Brokerage Beat: News from C21, BHHS PenFed, Christie's, more 

Editor's note: The brokerage business is a busy one, with frequent moves, mergers and milestones. Here we highlight some of the latest activity among brokerages across the U.S.

Luxury Long Island firm joins Century 21

Excelsior Realty, a luxury real estate firm based in Mattituck, NY, has joined the Century 21 network.

The company, led by broker/owner Douglas Cabral, has been responsible for transactions involving some of the most iconic properties on Long Island and is now known as Century 21 Excelsior Realty.

In addition to luxury residential sales, Cabral has helped sell multiple businesses, including Claudio's, the oldest family restaurant in the U.S.

The brokerage specializes in luxury real estate in the Hamptons, North Fork, and in Queens, Suffolk and Nassau counties. 

"I love serving as a conduit for a successful future for both my clients and affiliated agents," said Cabral. "Our affiliation with Century 21 Real Estate will be a huge differentiator for us that will help drive growth."

AI-driven Epique Realty opens Florida office

Epique Realty, which brands itself as "a disruptive real estate brokerage for modern realtors" has opened operations in Florida.

Josh Miller, CEO of Epique Realty, said this expansion feels like a homecoming.

"Florida is my home state and I'm so happy to be coming full circle and returning to Florida with our amazing agent-centric company," he said. "No brokerage in the entire state is doing what we are doing, and agents are going to be blown away once they see what makes Epique so revolutionary," he added.

Florida marks Epique's third state in two months, and the firm plans to continue growing.

Epique's AI-driven approach to real estate makes it a good fit for the Sunshine State, says Janice Delcid, co-founder and CFO. "Florida real estate is like no other in the country, and we're excited to bring our revolutionary and innovative approach to agents and clients alike throughout the state."

Epique's first Florida offices are in Tampa and Bradenton, with agents from Tampa, Gainesville, West Palm Beach and Miami already onboarding.  

Christie's International Real Estate moves into bluegrass country

Christie's International Real Estate Bluegrass, a new brokerage firm that will serve as the exclusive Central Kentucky affiliate for the global Christie's network, is now open in Lexington, KY.

Led by native Lexingtonians and top-producing agents Rusty and Rachel Underwood, who have partnered with the family behind Ball Homes, one of Kentucky's largest homebuilders, Christie's International Real Estate Bluegrass is launching with more than 50 agents and 11 staff members. 

Their agents average 20 years in the industry and have collectively produced nearly $300 million in annual sales.

Areas of expertise span a variety of property types, from city condominiums and townhomes, to suburban single-family homes, commercial property, farms, equestrian estates and new construction.

BHHS PenFed Realty launches no-cap revenue sharing program

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices PenFed Realty is launching a new revenue-sharing program in the Mid-Atlantic region that will allow agents to earn unlimited passive income for recruiting new agents.

The program, Rev$hare, features a three-tier structure that rewards agents for referring and actively helping to recruit reputable sales professionals. Rev$hare has no cap, which allows agents to earn an unlimited amount based on the unit production of three layers of agent recruitment levels.

"Rev$hare is unique in the industry in that our agents can generate multiple tiers of passive income while reaping the benefits of a globally recognized brand, company-generated referrals, dedicated full-service brokerage management, an extensive office footprint, and industry-leading coaching, training, marketing, and technology," said PenFed Realty President Kevin Wiles. 

With Rev$hare, agents earn income for every unit sale closed by an agent they directly recruited. That same PenFed Realty agent can also climb in status and earn escalating bonus amounts based on the unit sales of their secondary- and tertiary-level recruits. These recruits allow the original agent at the top of the tier to climb into higher status levels where bonus amounts grow larger based on the unit production of everyone in their secondary and tertiary tiers, with no limits on the reward amount.

"Rev$hare is a way to allow our Mid-Atlantic agents to participate in the company's growth and success while also providing them with an additional funding source for their retirement nest egg," Wiles said. 

Real Title moves into California

The Real Brokerage's digital closing platform has launched Real Escrow of California, offering escrow services in the Golden State.

With this most recent expansion, Real Title now operates in six states: Florida, Georgia, Texas, Utah, Arizona and California.

The company expects to add at least four more states by the second half of 2023, and as part of its growth plan, recently hired title industry veteran Brad Miller as National Director of Title. 

Miller, a 17-year veteran of the title industry, will oversee Real's title and escrow teams nationally, national underwriting partnerships, workflow processes and their vertical tech stack.

"We're thrilled to begin offering escrow services in California and to welcome Brad to the Real team," said Sean Daly, Real Title Founder and CEO. "California is the fastest growing state in terms of agent attraction for Real and, because we consider ourselves one of the most innovative title companies in the industry, we are excited to launch in a state that is home to incredible name-brand technology companies."

 The Real Brokerage acquired the title company (formerly Expetitle) in 2022 as a step toward its goal of providing agents and their clients with an end-to-end homebuying experience.