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EXp World Holdings has acquired NextHome for an undisclosed amount, according to an announcement on Thursday.
The cloud-based firm said NextHome marks its transition into a “multi-model platform capable of supporting diverse business models and brands under one global umbrella.” EXp World Holdings has also ditched its EXPI Nasdaq ticker, trading it for AGNT — something eXp Realty CEO Leo Pareja said represents the firm’s dedication to serving the “industry’s most ambitious entrepreneurs.”
Leo Pareja
“The industry has reached a tipping point; a one-size-fits-all model no longer works for the visionary entrepreneur,” Pareja said in a statement. “AGNT is a declaration of who we build for. Adding the NextHome franchise model gives our agents and franchise owners maximum optionality, backed by a proven leadership team and now with a unified world-class infrastructure and an expanded global network.”
“Teams and agents need more paths forward, and the industry needs companies led by people who don’t just talk about being agent-centric, but live it,” he added. “We’re building a platform that supports multiple models, because every agent and every consumer served deserves choice.”
James Dwiggins and Tei Baishik co-founded NextHome in 2014, growing the firm to more than 5,400 agents and 500 franchisees across the U.S.
NextHome has an integrated technology platform that includes everything franchisors and their agents need, from customer relationship and transaction management to automated marketing and financial tracking. NextHome has a cadre of tech partners, including RealScout, SkySlope and CubiCasa, which respectively offer real-time homebuyer and market insights; transaction management and immersive floor plans; and listing photography services.
However, what differentiates NextHome from most franchisors is its flexible structure.
Franchisees can choose between a one-year and a five-year agreement, and as of Thursday, they can also choose between two tech stack structures —Full Tech Stack and Lite Tech Stack.
The Full Tech Stack provides access to the full range of NextHome’s tech offerings, alongside hands-on help from the firm’s Member Services team. The Lite Tech Stack offers “a streamlined option” for brokerages that want access to “the NextHome brand, support and resources” while keeping a lower overhead.
In both options, brokers also retain ownership of their data, the company said.
NextHome’s model, which includes its “Humans over Houses” ethos, has landed it on multiple “best franchisor” lists from Franchise Business Review, Entrepreneur and Inc. 5000.
James Dwiggins
“Joining forces with eXp World Holdings is a natural evolution of our ‘Humans Over Houses’ mission,” NextHome co-founder and Co-CEO James Dwiggins said in a prepared statement. “By plugging into the most agent-centric real estate engine in the world, our franchise owners and agents will now gain access to unmatched depth, inventory, global network, and the kind of industry talent and influence that moves markets.”
“We looked at every real estate company across the U.S., and eXp aligns with us the most — from company culture to philosophy to a leadership team that truly advocates for agents and consumers,” he added. “This is the right partner to grow the NextHome brand and lead franchise expansion across the world.”
EXp Realty and NextHome will continue to operate independently, with the firm’s respective teams keeping their leadership roles.
“Today, AGNT becomes a multi-model leader where the industry’s most dedicated entrepreneurs come to grow, lead and stay,” the press release read. “Whether you are an independent agent driven by eXp Realty’s cloud-powered scale, featuring aggressive commission splits, revenue share and true equity ownership, or a franchise owner drawn to NextHome’s human-first culture, you are no longer just choosing a brand; you are choosing a global operating system designed for the modern entrepreneur.”
“Two models,” it added. “Maximum optionality.”
EXp World Holdings’ acquisition of NextHome is the latest in a string of headline-making deals that signal an era of rapid consolidation, including Compass’s purchase of Anywhere in January, and Real Brokerage snapping up REMAX at the end of April, with the deal slated to close at the end of the second quarter.
The industry’s biggest leaders, including Pareja, said the industry was barreling towards this moment, with market factors like slowing sales and industry developments like the fight over private listing networks and multiple listing service (MLS) power causing brokerages to coalesce.
Pareja, at Inman Connect New York, dubbed it real estate’s “United, Delta, American” moment — a prescient statement given developments in the real estate and airline industries throughout the first quarter of the year.
“One thing I always point to is history,” Pareja said. “Industries can go decades, even hundreds of years, fragmented. But if you do look, we have a pattern in this country. And all of you that have some grey [hairs], like I do … we grew up with a lot more airlines in this country. You remember that? And now we have United, Delta and American.”
“We have basically three health insurance providers. So directionally, that’s what tends to happen,” he added. “And so I can’t make any predictions, but what I can say is if we look at historic patterns, consolidation, we get some more consolidation. And so is that good or bad? That’s yet to be determined.”
