching and mentorship, and additional support.
Company Stock
Despite being in the industry for almost four decades and having the largest agent count, Keller Williams is not yet a publicly-traded company as of writing. This means that agents and team leaders currently do not have ways of earning ownership in the brokerage.
3. Fathom Realty - Best Compensation Plan
A full-service brokerage, Fathom Realty offers real estate agents plenty of benefits and opportunities to grow in their careers. They provide attractive commission plans, cutting-edge technologies, effective training programs, and fantastic support to ensure their agents’ success in the competitive real estate market.
Commission Plan
Fathom Realty offers several compensation plans that allow their agents to earn 100% of their commissions and pay minimal fees. Check out these plans below and see which of them appeal to you the most.
For A Single Agent: One Plan
Agents are charged $450 per transaction for the 12 transactions they close each year. After capping, they will only pay $99 per transaction.
Those eligible to participate in commercial transactions, including sales and leases, must pay 10% of the commission earned per transaction and $85 per lease closed. There is also an annual fee of $500 charged on the first transaction.
For Teams: Teams Plan
This plan is designed to help agents build successful and lasting teams while growing with the company. It works in the following manner.
- The team leader pays $450 per sale for the first 12 sales with the member and $99 per sale after capping (given that they’re the only person on the sale).
- Team member pays $450 per sale for the first two sales with the leader and $99 per sale after capping.
- The team leader pays $85 for a lease closed (given that they’re the only person on the deal). This amount is charged only once.
- A 10% transaction fee for commercial deals is paid prior to the commission split.
- Commercial transactions, leases, referrals are not included as part of the cap.
For Spouses: Spouse Plan
Spouses working as real estate agents at Fathom Realty are provided with a unique plan that allows them to save more on fees and earn more income together. Spouses are considered as one person when computing the fees.
- Pay a $450 transaction fee on their first 12 sales together
- Pay $99 transaction fee after capping
- Pay $85 transaction fee per lease closed
- Pay 10% transaction fee for each commercial sale
- Pay $500 annual fee (covers both spouses)
Looking at the figures and doing simple math, you can quickly compute how much you can make as an agent at Fathom Realty. Again, there’s no commission split applied, and after deducting the fees, you can enjoy the rest of your commissions.
For Established Producer Perks Program
This is a unique compensation plan designed to attract established real estate agents to work with Fathom Realty. The Produce Perks Program awards agents who successfully rebranded up to $6,000 stock grants.
To break this down, the company awards agents $200 stock in grants for each transaction closed in the past 12 months, and it can go up to $6,000. However, this applies to transactions in select markets only.
Training
Local, National, and On-Demand
Fathom Realty offers ample opportunities to its agents to enhance their skills and expertise through different training programs at the national and local levels.
More than 150 recorded training classes are available to agents round the clock. They also provide training videos on-demand that agents can learn from whenever they want to.
F.A.S.T Mentor Program
If you’re a new agent wondering how you would make it in your first year, this program is for you. You will be mentored carefully on a one-on-one basis to ensure you can gain success even if you’re still starting.
Agent Coaching
This is another opportunity for Fathom Realty agents to bring their careers to the next level through one-on-one coaching with more experienced agents.
Support
Support to agents is undoubtedly one of the things that Fathom Realty values the most. As mentioned earlier, training programs at various levels and specialized coaching are provided for every agent as they move up the career ladder.
Company Stock
As a public traded company, Fathom Realty provides stock awards to its agents who successfully invite other agents to the company. The more agents you invite, the higher your stock awards will be. To illustrate:
- For your first agent invited, you’ll get a $500 stock grant.
- For your 2nd-5th invites, you’ll be awarded a $1,000 stock grant per agent and earn the Fathom Influencer recognition.
- For your 6th-10th invites, you’ll get a $1,500 stock grant per agent and earn the Fathom Ambassador status.
- For 11th onwards invites, you’ll get a $2,000 stock grant per agent and be given the Fathom Platinum Ambassador.
4. Coldwell Banker - Best Technological Tools
If you’re looking for a real estate brand that uses the most advanced technological tools to work with, make sure to include Coldwell Banker on your priority list.
