eXp Realty Expands to Luxembourg as The Real Brokerage Names First Chief Growth Officer

Two of the fastest-growing cloud-based brokerages in North America made significant organizational announcements this week. eXp Realty confirmed its expansion into Luxembourg, appointing industry veteran Karim Layouni to lead the new market. Luxembourg represents eXp's latest European entry, chosen for its position as one of the continent's most internationally connected financial hubs and a gateway to cross-border property transactions across the Benelux region. The company now operates in more than 24 countries.

Simultaneously, The Real Brokerage announced the appointment of Jason Cassity as its first-ever Chief Growth Officer — a newly created executive role designed to accelerate the company's next phase of expansion. Cassity, previously a top-producing agent and team leader in San Diego, brings a frontline perspective to a role focused on agent recruitment strategy, team-level growth programs, and market expansion prioritization. The Real Brokerage has grown from under 1,000 agents in 2021 to more than 22,000 today.

The executive moves reflect a broader strategic pattern among tech-forward brokerages: investing heavily in leadership infrastructure to manage rapid scale while maintaining the agent-centric culture that drove initial growth. Both eXp and The Real Brokerage operate on revenue-sharing models that reward agents for recruiting new members, creating organic growth flywheels that traditional brokerages have struggled to replicate.

In other brokerage news this week, Howard Hanna NYC appointed Hal D. Gavzie as executive director of business development, bringing more than 25 years of New York real estate experience from senior roles at Douglas Elliman, Corcoran, and Town Residential. RE/MAX also added a 300-agent firm to its network, while San Francisco independent brokerage City Real Estate announced an expansion into Marin County.

The spring of 2026 is shaping up as a period of significant brokerage consolidation and expansion, driven by agents seeking platforms with stronger technology, marketing support, and compensation structures. The post-commission-settlement environment has accelerated agents' willingness to evaluate brokerage options, giving well-resourced platforms an unprecedented recruiting opportunity.