Why Top Agents and Teams Join KW Franchises

In 2025, 3,700 teams from Keller Williams® market centers made the RealTrends Verified Rankings, a list of the top performing real estate brokerages in the United States. It’s a significant achievement — and one that got us wondering: With so many choices among real estate brands, why do top agents and teams choose KW franchises — and why do they stay?

From technology to profit share and education to culture, we talked with KW® leaders to break down how KW differs from other real estate franchises, and how to assess the pros and cons of today’s top real estate brands. Read on to learn if the KW model is right for you.

The Meaning Behind the Motto

While profit is a driving force for every business owner, KW Founder Gary Keller believes every goal, including profitability, should be powered by a “Big Why” — a personal mission that provides clarity and motivation to succeed. For KW, that mission is to help entrepreneurs “build careers worth having, businesses worth owning, and lives worth living,” and it’s backed by values that prioritize God, family, then business — in that order.

By today’s standards, that all might sound a little old-fashioned — but that’s actually a good thing: Those values have played a key part in four decades of organic growth, resulting in KW becoming the largest real estate franchise by agent count in the world. From the very beginning, profit share served as an expression of those values and beliefs, and one of many ways KW supports agent success.

Profit share is a key differentiator for KW, says KWRI Regions President Wendi Harrelson. Profit share allows vested KW® agents to share in the profits of their associated KW® office (a.k.a., “market center”) and earn passive income by helping the franchise grow. That encourages everyone to have an interest in the success of the franchise and the people they’re in business with. When put into practice, the system gives agents, team leaders, and market center owners alike a powerful tool to build careers worth having — and then some.

Understanding Real Estate Commissions and Caps

For any agent or team considering a move, it’s important to understand how commission splits differ from one brokerage to the next. At KW, market centers are independently owned and operated franchises. That means market center owners  can decide what the commission split is between their market center and their agents in consideration of local economic or market conditions. 

A central part of KW’s franchise system is the commission “cap.” At KW, a cap is the maximum amount of money an agent pays to their market center from their commission earnings each year. Cap dollars cover things like training and education, operating expenses, and franchise royalties. At KW, the cap system allows agents to retain 100 percent of their commission income after reaching a predetermined annual cap. The capping timeline is based on an agent’s anniversary year — the date they join a KW® market center. Once the cap is met, an agent keeps all of their commission earnings for the rest of the year.

By contrast, many other major real estate companies operate on a split commission model without an annual cap. Under that model, an agent shares a percentage of their earnings with their brokerage on an ongoing basis, regardless of their production level. (It’s easy to see why a high- performing, high-volume agent would choose a model that lets them keep more of what they earn year in and year out.)

Freedom Within a Franchise

Unlike most other brokerages in the U.S., Keller Williams is a franchise business. Just as each market center is individually owned and operated, every agent is likewise an independent business owner. An agent operates as an associate of a market center, benefiting from KW’s and the market center’s comprehensive ecosystem of training, education, events, technology, and support.

That independence comes with major benefits. While agents at other brokerages are often restricted to building their business identity under their brokerage’s brand only, KW does things differently. KW® agents have the freedom to build (and keep) their own individual brand, which means independent agents who join KW don’t have to give up an existing brand they’ve worked long and hard to build.

And unlike other companies where agents may be required to leave their database behind, should they elect to change brokerages, Wendi says, “We allow our agents to take their business with them if they leave us — because it’s their business.” That’s a big deal for any motivated agent-entrepreneur.

For many top agents and teams, the freedom to build and grow their business is the reason to join a KW franchise — and stay. KW’s expansion model provides a roadmap for successful agents to grow their teams in size and across multiple locations, while the market center provides leverage in the form of training, administrative support, coaching, consulting, and community connection. KW’s proprietary, state-of-the-art technology serves as the foundation for that expansion, including KW Command® and Command for Teams.

But expansion is just one opportunity path available in the KW franchise system, says KWRI VP of Growth John Clidy. An agent can own or invest in multiple KW® market centers, take on a leadership role as a team leader or operating principal at their market center, and more. The potential for growth is limitless.

