This morning, Real Brokerage made headlines with its announcement to acquire RE/MAX Holdings.
Shortly after the news broke, Real CEO Tamir Poleg joined Byron Lazine live on the Hot Sheet for his first public conversation about the deal.
Naturally, a move of this scale brings excitement… and a lot of questions. What does this mean for agents? How will the brands coexist? And what changes, if any, are coming next?
Byron, known for his unfiltered interview style, didn’t hold back. He asked the questions agents are already thinking, and Tamir answered them directly, with clarity and transparency.
We’re sharing the full Q&A below, but if you want to hear it firsthand, you can watch their full conversation here:
Q&A with Tamir Poleg & Byron Lazine
Read on for the bulk of the conversation between Tamir and Byron on the new parent company, Real REMAX Group, and what it means for agents in both brokerages.
Byron Lazine:
“If this deal didn’t come together, were there other deals you would have considered, or was this just the perfect fit at the perfect time, where you respected what RE/MAX has built over the years? Or were there other options over the next however many years or months that you would’ve considered?”
Tamir Poleg:
“We’re extremely excited about all this. Both management teams and the boards. I’ve known REMAX since I was a kid, and I’m 50 years old. I’ve always admired what Dave and Gail have built. A couple of years ago, we realized the two companies are very complementary. They have this iconic brand, global reach, and amazing agents focused on productivity. Real has the growth and the technology. They have what we don’t have, and we have what they don’t have.
“For us, it made a lot of sense. Obviously, everybody’s talking to everybody in the industry, but I don’t think there was another opportunity we were equally excited about. This is the perfect match.”
Byron Lazine:
“Nobody was talking to me last week. I don’t know if maybe everybody was afraid I would go buy some stock or something.”
Tamir Poleg:
“Yeah, we were trying to keep it quiet.”
Byron Lazine:
“Well, it was quiet. Both stocks, this is not anything to say about Real or REMAX, this is across the board with a real estate recession that we’ve seen… Both stocks haven’t had great years over the last couple of years. Is this “get big” trend going to continue? And how much does this insulate both companies moving forward?”
Tamir Poleg:
“Yeah. I believe scale matters today more than ever. Obviously, with the changes that we might be seeing in the industry with MLS rules and coming soon and private listings and all of that, I think that MLS matters, scale matters. I think we will see more M&As. I think that REMAX was the most desirable company that I could think about. So we’re happy that we’re partnering with them. Obviously, there are others that could potentially join forces.
“I think that I heard Robert Refkin on stage on Friday, and he was asked whether Compass is going to continue with their M&A strategy, and his answer was practically yes. So I think that they still have the appetite for more. I would assume that once we integrate the two businesses and everything is steady, we potentially will have even more appetite. But yeah, scale matters. So the future is interesting.”
Byron Lazine:
“So listen, you mentioned Reffkin. I wasn’t going to bring him up unless you did.”
Tamir Poleg:
“I’ll give it to him. The first text I received this morning was a congrats from him.”
Byron Lazine:
“Oh, I’m sure. I mean, hey, game recognizes game. They’re going to try to obviously integrate their technology across all of the Anywhere brands. Their deal is done. Your technology was important for this deal to come together. Erik Carlson (CEO of REMAX), I saw a video this morning that was sent out to all the REMAX agents…This was very attractive for the REMAX board to do this deal, particularly because of Real’s tech, both AI-powered and otherwise. And you’re only going to have to really integrate tech into this one brand. I think CIH has a little bit of a harder road ahead of them, integrating into multiple brands. Was that also attractive to you where it’s like, ‘Hey, we’ve got this great tech. It’s going to be a little bit easier for us to do this across one brand to start with, the brand being REMAX.’”
Tamir Poleg:
“I don’t think that we were weighing the opportunity against deploying the technology amongst multiple brands. We were focused on REMAX. I think that what we identified over there was a couple of things. They had a technology gap; they had a value proposition gap. I think that their franchisees are facing a reality with margin compression, and I think that our technology can solve exactly that. We solved the tech gap, we deliver a lot of value through our technology, and for those franchisees who will opt in, we can dramatically change our economics through the efficiency that our technology delivers.