Established in the early 1900s, Coldwell Banker is continuously evolving, taking advantage of the latest trends in technology to help their agents find the best listings and engage efficiently with sellers and buyers.
Commission Plan
There’s an 80% starting commission split for experienced real estate agents at Coldwell Banker. Upon reaching the yearly $15,000 cap, 100% of the commission is all yours.
While there are fees that need to be paid, including capped Errors and Omissions (E&O) and Document Reviewing fees, these are very minimal. If you did a great job and hit specific goals, you can expect deductions on your royalty fees.
Training
Training programs for both new and experienced agents are available at Coldwell Banker. The brokerage makes sure that everyone is provided with suitable and sufficient opportunities to learn and grow. Classes are held online so everyone can participate wherever they are.
Additionally, there are also classroom workshops conducted. They cover topics on technology, marketing, sales, and many more.
Outstanding real estate agents also have the opportunity to assume managerial roles. For those wanting to start a brokerage of their own, that’s also possible at Coldwell Banker.
Support
As a technologically advanced real estate brand, Coldwell Banker advertises its agents nationally through different media outlets, such as television, the web, and smartphones.
This helps increase their local agents’ visibility. To top it all, the CBx Technology Suite, a comprehensive marketing tool designed to empower their agents, is made accessible to them.
Coldwell Banker strongly values and supports the diversity in franchise owners and brokerages as a whole. Because of that, they introduced an Inclusive Ownership program in 2020, which made them earn several awards, including the Top LGBTQ list and the Women’s Choice Award.
5. Century21 - Best for Brand Awareness
Century 21 Real Estate is one of the most recognized real estate brands in North America and has a substantial following. Century 21 Real Estate’s brand awareness is unrivaled in the real estate industry, and if you want your clients to know who you are before they ever meet with another agent, this company may be for you.
Over the last 20 years, Century21 maintained its reputation for gaining a high level of confidence and recognition among potential buyers and sellers.
Commission Splits
Commissions for new and old real estate agents are computed differently among various offices. Usually, new agents start with a 50% split, which is relatively higher to compensate for the absence of desk fees.
With this, new agents can save a lot and use what they have to generate leads. Higher splits are given to old and experienced agents depending on sales.
In some branches, new agents are asked to pay a desk fee but receive higher splits. Although desk fees are not required in most cases, the company charges an 8% royalty fee.
Training
Agents, managers, and brokers at Century21 have access to all the resources they need to excel in their careers. Numerous online and classroom-based training programs on marketing, sales, and more are provided for free.
If you need one-on-one coaching and mentoring, this is also available. What else? They have webinars designed for you to learn at your own pace.
Support
As a real estate agent at Century21, you’ll be provided with plenty of marketing materials, both online and print. Their print marketing templates are customizable, and you’ll get to enjoy creating advertisements with their easy system.
6. ERA Real Estate - Best for New Agents
ERA Real Estate is another great option for new agents wanting to scale up their careers in the real estate space. With their established training programs for new agents, you can expect your career to skyrocket even if you’re still starting.
Commission Splits
ERA’s commission plans are customized according to the real estate market and agent. That’s the reason why this is not available online. If you want to learn more about their commission splits, you may reach out to the closest brokerage in your area.
For your information, ERA’s website says they’re not a high-split brokerage. As such, they offer competitive pay and charge low agent fees.
Training
ERA is deeply invested in training its agents and providing them with the most advanced marketing tools. Through ERA University, the brokerage’s native training program, agents can learn many things to help them get listings faster, become more productive, effective in planning and networking.
Support
Each agent has a full IDX-enabled website where they can display their listings and open houses. The website has integrations with ERA CRM and social media platforms, enabling each agent to maximize their marketing efforts.
Other tools available to agents are the TextERA, a texting lead generation tool that helps generate leads easily, and the ERA app to help them manage their business and communicate with their clients.
Conclusion
Before booking for actual interviews, you need to pick the right company to ensure that it will both provide what you want and let you work your way up to higher commissions.
Learning more about different real estate companies, their training programs, commission splits, office culture, and other perks or benefits they offer helps you decide if it’s the right one for you. It’s also essential to consider the factors that can help you make your first sale much faster.
We hope this guide makes things easy for you. If you have any questions or comments, please let us know.