John joined a KW® market center as a Mega Agent — and he’s since done all of the above. While he experienced enormous success as an agent, John says, “I didn’t want to be an agent forever.” Within the KW system, John recognized there were opportunities open to him that weren’t available at his prior brokerage. “I could own offices, or I could be a regional leader, or I could be a coach.” He felt free to follow his sense of purpose, which ultimately led him to a leadership position at KWRI. “I didn’t believe it. Now I live it,” he says.

Size and Experience Matter

Onboarding a large, established team can be complex, which means some agents are reluctant to entertain a move, even when they recognize the benefits. “But that’s the great thing about being one of the number one real estate franchises in the country,” John says. “We’ve seen it. Done it. This isn’t our first rodeo.” KW has the systems and models in place to help move even the biggest team.

However, KW’s large network can also be a deterrent for those who’ve enjoyed the experience of standing out in a smaller field. “There’s so much high-level production across the franchise,” Wendi explains. “Sometimes people don’t want to come to us because they won’t be number one. But then there are the ‘go-getters’ who come to a KW franchise because they want to be pushed to do more.”

Keller Williams has thriving market center locations across the United States. But if you’re accustomed to a small office, transferring to a market center of 200 people or more can be an adjustment. That’s where KW Communities and the Agent Leadership Council (ALC) come into play, John says.

Communities are specialized groups within KW that provide targeted training and networking for agents who share a common niche or interest, while the ALC is made up of the top 20% of a market center’s agents, who provide input and make strategic decisions that affect the business. It’s about creating a collaborative culture where agents support one another individually and invest in the success of the overall business, John says. “We want Keller Williams agents to be plugged into something, because we know that if they don’t have a sense of community, then it’s just about numbers.” He says market centers take a “no agent left behind” approach to helping new associates stay connected and benefit from the sharing of playbooks and best practices. 

John also notes that working directly through a market center isn’t the only option within the KW system. Top agents and teams can form a KW® Indie Mega Associate Office (IMAO) or KW® business center, which offer flexibility and localization, while maintaining alignment with KW’s systems and models.

The Benefits of an Agent-Centric Business Model

When asked what criteria she would use to choose a real estate company, Wendi says, economics come first. “It has to make sense economically” for a top agent or team to move. Second on her list are education and training. If you want to further your business, Wendi says, ask yourself, “What foundation do they have to teach me more?”

Education and training are at the heart of Keller Williams and core to the company’s culture. Career Visioning, Franchise Systems Orientation, The 6 Personal Perspectives, Business Planning Clinic, Ignite, and an annual calendar of programs, courses, and events provide an ongoing source of education, motivation, and inspiration that are available for agents to achieve both their professional and personal goals.

But that broad array of resources can be overwhelming for agents who are new to the system; it can feel like drinking from a firehose. John says the key is to “set your menu of services” by determining what you need next in your business. “Do you need help with profitability? Hiring? Building a team? Scaling?” he asks. Knowing what you need to solve for next in your business will help you choose the right resources. When you’re part of KW, your market center leaders are there to help guide you.

How KW Compares to Other Real Estate Companies

Every real estate company has a different value proposition. AI can offer some insight, and Reddit threads are filled with agents sharing their opinions about which company does it best. It’s helpful to weigh the pros and cons, and gather firsthand insight from those who’ve been there.

To help you compare the industry’s most well-known brands, we’ve compiled a list of key factors to consider in finding the right home for your real estate business, some of which you won’t find in a typical pros and cons list.

The Big Picture: How to Choose a Real Estate Company

Ultimately, the best home for a top agent or team involves assessing a host of factors, including economic and organizational alignment. The value of your brand and database, owned technology and integrations, and culture play a big part in determining whether or not a move is the right one.

For John, it comes down to opportunities that provide personal and professional growth. “The question to ask yourself is, ‘How can this company make me and my team better?’”