In the last few years, several online, tech-based real estate brokerages have arisen in the United States. Three of the most successful and well-known of these brokerages include Real Broker, eXp Realty, and Fathom Realty.
Each one of these brokerages offers various benefits for real estate agents, but they do have certain differences that agents must not overlook. Let’s compare eXp vs Fathom vs Real based on five factors:
- Compensation Plan
- Business Tools
- Training
- Agent Support
- Company
Compensation Plan
Each online brokerage runs on a similar compensation plan with a few key differences. Here’s a quick breakdown of what each one looks like for eXp vs Fathom vs Real.
Real Broker
Real Broker comes with a signup fee of $249 and an 85/15 commission split that caps at $12,000. After capping there is a $285 transaction fee which drops to $129 if you reach ELITE status by meeting a certain number of transactions. You’ll also pay a $750 annual flat fee to be a part of the brokerage, $30 per transaction for professional liability insurance, and $40 per month for the CRM (optional).
Real also offers a revenue share program and a stock share program. These programs allow agents to earn more by attracting other agents to join the brokerage and by earning stock through company participation or purchasing at a discount.
Real has a unique stock compensation program for its agents. Agents are awarded stock into the brokerage in three different ways.
- Purchase stock at a discount with 5% of your commission before capping and get a 15% bonus at the end of the year.
- Earn stock by capping and attracting agents.
- Purchase stock at a discount with 10% of your commission after capping and get a 30% bonus at the end of the year.
- Earn $16,000 in Elite Agent stock awards, plus $8,000 more for teaching monthly at the Real Academy.
You can also invest in the Real Title business with Real Title’s Joint Venture to earn from that business as it grows.
eXp Realty
eXp Realty has a signup fee of $149 and starts agents off with a commission split of 80/20 which caps at $16,000. After capping there is a $250 transaction fee per transaction. In addition to this cap, there are a few other fees agents have to pay:
- $25 broker review fee on each transaction.
- $40 risk management fee on each transaction with a cap at $500.
- $85 per month for the CRM and technology.
eXp also offers a revenue share program where agents are rewarded for helping the brokerage grow.
eXp does also provide equity awards for its agents. In fact, eXp Realty was the first major brokerage to do this.
- Each year, earn shares on your first transaction
- Earn shares when you cap
- Earn shares when an agent you sponsor closes their first transaction
- Up to $16,000 in stock upon the achievement of certain production and cultural goals within your anniversary year (become an ICON)
- Enroll to be paid 5% of every transaction commission with stock at a 10% discount
Fathom Realty
Fathom Realty offers agents 100% of their commissions right from the start. Each transaction comes with a $550 fee that caps at 15 transactions, after which agents pay $150 per transaction ($85 per lease). Fathom also charges a $600 annual flat fee and a few other minor or rare fees that you can read about here.
Fathom has a referral program to reward agents that help grow the brokerage. This is broken down into three levels:
- Level 1 – earn $250 per EVERY agent you refer.
- Level 2 – earn Cap 4 Life by referring 4 agents to Fathom and pay only the capped transaction fee for the duration of your stay with Fathom.
- Level 3 – earn Free 4 Life by referring 8 agents to Fathom and never pay another transaction, annual, or risk management fee again.
Business Tools
Each online real estate company offers various business tools that help agents remain relevant in today’s digital world. Here’s what that looks like for eXp vs Fathom vs Real.
Real Broker
At Real, you get access to:
- Website. Real offers a modern website to all real estate agents.
- Chime. Real is partnered with Chime CRM, a powerful CRM that would normally cost about $200 a month, though it only costs about $40 at Real.
- Skyslope. Real offers access to Skyslope for efficient transaction management.
eXp Realty
At eXp, you get access to:
- kvCORE, a robust CRM well known in real estate circles. Normally, it would cost an agent around $300 a month, but with eXp, you can get it for $85.
- Skyslope for easy and efficient transaction management.
- eXp Enterprise, a great dashboard where agents can connect their tools and resources to work together more efficiently.
- eXp World, the virtual campus where agents use avatars to visit various offices and events and connect with the eXp agents from around the world.
Fathom Realty
Fathom Realty offers:
- Access to IntelliAgent for a customizable website, CRM, transaction management, and more.
- Access to Property websites through My Single Property Websites.
- Access to professional testimonial software through eEndorsements.
