Is The Future Of Brokerage Independent?

Over the past year, consolidation has consumed the real estate industry, with many questioning if mid-sized regional independent firms would be able to survive, let alone contend in this emerging environment dominated by national monoliths like eXp Realty and Compass International Holdings. The 2026 RealTrends Verified Rankings, however, make these concerns seem irrelevant. 

Independent brokerages accounted for 28.79% of market share in this year’s rankings, which are based off of 2025 production, up from 26.98% last year.

This is exemplified by the impressive jump made by LeadingRE, a network of independent real estate firms, leaping from the No. 5 brand in 2025 to the No. 2 brand by transaction sides and increasing its market share to 11.08%, up from 8.93%.

Included in LeadingRE’s network are many top-producing brokerages including Hanna Holdings, which ranked No. 6 by both sides and volume, William Raveis Real Estate, John L. Scott Real Estate, Brown Harris Stevens, The Keyes Company/Illustrated Properties, Baird & Warner and First Team Real Estate. In total, the LeadingRE network closed 462,910.4 transaction sides totaling $275.844 billion in sales volume in 2025.

Private independent firms prove they can compete against public companies

“While many people think the model of a privately owned independent brokerage is destined for the dustbin, the data seems to say otherwise,” Steve Murray, the co-founder of RealTrends Consulting, said. “Anybody who says that a privately owned independent, local, regional brand can’t compete, doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”

Kate Reisinger, the chief operating officer of LeadingRE, shared a similar sentiment. 

“Over the past few years, the industry has gone through so much change — market shifts, consolidation, the evolution of the business model — and in that environment, independent firms have navigated the complexity with laser sharp focus, determination and optimism,” Reisinger said. 

Hyperlocal equals consumer trust

Resinger, in part, attributes the success of these companies to their local nature.

“These are firms that are so entrenched in their communities. They are hyper-local, and that allows them to stay close to their agents and clients,” Reisinger said. “In a time of so much change and uncertainty, not only in our industry but also in national news, consumers are craving very clear direction, assurance, expertise and trust. Those are all strengths of these independent companies, in part because they are so deeply embedded in their communities. We have companies in our network that are over 100 years old. They aren’t just operating in a market; they helped build the community.”

For Murray, the strong performance by independent firms in 2025, exemplified by the LeadingRE Network, illustrates that a firm with a good leader, no matter if they are a large national company or a regional independent firm, will be successful. 

“As long as this business is still mostly about the ability to recruit and develop and retain good agents, any good leader of a brokerage company, whether they’re with a brand or they’re independent, has an equal opportunity to compete and grow,” Murray said. “Since RealTrends started ranking brokerages, we’ve consistently said that the data shows that by far, the most important characteristic of a successful growing brokerage company is the leadership — not the tech and not the brand.”

Attracting talent

The strong ability of many of LeadingRE’s broker-owners to attract talent and grow was reflected in the many M&A deals conducted by LeadingRE firms in 2025. Notable acquisitions in 2025 include Baird & Warner’s acquisition of Dream Town, Lamacchia Realty’s acquisition of Tirrell Realty, Portside Real Estate Group’s merger with Swan Agency Real Estate and Howard Hanna’s entrance into New York City with its acquisition of Elegran Real Estate. 

“It is clear that leading independents have been actively engaged in acquisitions as a means of growth,” Murray said. 

While many leading independent firms have been acquired over the past few years, including Compass’s acquisition of Latter & Blum, Murray said independents have a way of “regenerating.” 

“Even with the acquisitions, independents continue to be leading companies in many markets,” Murray said. 

Reisinger attributes this to leaders being able to identify and capitalize on opportunities.

“Independents are able to be nimble and they can make decisions quickly, says Reisinger. “With large homogenized brands, decision making often takes longer and sometimes the choices made do not always reflect the realities or priorities of the local market or culture,” she said. “Independent firms are adapting in real time and changing and evolving with change. Rather than being disrupted by it, many of our firms are using it as an opportunity to strengthen their position.”

While Reisinger acknowledges that consolidation continues to be the norm right now in the real estate industry, she still believes that there will continue to be opportunities for independents to succeed. 

“We are seeing a bifurcation in the market right now,” Reisinger said. “On one side are large scale organizations and on the other are hyper-local, highly focused firms that, according to the data, are outperforming the market. That is where we lean in, continuing to inspire trust in our markets and demonstrate our expertise because we perform best when we capitalize on those strengths.”