The real estate industry is in a high-stakes race to secure homes under management, a term that encapsulates the growing effort to offer end-to-end real estate services beyond the initial transaction. With evolving consumer expectations, increasing market fragmentation, and the rise of all-in-one platforms, the competition to create a seamless, lifetime real estate experience is heating up.

But who truly benefits from this race — the platforms, the agents, or the consumers? And is this trend a long-term shift or just a response to current market challenges? 

Jeff Hickey (Chief Product Officer, The Future of Real Estate (FORE)), Mark Johnson (CEO,  Homekeepr), Greg Martin (President, ERA Sunrise Realty), and Kelvin Kaemingk (Regional Manager, Loan Depot) participated in a masterclass moderated by Audrey Whittington (Senior Vice President, Local Logic) to discuss how real estate professionals can build sustainable business models around long-term client engagement.

In this masterclass, you’ll learn more about:

• The Future of Homes Under Management: What does it mean, and why does everyone want a piece of it?
• The Role of Proptech & Large Platforms: Zillow, Compass, SupraOne—who’s driving innovation, and what’s their endgame?
• Client for Life Strategies: How do real estate professionals retain and serve clients beyond the transaction?
• Market Fragmentation & Competition: With multiple platforms competing for consumer attention, how do buyers and sellers know where to go?
• Balancing Core Services & Expansion: Does offering post-transaction services dilute or strengthen an agent’s core business?
• Regulatory Considerations: Will government involvement shape market visibility, privacy, and consumer protections?

The Future of Homes Under Management

The concept of homes under management is evolving to encompass the full lifecycle of homeownership, not just transactions. Companies are investing in post-sale services, such as property maintenance, financial services, and even home improvement solutions, to maintain long-term relationships with homeowners. This model shifts real estate from a one-time transaction business to a continuous service model, where professionals provide value beyond the closing table.

This transformation is being driven by consumer expectations for seamless, all-in-one solutions. Homeowners increasingly seek proactive service recommendations, from refinancing alerts to renovation planning. Companies that successfully integrate these offerings will build long-term client loyalty and differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace.

The Role of Proptech & Large Platforms

Real estate technology is reshaping the industry by offering data-driven, highly personalized consumer experiences. Platforms such as Zillow, Compass, and SupraOne are leveraging big data and artificial intelligence to predict consumer needs and provide tailored property recommendations, financing options, and even home maintenance plans.

These companies are focusing on creating closed ecosystems where consumers remain within their platform for all real estate-related activities. While this enhances convenience, it also challenges traditional brokerages and independent agents. Real estate professionals must find ways to integrate with or compete against these platforms, either by leveraging their technology or offering superior localized expertise.

Client for Life Strategies

Building long-term consumer relationships requires more than occasional check-ins. To retain clients beyond the transaction, real estate professionals must engage in consistent, meaningful communication. Strategies such as automated home value reports, local market updates, and proactive service recommendations help maintain relationships and establish professionals as trusted advisors. Leveraging location intelligence from solutions like Local Logic further enhances these efforts, equipping clients with the insights they need to make informed decisions.

One critical shift is the adoption of predictive analytics to anticipate homeowner needs. By monitoring key factors like equity growth, mortgage rates, and neighborhood development trends, agents can provide personalized advice at the right time, positioning themselves as indispensable throughout the homeownership journey.

Market Fragmentation & Competition

The sheer number of real estate platforms and service providers has made it difficult for consumers to determine where to go for trustworthy information. Over-fragmentation can lead to confusion, forcing consumers to rely on multiple sources for different aspects of their homeownership journey.

A potential solution is the integration of multiple real estate services under a single dashboard, allowing consumers to access property search, financing, home maintenance, and renovation services in one place. While some companies have begun developing these solutions, ensuring a transparent, consumer-friendly experience remains a challenge.

Balancing Core Services & Expansion

Real estate professionals face the challenge of deciding whether to expand services beyond traditional buying and selling. Some argue that offering mortgage consulting, renovation assistance, and property management enhances an agent’s value, while others caution that diversifying too much can dilute an agent’s expertise.

The key to success is selective expansion — agents who partner with trusted service providers for additional offerings can maintain focus on their core business while enhancing client relationships. Those who integrate these services effectively will increase revenue opportunities and improve client retention, while agents who overextend risk spreading themselves too thin and losing credibility.

Regulatory Considerations

As real estate technology platforms collect vast amounts of consumer data, the industry is facing increasing scrutiny over privacy, transparency, and ethical data usage. Regulations may soon require companies to provide greater clarity on how consumer data is collected, used, and shared.

Additionally, concerns over automated valuations are growing, with potential government mandates requiring clearer disclosures on how home values are calculated. Real estate professionals must stay ahead of these regulations to ensure compliance while continuing to deliver accurate and ethical insights to their clients.

​​The Race is On — But Who Will Win?

The future of real estate engagement is evolving rapidly. Agents, brokers, MLSs, and proptech companies are all competing to establish themselves as the go-to resource for consumers throughout the homeownership journey. Those who successfully position themselves as trusted advisors, leverage technology effectively, and maintain a long-term perspective will be the real winners in this race.