Real estate brokerage eXp boosts footprint in New Zealand
Monday, 22 December 2025
The world of real estate is changing, and that’s led a rapidly expanding global real estate brokerage to significantly boost its presence in New Zealand.
eXp New Zealand announced a nationwide team of 45 real estate sales agents, who previously operated under the Independent Agent brand, had joined the company’s local division earlier this month.
The move more than tripled its agent count from 20, increased its visibility and service reach across both islands and in the major markets, and made it one of the fastest-growing real estate networks in the country, the company said.
eXp is not a well known real estate brand in New Zealand, but the company - which has tapped into technology changes to run its operation under an independent, cloud- based model - is a global juggernaut.
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It has more than 86,000 salespeople across 29 countries, and its holding company, eXp World Holdings, is listed on the Nasdaq index on the US stock market.
This year it expanded into seven countries, and its third quarter results show the global group’s revenue increased 7% to US$1.3 billion. Its real estate sales were up 3% to 121,516 in the third quarter, while the volume of its sales was up 7% to US$54.1b.
The New Zealand division was incorporated on the companies office register in March 2022, and it launched its operation quietly later that year.
But it has now stepped up its local presence. In October, Matt Jones, the founder of Independent Agents was appointed as its new country lead, and most of the Independent Agents team joined the company with him.
Jones said eXp enabled real estate salespeople to build their own business and brand and earn better money, while working remotely.
The global company had no physical offices, but instead worked with local agents who linked into the company’s infrastructure, platform, technology solutions, and services, he said.
“Agents don’t need more bureaucracy, they need ownership. I’ve spent the last few years helping agents ditch outdated models and build their own brands, with Independent Agents.
“But eXp is a global platform that makes it possible to do that at scale. It gives New Zealand agents the freedom, tech, and financial upside to build real businesses, not just sell homes.”
While there were a couple of similar agency models in New Zealand, they were either local or Australian, whereas eXp was the only international brand in the space, he said.
“It makes a difference because without an international brand, how big is the global reach really? You might get lucky, but your options are more limited than they are in a company with a real global footprint.
“That’s increasingly important as the world becomes more connected, and it’s especially relevant given recent changes for foreign buyers.”
Last week Parliament passed the Overseas Investment Act which included changes that softened the “foreign buyer ban”. The changes will allow “golden visa' investors to buy or build one New Zealand residential property worth $5 million or more.
Agents working in the higher price bracket, or luxury end of the market were seeing significant interest from foreign buyers, Jones said.
“And there are New Zealand owners who have been sitting on their hands, waiting for a change, who have popped up again and are now considering real estate agents.
“Their mind is on reaching an extended pool of buyers, and we have that international reach and backing. So there are real opportunities under this model, and this is a turning point for our industry.”
Jones, who has been an agent for 25 years, believed tech-driven, real estate brokerage companies, such as eXp, offered a non-traditional model that would strengthen further as time went on.
“There will be more digital based agencies and platforms. Maybe they won’t be the entire future of real estate, but the landscape is changing, and they will be a bigger part of it.”
But the target in New Zealand was to become a well-known brand in the local industry, and a platform agents wanted to work with because of the opportunities it offered, he added.
“We want to get our name out there, and nothing does that like sold signs with our brand’s name on them, so that’s what we are aiming for.”
eXp is one of several international property related companies to move into the New Zealand market in recent times.
Australian real estate giant, Raine & Horne, launched its local offering in 2023, and subsequently ramped up its presence by acquiring the Mike Pero Real Estate network.
Hines, a global real estate developer and fund manager, also set up shop in New Zealand in 2023, while Rethink Group, an Australian commercial property investment company, established a New Zealand wing in 2024.