Compass proved it’s firing on all cylinders in the second quarter, posting what CEO Robert Reffkin called “the best quarterly results in our history”—and the numbers largely back up that bold claim, according to results announced Wednesday in its second-quarter 2025 earnings report.
The tech-focused brokerage saw its market share climb to a record 6.09% in Q2, up nearly a full percentage point from the same period last year. That growth came even as the broader housing market struggled, with national closed sales volume dropping 0.9% year-over-year, Reffkin told investors on an earnings call Wednesday afternoon.
“For 17 consecutive quarters, spanning our entire history as a public company, Compass has outperformed the market on an organic basis,” Reffkin said. “There has never been a quarter since we started measuring this metric where we haven’t grown faster than the market.”
Here are some key performance highlights from Compass’s Q2 2025 earnings report:
- Revenue jumped 21.1% to $2.06 billion in the second quarter from the same period a year ago.
- Closed transactions increased 20.9% compared to the market transactions, the brokerage said.
- GAAP net income nearly doubled to $39.4 million—up 90.3% from $20.7 million a year ago.
- Operating cash flow hit a record $72.8 million year-over-year.
- Agent count rose by 832 principal agents in the quarter—the highest quarterly addition in company history.
- The brokerage now has 20,965 principal agents, up 23.3% from last year, with a 97.5% quarterly retention rate.
Compass’s strong financial results and agent growth come amid its ongoing lawsuit against Zillow for the property search giant’s ban on private listings not publicly marketed on the MLS (and its platform) within 24 hours.
“The consistent new theme we are hearing from agents that join this quarter is that they want to be at a company that stands up for agents and stands up for their clients,” Reffkin told investors on the firm’s earnings call Wednesday afternoon. “No agent wants to be told by a portal or an MLS how they must work, and none of their clients want to be limited in when, where and how they market their home.”
When asked if he felt his personal evangelism in the industry helped boost Compass’s agent growth, Reffkin insisted it goes beyond that, pointing to a 37% increase in tech adoption, for one. However, he did call out the silence among his contemporaries at other companies.
“I continue to be amazed by the silence amongst brokerage CEOs who have been acquiescing to the portals and MLSs that are dictating how their agents work and how homeowners market properties,” Reffkin said. “I hope more brokerage CEOs see our results as a signal that they will attract more agents if they fight for them and not simply acquiesce to portals and MLSs that ban and fine agents for marketing listings outside their platforms.”
The agent growth story is a notable one for Compass when paired with productivity gains in a still sluggish housing market. Compass agents closed 73,025 transactions in Q2, representing a 20.9% increase while the overall market declined. The company’s gross transaction value reached $78.3 billion, up 20.3% year-over-year.
In leadership news, Reffkin announced that CFO Kalani Reelitz was exiting the brokerage by the end of August for a new opportunity. Reffkin noted that Scott Wahler, chief accounting officer with Compass, would succeed Reelitz as CFO.
Reelitz highlighted the company’s improved profitability metrics, with Adjusted EBITDA growing 63% to $125.9 million.
“As I depart, Compass has never been stronger,” Reelitz said in his closing remarks. “We are well-positioned, financially, strategically and operationally to continue to lead the industry.”
The company touted its continued investment in technology. The company’s proprietary platform saw average weekly sessions per agent hit an all-time high of 24 in Q2 — up 37% year-over-year. That translates to roughly five platform sessions per day for the average agent, assuming a five-day work week.
Additionally, Compass’s “Make-Me-Sell” feature, which lets homeowners share aspirational pricing with agents, grew to 16,770 entries by quarter’s end. The company sees this as a way to tap into its 100+ million CRM contacts to create exclusive inventory opportunities.
Meanwhile, the One-Click Title & Escrow integration continues driving higher attachment rates, with agents using the feature attaching at roughly twice the rate of those who haven’t adopted it, Reffkin noted.
When asked about housing market trends, Reffkin pointed out that price growth has slowed considerably to 1% year-over-year. As a result, sellers are seeing the script flipped on them, with 42% of listings requiring a price reduction in July, Reffkin noted to investors.
“That’s more than any time in the last 12 years,” Reffkin said. “They all look like damaged goods. The reason why Compass Private Exclusives and Compass Coming Soons are so valuable to sellers is that we can protect you from that. When you have a coming soon or Compass private exclusive, there are no days on market or price drop history, and it’s very meaningful.”
Looking ahead, Compass projects Q3 revenue between $1.725 billion and $1.850 billion, with adjusted EBITDA expected to land between $60 million and $80 million. For the full year, the company updated its non-GAAP operating expense guidance to $1.010 billion to $1.020 billion, down from earlier projections.
The results come as Compass continues expanding through strategic acquisitions, including Christie’s International Real Estate, which contributed 10.4% of the quarter’s revenue growth. Additional smaller acquisitions in Washington, D.C., and Texas added to the brokerage’s growth story.
