Choosing a brokerage isn’t about finding the one that promises the most, broker-owner Emily Askin writes. It’s about finding the one that performs when the stakes are highest.
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Most agents believe they are making thoughtful, strategic decisions when choosing a brokerage. In reality, many are comparing the most visible features such as splits, caps, fees, branding and office aesthetics. These are easy to measure, easy to market and easy to justify. They are also rarely the reason agents stay or leave.
Recruiting conversations happen in perfect conditions, and recruiting meetings show you what a brokerage looks like when everything is going right. They do not show you how it behaves when buyers get emotional, sellers get defensive, deadlines are missed or accusations start flying.
The broker’s role in day-to-day operations
Most brokers are not involved in the day-to-day details of every transaction. Agents run their businesses independently until something goes wrong.
When disputes arise, when clients are unhappy, when another agent raises concerns or when a misunderstanding becomes a formal complaint, that’s when the broker steps in. The broker’s role is not to take sides, but to correct the agent if they are wrong, support the agent if they are right and ensure that everyone is operating within the contract and the Code of Ethics.
Small issues escalate quickly in real estate. A frustrated client becomes an ethics complaint. An ethics complaint becomes a regulatory review. A regulatory review becomes legal involvement.
And suddenly, the brokerage’s E&O policy is in play. When clients sue, they rarely sue just one party. They sue everyone connected to the transaction. That includes the agent, the broker and the brokerage.
This is why compliance matters. State-required forms, national forms, disclosures, documentation, signatures and timelines are not bureaucratic hurdles. They are protection. Many agents complain that there are too many forms, or they resist taking them to clients for signatures, that is, until they’re needed, and by then it might be too late. Compliance creates the paper trail that protects everyone when memories fade and emotions rise.
Most agents learn this lesson the hard way. One missed form. One undocumented conversation. One assumption. Once burned, twice shy. Strong brokerages institutionalize those lessons so agents don’t have to learn them through personal loss.
Here are the questions agents should be asking themselves, but rarely do:
- If one of my transactions turned contentious tomorrow, do I trust my brokerage to know exactly what to do?
- Do I know who would review my file, guide my communication, interface with attorneys, manage an ethics complaint or navigate an E&O claim?
- Or would I be figuring it out in real time?
Why brokerages seem calm on the surface
This is where The Swan Effect becomes visible. Some brokerages look calm because disciplined systems are working underneath. Others look calm because nothing serious has happened yet. The difference only becomes clear when pressure arrives.
Choosing a brokerage isn’t about finding the one that promises the most. It’s about finding the one that performs when the stakes are highest. Splits are visible. Protection is not. Branding is visible. Risk management is not. Promises are visible. Competence is not.
So ask yourself, is your current brokerage doing this for you? And more importantly, do you trust that they’re doing it even when you’re not watching?
From where I sit as a broker-owner, when agents feel supported in difficult moments, it’s never accidental. It’s the result of systems, experience and a lot of unseen work.
Which usually means someone is over there, quietly paddling like hell just beneath the surface.
All this month, we’re focused on The New Brokerage Playbook. Running a brokerage in 2026 looks nothing like it used to. From major players to scrappy indies, we’ll map the new playing field and talk with brokerage leaders across the country about what’s working now — and what’s next.
Emily Askin is a broker-owner with REMAX at Home and REMAX Preferred. Connect with her on Instagram.
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