According to HousingWire, Real REMAX Group has decided to stop selling new franchises for its Motto Mortgage brand following the completion of their acquisition. This represents a shift from what was initially promised when The Real Brokerage and REMAX announced the deal, when both companies said the Motto Mortgage brand would continue operating under its existing structure with all franchisee agreements remaining in place and support staying unchanged.
The company is instead planning to invest resources into building a single mortgage platform that serves the broader agent community rather than continuing to grow the Motto franchise network. Existing Motto franchisees will have the option to mutually end their agreements if they choose, though Real REMAX Group says it remains committed to supporting those who stay and will honor their existing franchise agreements.
Along with this strategic shift, there have been significant leadership changes. Vic Lombardo, who had been leading REMAX's mortgage services division since joining the company in 2025, has stepped down from his position. Kate Gurevich, who leads One Real Mortgage from the Real side of the merged company, is taking over his role. This follows other leadership transitions, including the departure of REMAX's president and chief growth officer, with Real's team members stepping into key positions within the new organization.
The numbers tell an interesting story about why this pivot may have happened. By the end of 2025, Motto Mortgage was operating fewer offices than it had the year before, and the company had actually terminated around eighty franchisees during the fourth quarter. The newly merged organization is clearly trying to consolidate its mortgage services under a unified platform rather than maintaining two separate systems.
What I am seeing locally in the Bay Area and broader East Bay region is that brokerage consolidation continues to reshape how agents access mortgage services. When large organizations like this shift their focus from growing franchise networks to building integrated platforms, it typically means better tools for individual agents but fewer independent mortgage franchise opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to start their own shops. This could affect how some of our local real estate professionals source financing for their clients.
