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Who are the Top 10 Companies in Real Estate?

By DJ Swanepoel

Services for Real Estate Pros with Real Estate Wiki

September 11, 2008 04:53 AM

Question about top real estate companies

Everyone has their own opinion, that's for sure. And I know this is going to be very controversial, or should I say touchy topic, but here goes.

Who do you think are the top 10 biggest and best residential real estate companies in the US?

I know biggest doesn't always mean greatest, but lets look at the large companies that just happen to be really great. The following group of the "best of the biggest" was recently published by the industry's popular and respected Swanepoel Trends Report (2008 edition)

Its actually a very good list - OK so I am biased, he is my Dad - but for the first time someone actually combined all different types of residential real estate brokerage companies into one list - and that's very hard. This has never been done before. Think about it. Independent Brokerage Companies, Franchise Groups and Real Estate Networks are always ranked on separate lists as people generally find it hard to really, effectively compare these different kinds of organizations due to their unique structures.

That said, here are "The Top 10 Titans of the Real Estate Industry." We have of course added this top 10 list to Real Estate Wiki and it can be viewed here.

So here the Titans in alphabetical order:

EXIT Realty
HomeServices of America
Keller Williams Real Estate
Leading Real Estate Companies of the World
Long & Foster Companies
NRT, Inc.
Prudential Real Estate
Realogy - Realogy owns Coldwell Banker, Century 21, ERA Real Estate, Sotheby's Real Estate, Better Homes & Gardens and others.
RE/MAX International
Weichert Realtors

Your turn.

Who would you have added to the list? Who would you bump down or up? Remember for every additional company you provide you have to tell me which one you would leave off.

OK Rainers, let's do it.

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Cindy Jones

Integrity Real Estate Group - Woodbridge, VA

Pentagon, Fort Belvoir & Quantico Real Estate News

It is interesting to see a "local" giant such as Long & Foster on the list with international companies such as RE/MAX. Leading Real Estate Companies of the World isn't an individual company but a group of companies that participate together to market luxury properties so how do they end up on a list? I'm not sure this lists is making an apples to apples comparisions.

Sep 11, 2008 05:02 AM

Kent Simpson

Realty One Group Mountain Desert - Tucson, AZ

Real Estate Is About People

It is easy to identify the biggest companies, but judging the best is subjective and esoteric at best.

Sep 11, 2008 05:06 AM

Michele Reneau

Certified Staging Professional (CSP) Elite Instructor - Summerville, SC

Realtor, GRI ~ Charleston, SC Relocation Experts Team

Steve Murray with Realty Trends has put together this list based on most closed transactions. Click here to view the top 500 companies. Many brokers in the Top 500 are members of Leading RE.

Sep 11, 2008 05:13 AM

Patricia Harris

Celtic Realty - Dunedin, FL

The biggest is not necessarily the best!

Sep 11, 2008 05:18 AM

Dorene Slavitz

Residential & Commercial Real Estate - Culver City, CA

Experienced. Ethical. Outstanding Results!

Prudential California Realty

Century 21

Colwell Banker

Re/Max

Sotheby's

Keller Williams

Sep 11, 2008 05:23 AM

DJ Swanepoel

Real Estate Wiki - Los Angeles, CA

@ Kent So who would you have added to the list? Taken off?

Sep 11, 2008 05:24 AM

Katie Evans

Keller Williams - Greenville, NC

I do not know how to even begin to comment. Yes, it is very hard to be a RE/MAX agent right now. I know that if I stick with it I will be better off down the road.

Sep 11, 2008 05:25 AM

@ Cindy

Stefan Swanepoel, author of the Swanepoel Trends Report, did extensive research to determine the list. In his 2008 Trends Report he details each company and provides lots of facts and figures validating the reason different companies were included on it.

Everyone realizes that this is not a pure apples to apples comparison and that is why this list is unique and at the same time controversial.

Who would you take off and put in their stead? That is the challenge.

Sep 11, 2008 05:26 AM

Betina Foreman

WJK Realty - Austin, TX

Realtor, C.N.E., with WJK REALTY

So is the list determined by number of agents or number of sales, or sales volume?? How are the companies ranked? Alphabetic lists don't really say much.

Sep 11, 2008 05:33 AM

Li Read

Sea to Sky Premier Properties (Salt Spring) - Salt Spring Island, BC

Caring expertise...knowledge for you!

A very interesting list, indeed! Since all of them are individual franchises, except Realogy, maybe that one should be split out to which of its franchises would be on the top ten list????

Sep 11, 2008 05:36 AM

@ Li

Aha, but they are not all franchises. Thats the point. Long and Foster is not. Leading Real Estate Companies of the World is not. Homeservices isn't either.

There are probably 5 distinctly different business structures. Thats why it is so hard to compare and thats what make the list so interesting.

Sep 11, 2008 05:47 AM

Jimmy McCall

JimmyMcCall.com - Cunningham, TN

The Ex-Mortgage Consultant

DJ, In the South Crye-Leike is pretty big. It advertsies it is the largest Real Estate company in Tennessee.

Sep 11, 2008 05:50 AM

Anonymous

Judy

Great list!!

Outside the box!!

This list exceeded the bounds of critieria like - most closings for the year, largest sales volumes for the year, most number of agents...etc.

When I researched each company on the list I got a better picture of the workings of the industry - what's out there relating to opportunites, areas of the country, who the players are..etc.

THANKS.

Nov 09, 2013 01:02 AM

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Who are the Top 10 Companies in Real Estate?

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