Training
Each online brokerage offers various training opportunities for real estate agents. The details differ widely depending on the brokerage.
Real Broker
At Real, you’ll get more than 20 liv classes a week, more than 350 hours of on-demand training, and more than 100 mastermind discussions. However, there is no personalized mentor-based type of training at Real, so if you’re a newer agent, you may need to find personalized support somewhere else.
eXp Realty
eXp offers a robust 80 hours a week of training opportunities. Most classes are on a rotation that allows agents to view them every ten days or so. In addition, all training sessions are recorded so you can watch the replay at any time.
eXp also offers in-person mentorship for new agents and a Mentor University. Plus, each state offers weekly state-level training by the head brokers in those states to help agents localize their knowledge.
Fathom Realty
At Fathom, agents get access to a vast library of extensive, on-demand training content provided by David Knox in addition to various virtual national opportunities. There is also a very specific and pointed mentor program at Fathom directed towards new agents and a selection of local, in-person training opportunities.
Agent Support
One of the pitfalls of a digital brokerage is the lack of in-person support you’ll find in a digital space. However, each of these brokerages does its best to help support agents from afar.
Real Broker
Real offers an exclusive phone app that allows agents to regularly and easily connect with one another. Agents who need support can easily use the phone app to find support from other agents.
In addition, Real offers an email ticket system for serious technical issues and uses direct messaging to allow agents to find connections with one another online.
eXp Realty
eXp is proud of its robust agent support offerings. Agents can easily enter the online campus of eXp, eXp World, and connect with other agents. They can also go into the virtual offices eXp provides for tech support, transaction support, etc.
In addition, eXp also provides access to Workplace, to private direct messaging, to email communication, and to voice communication. Agents at eXp have lots of support options.
Fathom Realty
Fathom offers basic methods of communication, but as a brokerage, it is not as friendly to newer agents. While agents can use email, voice, and direct messaging to get help, there is no single platform where Fathom users can go for direct and personalized support or to find common answers to questions.
Company
How important is the real estate brokerage? While it may not be the most important thing for a client, it is likely to have some impact on their view of an agent. And for an agent, using the right brokerage is crucial. Let’s look at the benefits of eXp vs Fathom vs Real as companies.
Real Broker
Real is still a growing real estate brokerage with just over 13,000 agents in 50 states and 4 Canadian provinces.
Ultimately, Real prides itself on being a technology-based company focused on providing agents with flexibility and resources to get their job done well. Their core values can be summed up as “Work hard, be kind.”
eXp Realty
eXp Realty is by far the largest online brokerage, coming in with more than 89,000 agents and counting. eXp operates in all 50 states and 24 countries around the world and is NASDAQ traded. It has been ranked as one of the top 5 brokerages in the Real Trends report for several years.
As a brokerage, eXp is dedicated to providing agents with great opportunities to earn more through its revenue share and stock share programs. It also offers a robust amount of agent support to help all its agents thrive.
Fathom Realty
Fathom Realty is still a growing brokerage. In 2020, it was ranked as the 11th largest national brokerage by the Real Trends 500 report and it continues to expand and attract more agents. From the end of 2020 to the end of 2023, Fathom grew from about 5,000 agents to more than 11,000 agents! Fathom is also NASDAQ traded.
With a motto of “Whoever wants to be great must be a servant,” Fathom has developed a team dedicated both to agent success with quality brokerage support and to client success from agents who work hard and serve well.
Conclusion
Here’s the summary regarding eXp vs Fathom vs Real:
- Real Broker is a small but quickly growing brokerage with lots of opportunities for growth, robust technology, and a lucrative compensation plan.
- eXp Realty is a large and quickly growing brokerage with robust technology, great opportunities for new agents, and a lucrative compensation plan.
- Fathom Realty is a small, quickly-growing brokerage with great potential, especially for more experienced agents who like to work independently and focus on using minimal resources to earn more money.
Ultimately, it’s up to you to choose the best brokerage for your business and working style. Each online brokerage is full of opportunities for real estate agents looking to earn more, work more flexible hours, and develop a strong business model. No matter which brokerage you choose, you’re sure to find great opportunities to grow and build success in your real estate career.
If you decide that you’d like to learn more about eXp Realty, specifically, don’t hesitate to reach out! I’ll answer your questions and help you get started with my incredible group.