Compare
Real Brokerage vs Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices: What Each Publishes
Updated
Bottom line: Real publishes one split, cap and fee schedule for every agent. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices is a franchise network, owned through Berkshire Hathaway Energy, whose offices set their own terms, and it publishes no agent split, cap or fees.
Alexis Ruiz-Ney, Partner, Jumpstart Partners · Concierge Director, Houston Properties TeamOr call (713) 425-4194.
Who sets what a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices agent pays?
The franchised office does. The network's join page says its brokerage services are offered through its member franchisees, most of them independently owned and operated, and its about page calls it a real estate brokerage franchise network. Neither its site nor the annual reports of Berkshire Hathaway and Berkshire Hathaway Energy give an agent's split, cap or fees.
| What is compared | Real | Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices |
|---|---|---|
| Who sets the split | Real, the same for every agent: 85/15. | Each franchisee, most of them independently owned and operated. |
| Yearly cap | $12,000 in the US and $15,000 in Canada. | None published. |
| Monthly fee | None. | None published. |
| Fees on each transaction | $50 in the US and $40 in Canada, for compliance and broker review. | None published. |
| What the office pays the brand | Not applicable: Real is itself the brokerage. | A royalty that is a percentage of the franchisee's commissions. The annual reports do not state the rate. |
| Revenue share | Five tiers, 5% down to 1% of a sponsored agent's gross commission, paid out of Real's 15%. | None described on its site or in the annual reports. |
| Canada | Real runs its own brokerage in six provinces. | Franchised offices since 2020, including one in Montreal. No Canadian terms published. |
| Agents | 35,348 at the end of June 2026. | About 39,700 in the franchise network at the end of 2025, counted with its sister brand, Real Living. |
Who owns the network, and what does a franchise pay?
HomeServices of America runs the franchise network, and HomeServices is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which is itself wholly owned by Berkshire Hathaway. The name itself is a registered mark of Columbia Insurance Company, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. Berkshire Hathaway's annual report for 2025 says the franchise network had over 250 franchisees, nearly 1,400 offices and about 39,700 agents under two brand names.
A franchised office pays HomeServices a royalty based on a percentage of the commissions it earns, according to Berkshire Hathaway Energy's annual report, which does not give the rate. That royalty is the office's cost rather than the agent's, and what the office charges its agents is in the agreement between them.
What changes for a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices agent who moves to Real?
At Real all three are on the record: the split is 85/15 for every agent in a country, with a $12,000 cap in the US, and every fee is in its US fee schedule. Real also pays revenue share out of its own 15% split to the agent who sponsored you, which the network's site and its owners' annual reports do not describe for its agents.
In Canada, the network announced its first franchise in 2020, and its site lists independently owned Canadian offices such as one in Montreal. Real runs its own brokerage in six provinces, under its Canadian fee schedule, set in Canadian dollars, with a $15,000 cap.
Questions & answers
What else do agents in the US and Canada ask?
Who owns Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices?
HomeServices of America runs the franchise network, and HomeServices is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which Berkshire Hathaway wholly owns. The offices themselves are franchises, most of them independently owned and operated, and Berkshire Hathaway's annual report for 2025 counted about 39,700 agents across the network's two brands.
Each franchised office sets its own split and fees, and none is published nationally. The network sits beside ten other brokerages on the page setting out what each brokerage publishes about splits, caps and fees.
Does Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices operate in Canada?
Yes, through franchises. The network announced its first Canadian franchise in February 2020, and its site lists independently owned Canadian offices, including one in Montreal. It publishes no terms for Canadian agents. Real runs its own brokerage in six Canadian provinces, with fees set in Canadian dollars and a $15,000 cap.
How a license moves to Real in each province is set out on the page about moving your license to Real, state by state and province by province.
This page sets Real's published terms beside what Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and its owners publish, as each read in the month shown, and it is not legal or tax advice. At a franchised office, your agreement with that office sets your split and fees.