“I don’t think REMAX deserves to be Kodak.”
That’s the zinger REMAX Holdings CEO Erik Carlson delivered at Inman Connect New York, where he candidly spoke about the challenges of leading a 51-year-old brand that had struggled to break out of a year-long lull in agent count and revenue growth. Carlson promised the crowd that REMAX would return to growth and profitability — an achievement he believed REMAX owed to its broker-owners.
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Erik Carlson
Over the past 11 months, REMAX has inched closer to Carlson’s goalpost through a rebrand, the introduction of a new compensation model, the expansion of MAXTech, and prudent spending, all of which led the Denver-based franchisor to close the third quarter in the black, with a $4 million profit.
“Twenty twenty-five has been an unbelievable year of innovation, bringing value to the network and reinvigorating this great network that we have,” he told Inman of REMAX’s growth.
Carlson said he’s excited about extending the franchisor’s momentum in 2026, when the potential for lower mortgage rates and improved affordability will set the stage for REMAX affiliates to soar.
“I believe that if you’re positioned in the market as a trusted, professional, productive agent, you can find great solutions for your customers, whether with available inventory or innovative, creative financing programs that can help buyers find that dream home,” he said. “So from a REMAX perspective, I think we’re well-positioned.”
Inman: It’s nice to talk to you, Erik. I’ll start our conversation with the same question I’ve asked other leaders: What trend has defined 2025 for you?
Carlson: I think it’s a trend of hope. I think that 2025 has been a noisy year, yet a year that has shown some signs of improvement as we move into 2026. So I believe that most folks in real estate have hope for 2026.
When it comes to the REMAX brand, it’s one of the oldest and most recognizable in real estate. At Inman Connect New York earlier this year, you talked about the challenge of moving such an established brand into the future, and said REMAX “doesn’t deserve to be the Kodak” of real estate. How has that goal played out for you this year?
REMAX has a great worldwide brand and an unbelievable network of agents and franchisees in over 110 countries. We’re 145,000 trusted professionals who are doing great work on behalf of buyers and sellers every single day.
In February, we launched our new brand look and feel, which is more modern and dynamic, and actually puts the agent in the middle because of the important work they do. Since R4, we’ve just built on that by launching new processes, services, tools, and products to help our franchisees and agents win listings, do so in less time, and make more money. Our value proposition has never been stronger.
Throughout the year, we’ve continued to improve and engage in our event and our storytelling. And I can tell you right now, REMAX has its swagger back.
Brokerages have long struggled to balance giving agents freedom in their marketing with maintaining brand continuity. How has REMAX balanced that with the rebrand? And do you think the rebrand has been successful at “putting agents in the middle?”
We’re a company that has a story brand that actually means something in the marketplace. It has great consumer awareness, and in consumers’ eyes, it stands for trust. And so one of the things that, obviously, consumers are looking for when picking an agent, whether the sell side or the buy side, is a trusted partner. And REMAX has been the brand to win ‘the most trusted badge’ in North America for the last seven years. It’s an outstanding accomplishment for our network.
And so when you have a brand like that as an agent, you want to use it because it stands for trust. You have instant credibility with consumers, so we needed to modernize and digitize the brand to show up better in a digital environment where customers are obviously looking for agents and homes.
And although our previous wordmark was outstanding, we knew we could improve it, and we did. The agent is such an important part of what it means to deliver a great customer experience on behalf of the REMAX brand and their own brand. They are the engine that makes REMAX work.
In addition to the rebrand, REMAX has rolled out several new initiatives, including a new compensation model that, according to your latest earnings call, has shown positive early results.
How has it been for you as a leader introducing all these new changes? How has it enhanced your ability to take risks, be agile, and push the envelope on what REMAX can be?
Look, we have an unbelievable network of trusted, professional, productive agents and brokerages, and I think it starts with trust in the brand and trust in the vision that we have painted for where we’re headed. It really is about leaning into the network and helping them understand our vision and that we’re here to deliver an unbelievable customer experience.
As we continue to establish those proof points, we’ll continue to build additional trust. As you go on journeys like this, you do have to be agile, you have to stay innovative, but you have to be humble enough to say, ‘I got this wrong, and that’s okay.’ Having the ability to have that perspective is very important when you’re going through an innovation cycle like this.
Going back to your first comment about hope, what are you hopeful for in 2026? For the real estate industry and specifically for REMAX?
From a REMAX network perspective, we’re very optimistic about 2026. We have a great value proposition, a great brand, and an engaged network that is ready, willing, and able to help consumers with that home-buying experience and bring their dreams to life.
I do think, from a macro perspective, we’re hopeful that there will be modest improvement. Obviously, existing-home month supply is looking better. Some folks are talking about 2026 looking a lot like 2019, and I subscribe to that theory. I do think that there’ll be additional transactions, and there’ll still be a bit of pressure on affordability, but I think interest rates will come down.
