Fewer Agents. More Deals. Is This the Biggest Opportunity of the Decade?

By Dan Lesniak · July 28, 2026

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For the past few years, the headlines have been full of doom and gloom.

"Transactions are down."

"Agents are leaving the industry."

"The market is challenging."

Most agents hear those headlines and panic.

I hear something completely different.

Opportunity.

Here's why.

The number of licensed REALTORS® has fallen significantly from its pandemic peak as slower transaction volume has pushed thousands of part-time and low-producing agents out of the business. But people still need to buy homes. They still need to sell homes. They still get married, divorced, transferred, retire, inherit property, and relocate.

The transactions don't disappear.

They simply get redistributed.

And that means one thing:

The agents who survive don't just survive—they gain market share.

Too many agents obsess over the size of the market.

The best agents obsess over their share of it.

Let's say your market goes from 10,000 annual transactions to 9,000.

Sounds bad.

Now let's say the number of active agents competing for those deals drops from 5,000 to 3,500.

Your odds just improved dramatically.

You don't need the market to grow.

You need your share of the market to grow.

Truth Bomb:

That's exactly what happens during every market reset.

The casual agents leave.

The committed agents build.

History has repeated this pattern over and over.

The agents who launched or expanded during challenging markets often became the dominant players when the market recovered.

Why?

Because they kept prospecting while everyone else was waiting.

They built relationships while competitors quit.

They took listings that others were too discouraged to pursue.

Every agent who leaves the business creates opportunity for someone else.

Why shouldn't that someone be you?

Now let's take the conversation one step further.

What if you aren't just growing your sales business?

What if you're also growing your ownership and residual income?

This is where business model matters.

At eXp Realty, a market reset creates multiple layers of opportunity.

As weaker agents leave the business, successful agents naturally capture more listings, more buyers, and more transactions.

More market share means more commission income.

Simple.

Every transaction, ICON award, and stock purchase has the potential to build ownership in the company.

You're not simply earning income.

You're accumulating an asset.

That's a very different way to think about your career.

This is the part many agents overlook.

During slower markets, recruiting often slows across the industry.

Many agents stop building altogether.

But eventually the market improves.

Agent count grows again.

New agents enter the business.

Experienced agents make brokerage changes.

Growth returns.

If you've spent the slower years building your organization, you're positioned to benefit when expansion resumes.

In other words:

While everyone else is waiting for the next wave…

You're already standing on the beach.

Every market reset separates professionals from amateurs.

Ask yourself honestly:

Am I spending my day consuming bad news?

Or creating opportunity?

Here's what your daily schedule should look like:

8:00–10:00 AM
Prospecting

10:00–12:00 PM
Lead follow-up

Afternoon
Appointments, negotiations, and client service

Daily
One conversation with an agent about their business.

Notice what's missing?

Scrolling headlines.

Complaining about rates.

Waiting for business.

Here's another overlooked opportunity.

When markets get tougher, agents start asking bigger questions.

Questions like:

Those aren't recruiting conversations.

They're wealth conversations.

And those conversations happen far more often during market transitions than during easy markets.

If you're building at eXp, don't think of yourself as recruiting.

Think of yourself as helping agents solve problems.

Because that's exactly what you're doing.

Instead of asking:

Try this instead:

That question changes everything.

Because it shifts the conversation away from commission splits…

…and toward financial freedom.

Every major business has seasons.

Some people plant.

Some people harvest.

The biggest mistake you can make is trying to harvest during planting season.

Right now is a planting season.

Plant more conversations.

Plant more relationships.

Plant more listings.

Plant more recruiting discussions.

Because when the market accelerates again—and it will—the agents who planted will be the ones harvesting.

Before this week ends:

☐ Calculate your current market share.

☐ Set a goal to increase it by at least 25% over the next 12 months.

☐ Block four hours every day for lead generation and follow-up.

☐ Call five past clients every day.

☐ Reach out to five homeowners every day.

☐ Have one meaningful conversation with another agent every day.

☐ Ask yourself: "Am I building commissions…or am I building wealth?"

Most agents see fewer competitors and become nervous.

I see fewer competitors and become excited.

Because every agent who exits creates space for another to grow.

The only question is:

Will you be the one taking that market share?

Or will someone else?

This market isn't shrinking your opportunity.

It's concentrating it.

The agents who understand that today will dominate tomorrow.

If you're still at a brokerage that limits your income, your freedom, or your future… you already know the truth:

It's time to upgrade.

Here are your 2 proven paths to partnering with me at eXp Realty:

Stop overthinking it.

Text me and I'll help you make the move clean and fast.

📲 Text Dan Lesniak: 703-638-4393

Or book a call with me directly:

https://calendly.com/hyperfast/50min-call-w-dan

Good.

Do it the right way.

Watch the three short videos, then review the $40,000+ in additional benefits you receive when you choose me as your sponsor.

🌐 https://whylibertas.com/Dan

Pick Option 1 or Option 2—but don't sit in the middle.

Your future isn't built by the transactions you closed yesterday.

It's built by the assets you start creating today.

Let's go.

— Dan Lesniak
Host, Power House Talk

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