“So it’s a win-win, and I’m happy that we only have one brand to deal with, but at the same time, we’re talking about 85,000 franchisees. So that’s a lot of sales on the tech side to do.”
Byron Lazine:
“How far can the franchisees opt in? They have a current franchise agreement. Can they opt all the way into some of the other models that Real has outside of technology, rev share and some of these other structures, or is that to be determined?”
Tamir Poleg:
“Still TBD. What’s important to understand is that REMAX remains REMAX. They will operate the same way. The economics remains the same, so nothing changes for them.
“We want to add to what they currently have at REMAX. So they will have the access to technology. I believe that if REMAX agents will be attracting agents to REAL, for those agents who will decide not to join REMAX, they will be able to earn revenue share. We want to open up the possibility for them to be a part of our title joint ventures, to be a part of our Real Originate program on the mortgage side, and make money out of mortgage as well.
“And obviously, the Real Wallet will be available to all REMAX agents. So we will try to open up as much as possible, still protecting their businesses and their brand, and the fact that franchisees operate offices and they’re fighting for market share as well.
“So we want to make sure that they’re not losing anything by this combination.”
Byron Lazine:
“You mentioned Real Title, Real Mortgage. REMAX comes with a mortgage company. How big of a component was that ancillary addition that REMAX has had for years?”
Tamir Poleg:
“I would say that the main focus was on the REMAX brokerage operation or franchise operation. I think that there are some synergies between Wimbledon and Motto and One Real Mortgage, which we still need to continue and explore. And eventually, hopefully, they will be able to operate together. But the main focus and the main upside that we have seen is on REMAX’s main business, which is the real estate franchise.”
Byron Lazine:
“Tamir will, when the deal closes, be the CEO of the Real REMAX Group. But this was kept very quiet, particularly within REMAX. I mean, I talked to the number one REMAX team leader in the world this morning, as he likes to say.
“And he’s like, ‘Hey, you’re sharing it with me for the first time.’
“What should some of these OG legacy hyper-local brands that have built their brand on top of REMAX, what should they know moving forward here today as the news is hitting them?”
Tamir Poleg:
“I think that they should know that the intention is to strengthen their businesses. We don’t want to take anything away. They will continue to operate the same way. They will continue to operate under the REMAX brand, which, for me, is eternal. They will have the same economics, the same kind of support from REMAX corporate, but we want to offer them even more.
“We want to understand their challenges. We want to add the technology that they’re missing. We want to take away some of the costs that they’re paying for third-party vendors. We want to make sure that if they need transactional support, we can take it away from them. We want to instill an AI component in their businesses. Again, if they choose to, they don’t have to opt in. It’s not mandatory. We just want to give them more optionality and make sure that their journey on the REMAX platform will be essentially more profitable.
“So, I think that what we bring to the table is a lot of transactional expertise across 33,000 agents that we operate and we process their transactions and we can bring that efficiency to each and every one of those franchisees and every office. And if they choose to use it, it’s great. If not, they can continue and operate the same way as they do today. And it’s just a change in the ticker, pretty much.”
Byron Lazine:
“There’s three things converging right now in our world. There’s a deregulation happening in real estate with what’s going on with MLSs and associations and all of that. There’s this, the M&A, the merger and acquisition of this time, and it’s survival of the biggest. And then there is the AI wave that is coming. And I think with those three converging waves, like every brand has got to think about, I have to be an exceptional brand, or I have to be exceptional at AI. And if I have both, game over.
“And so this move puts Real in a position to say, ‘Hey, we’ve been building our brand. REMAX clearly has legacy and local appeal and consumers know the brand and we already believe we have the AI fit.’ And so this could be a checkmate move if you pull it off correctly. What do you think people should know, agents should know, about the backend AI technology that Erik Carlson, CEO of REMAX, was so excited for in this deal?”
