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Agile Group Realty CEO Matthew Brookens had an idea for how to jump start the company’s business by tweaking its business model — and it worked.
Formed initially as an agent team in South Florida, the brokerage launched in 2022 as Agile. It began by offering agents a traditional split. But seeing an opportunity to take its agent-centric approach to the next level, the company made changes.
As of September 2023, Agile offers agents three options on splits that include caps. It allows top-performing agents to form downline teams, and Brookens added a robust revenue-sharing program as well.
The results speak for themselves. In 12 months, Agile added 72 agents to bring its total to 186. Its volume jumped from $266 million in 2022 to $412 million in 2024, and sides increased from 697 to 982. The numbers are particularly impressive given how slow the housing markets in Florida have gotten after the pandemic boom.
“We’ve got great teams that are able to bring in new agents under this model, whereas before when we launched the brokerage we weren’t really focused on bringing in brand new agents,” Brookens said. “This now allows our initial model that saw amazing success early on replicated by our incredible teams and their leaders and has allowed for us to have grown substantially.”
Agile’s story highlights what a different agent compensation model can do for a growing brokerage. According to RealTrends Verified 2025 Brokerage Rankings, Agile finished in the top 10 in year-over-year growth among independent brokerages.
Smaller and mid-sized brokerages have grown by incorporating compensation innovations from bigger players like eXp Realty. While eXp isn’t the new kid on the block anymore, its downline revenue share model is still working its way through the industry.
“I don’t think [newer models have] saturated,” said RealTrends founder Steve Murray. “I think it’s still something that’s evolving, and more and more brokers are offering those kind of programs as a means of competing to recruit and retain agents. It’s just the new-new thing, relatively speaking.”
Agile isn’t the only brokerage offering multiple options for agents.
That approach helped LPT Realty achieve the highest level of growth in both sides and volume among independent brokerages. The company offers agents a choice between a flat fee and traditional commission split. Both options allow agents to build downline, teams and those on a split can earn a share of revenue.
LPT’s vision is to have a compensation model that works for agents at different points in their career, from flat fee for beginners to a multifaceted one for veterans. Agents can switch compensation plans at any time.
Not only is LPT lapping other brokerages in growth, it’s already risen to No. 10 in sides and No. 14 in sales volume, making it one of the great success stories of the last few years.
“We see movement between the two current compensation plans pretty steadily and what we recognize is that each of those movements would have previously resulted in the agent leaving the brokerage,” LPT founder Robert Palmer told HousingWire. “If an agent wants to transition from a transaction fee model to a split cap rev share model because they want to start a team and attract other agents, traditionally they would have had to leave one brokerage and find another one.”
While there are young brokerages thriving with creative compensation models, it doesn’t mean they can’t succeed with old ones. In the top 10 among independent brokerages in year-over-year growth in sides, seven are based on traditional commission splits. In sales volume, it’s six of the top 10.
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