Plan B Business
Real Estate

Stop recruiting agents who never close.
Build a brokerage that retains producers.

We work with brokerage owners doing $5M-$25M in annual sales volume (15-75 agents) who are tired of the recruit-replace treadmill. Our 12-month engagement gets you to 80%+ agent retention, structured lead distribution, and a brokerage that profits independently of any single agent.

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Industry Reality

8 patterns we see in >70% of real estate brokerages

85%
frequency

Top 20% of agents produce 80% of revenue (and they know it)

Root cause: No structured lead distribution. Top agents poach own leads. Mid-tier agents starve. Bottom 30% are dead weight.

What we do: Brokerage-generated lead system with tiered distribution. Top producers get 1099 referrals + override; mid-tier get protected lead routing; under-performers get 90 days to perform or transition.

80%
frequency

Commission splits race-to-the-bottom (KW, eXp, Compass pressure)

Root cause: Owner competing on splits alone. Agents shop 70/30 → 80/20 → 90/10 every 18 months.

What we do: Reposition value: brokerage provides leads + CRM + admin + transaction coordinator. Splits matter less when net-to-agent is higher. Cap models retain top producers without bleeding margin.

75%
frequency

CRM is an unused subscription (kvCORE/Follow Up Boss)

Root cause: Brokerage pays for CRM. Agents use Excel, paper, or personal Gmail. No data on lead source ROI.

What we do: Mandatory CRM with daily activity reporting. Lead source ROI dashboards. Lead-routing automation. Track from lead → appointment → contract → close.

75%
frequency

Local SEO and Google My Business neglected

Root cause: Brokerage relies on Zillow/Realtor.com leads at $50-80 per lead. No organic search presence. No content marketing.

What we do: Hyper-local SEO strategy: neighborhood guides, school district content, hyper-local market reports. Google My Business optimization. Target 50%+ leads from organic by month 18.

70%
frequency

Transaction coordinator role doesn't exist (agents do their own paperwork)

Root cause: Owner views TC as cost center. Agents spend 8-12 hours per transaction on paperwork. Productivity stays flat.

What we do: Hire shared transaction coordinator ($45K-$65K) covering 8-12 agents. Frees 200+ agent-hours per month. Pays for itself in incremental closings within 90 days.

70%
frequency

Recruiting based on body count, not unit economics

Root cause: Owner recruits 30 agents/year to net 10-12 staying. Onboarding burden is enormous. Most never close a deal.

What we do: Quality recruiting framework: minimum 3-deal track record OR investment in 90-day mentorship program. Net 8-10 producing agents per year, not 30 warm bodies.

65%
frequency

Owner-broker still listing and selling (full-time producer)

Root cause: Owner makes most money on personal production. Brokerage P&L marginally profitable. No time to build the business.

What we do: Owner-broker reduces personal production from 24 deals/year to 6-8 over 18 months. Replace with brokerage growth: more agents producing, better splits, ancillary revenue.

60%
frequency

No ancillary revenue (no mortgage, title, insurance partnerships)

Root cause: Brokerage is 100% commission revenue. Adjacent revenue streams ignored.

What we do: Build affiliated business arrangements (ABA) for mortgage, title, insurance, home warranty. Comply with RESPA. Adds $5K-$25K per closing in indirect revenue across the ecosystem.

Benchmarks

The numbers we hit

KPIMarket avgPlan B targetAfter 12 mo
Agent retention (annual)55-70%85%+75-88%
Average agent units per year4-712+9-14
Brokerage net margin3-8%15%+10-17%
Lead-to-close conversion1-2%4%+3-5%
% leads from organic/owned channels15-25%50%+40-55%
Owner-broker personal production (deals/yr)20-30<108-14
Days to first deal (new agent)180-270<9075-120
Engagement Model

What working with us looks like

  1. 01

    Month 1: Brokerage + agent audit

    We pull every agent's 24-month production, every lead source's ROI, every transaction's gross margin to the brokerage. We identify the 5-7 agents driving 80% of profitable revenue and the bottom 30% who are net-negative.

  2. 02

    Months 2-3: CRM enforcement + TC role

    CRM (kvCORE or Follow Up Boss) becomes mandatory with daily activity reporting. Transaction coordinator hired and onboarded. Agent-by-agent split conversations: who's worth re-papering, who's exiting.

  3. 03

    Months 4-6: Lead system + local SEO

    Tiered lead distribution system launches. Local SEO content engine running (neighborhood guides, market reports). First ABA (mortgage or title) partnership executed. Recruiting framework rebuilt.

  4. 04

    Months 7-12: Owner freedom + compounding

    Owner-broker personal production drops by 50%+. Agent retention crosses 80%. Net margin doubles. We shift to quarterly cadence. The brokerage now profits independently of the owner's personal book.

Common questions from real estate brokerages owners

What size brokerage is this for?−
Sweet spot: $5M-$25M annual sales volume with 15-75 agents. Below $5M, you're still building foundations. Above $25M (or 100+ agents), you need a full-time COO and Director of Agent Development - we'd hand off.
We're a KW/eXp/Compass franchise. Does this work for us?+
Yes, with adjustments. Franchise models have specific compliance requirements and tech stack constraints. We work within them. Independent brokerages have more flexibility - franchise brokerages still benefit from the operational and retention work.
What about NAR settlement and buyer agency commission changes?+
Critical context: the post-settlement environment increases brokerage value, not decreases it. Solo agents struggle most with buyer agreements, compensation conversations, and consumer education. Brokerages that train and equip agents to navigate the new rules will gain market share. We help you build that training and process.
Our top agent threatens to leave every contract renewal. What do we do?+
Common - and predictable. We help you assess: is this agent actually worth their threat (units, gross commission, brokerage contribution, ancillary revenue impact)? About 30% of 'top agents' are net-negative once you factor in their consumption of admin time, broker time, and lead distribution. The honest math often reveals you'd be better off without them.
What CRM should we use?+
We're CRM-agnostic. Most common: kvCORE (most full-featured), Follow Up Boss (best UX), Sierra Interactive, Lofty (formerly Chime). We help you choose based on your size, agent tech-comfort, and lead sources. We don't sell CRM - we help you implement whatever you choose.
Will you help with recruiting?+
Yes - we help you build the recruiting framework, scripts, and qualification process. We don't recruit agents for you. Our goal: you recruit fewer, better agents and retain 85%+ of them, rather than the industry-standard recruit-and-lose treadmill.
Who actually does the work?+
Ligal Frish and Eitan Eshtemaker - the two co-founders. You won't be handed to associates.
What's the fee structure?+
Diagnostic: $1,500 one-time. Advisor: $3,500/month (most brokerages). Partner: $8,500+/month (multi-office brokerages or M&A prep).

Stop chasing splits. Start building a real brokerage.

30-minute strategy call. We'll diagnose your top 2 levers and tell you if we're a fit. No pitch. No pressure.

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