Tamir Poleg:
“I think that it’s simply put, if you’re a franchisee, if you’re an operator, you should look at our efficiency metrics and the fact that we have one employee for every 94 agents, whereas in second place, we have EXP with 45 to one. So, we can bring that type of efficiency that is driven by technology, by software that we built to your business, into your office, and take away all of those tasks and the time that you’re spending on administrative tasks, on reviewing contracts, on transaction management and payment processing. We can take all of this off your plate.
“So, that frees you up to focus on what matters most, and that is the relationships with your agents and your agents’ relationships with their clients. And anything that you need on the tech side, we got you covered. You don’t have to go and source third-party tools. You don’t have to evaluate anything. You don’t have to try and integrate 10 different systems. We bring in everything ready made, and this is already proven and tested over a network of 33,000 agents.
“So, I think that franchisees should just be super excited about all this.”
Byron Lazine:
“So when Compass acquired Anywhere, and they created CIH, there was a lot of Anywhere brands that were certainly on the other side of Compass’s, let’s just say what it is, exclusive listing, and then they kind of flipped and just fell in line.
“Is there already a synergy on beliefs of how the industry should operate between REAL and REMAX, between leadership? I know REMAX is going to have three seats on the board, so they’re going to have a voice on the board. Is there already a synergy or really an approach holistically to the industry where it’s like, ‘Hey, we’re in full alignment. We’re not flip-flopping on the way we see rules, regulations, or deregulation.’”
Tamir Poleg:
“Yeah, I think that both management teams and boards are in full alignment, both as to the future of the company and how we view the industry as a whole. I think that when it comes to coming soons, we operate a little bit differently.
“So REMAX opted into the Zillow Preview program, we did not. So I think that we had a different choice there. But what’s important to note is when this company, when this transaction closes, there will be one management team and one board that operates together. So we will be united and we will make the decisions together, and it will not be two companies pulling in different directions.
“I think that the fact that we are joining forces means that we have a say in the marketplace and we have a seat at the table. Big one.”
Byron Lazine:
“Yeah. You have a monster seat at the table now, Tamir. What would you say, and I’m going to let you go… You’re going to get pulled in a bunch of different directions today. What would you say to the OG now, Real agents? And it’s interesting because there’s already a ton of Real agents putting out a lot of content online. I just gave them a little warning on IG like, “Hey guys, don’t…” You’re not spiking the football in the end zone here. This is an opportunity, obviously, to build something truly special, truly unique. I know I’ve been saying this for the last couple of years, it is going to be survival of the biggest scale, is going to be incredibly important.
“What would you say to your OG agents as this deal goes into the transition phase, the closing phase between now and closing? What would you want from the Real Brokerage community as you welcome in REMAX?”
Tamir Poleg:
“Well, first of all, I would like to say thank you to them and all of the agents at REMAX for getting us to this point. What I’ve seen this morning is a lot of excitement throughout our network and the REMAX network as well. And I think that this is where the culture of the two companies really shine because both companies believe in working hard and being kind and focusing on closing transactions, in collaborating.
“And I think that the feedback that I have been receiving from our OGs is that they would just like to welcome all of REMAX agents into this combined family and just be one bigger, stronger, happier family. And that’s the sentiment. And this is what we need to continue,, and echo the fact that this is not threatening to anyone by any means. This is a reason to celebrate and I think that our agents are excited about it.”
Byron Lazine:
“As they should be, just accumulated decades and decades of knowledge and some of the highest production obviously in the industry with REMAX. And really, if you think about it, if you think about what brand do consumers probably know from the consumer standpoint, from the brokerage landscape, what do they know the most?”
Tamir Poleg:
“I’d say it’s probably REMAX. Yeah. I told you I’ve known this name since I was a kid, and that’s the only one I’ve known then.”
Byron Lazine:
“So congratulations. Very well done. Looking forward to seeing it close.”
Tamir Poleg:
“Thank you, Byron.”
