Rise 2025 Recap: Real Isn’t the Future — It’s the Now

🚀Rise 2025 Recap: Real Isn’t the Future — It’s the Now

by Sara Tufano, REALTOR®, Real Broker CT, LLC

This month, I attended my fourth RISE Conference with Real Brokerage — and each year, the momentum feels bigger.

When I joined Real in 2020, there were 1,200 agents nationwide.
Today, Real has grown to over 30,000 agents across North America.

That level of growth is not typical in real estate.
That level of growth happens when a company is solving a real problem.

And Real is doing exactly that.

Real Is Not a Brokerage — It’s a Platform

Traditional brokerages offer:

✅A brand

✅A commission split

✅A place to hang your license

Real offers something very different.

Real is a platform.
A platform where agents, teams, and brokerages can build multiple businesses — not just sales.

For me, that means the ability to grow:

• Residential real estate throughout Connecticut

• A concierge of services and opportunities to build wealth

• Investment opportunities throughout New England

• Subscription-based content services for agents and teams

Real isn’t asking agents to plug into their model.
Real built the model around the agent.

Major Announcement: Leo CoPilot (Now Voice-First)

One of the biggest moments of RISE 2025 came when Real announced the latest evolution of its AI platform: Leo CoPilot.

The update transforms Leo into a voice-first, context-aware AI assistant that allows agents to:

✅ Ask compliance or contract questions verbally

✅Get marketing guidance instantly

✅ Solve operational problems in seconds

✅Access documents, training, and support using natural language

Just speak to Leo — and it responds & it's SMART.

This changes how agents operate.
It changes how teams scale.
It changes how brokerages support their people.

No one else in the real estate industry is innovating like this.

Real Connecticut + Real New England: Leadership Matters

While Real continues to scale globally, the impact is felt locally.

Our network of agents in Real Massachusetts and Real Boston is one of the fastest-growing and most collaborative groups in the entire company. Agents share resources, deals, strategy, technology — not competition.

And we had a major win at the conference:

🥇Justin Mandese — Connecticut State Broker — was named Broker of the Year.

Justin is a big reason Real Connecticut, Massachusetts, & Rhode Island is growing so rapidly.

💥Local leadership matters.
💥Local support matters.
💥Culture matters.

Proud to Be Part of Real's growth

This year, I was invited to join the Real Builder’s Group, a new leadership and growth initiative focused on helping agents build real, scalable businesses — not just close commission checks.

The mission is simple:

Teach agents how to build wealth, not just income.

I, Sara Tufano at Real Brokerage, believe:

• Real estate is a vehicle for freedom

• Agents should build equity, not dependency

• Collaboration beats competition

RISE reminded me that I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.

Real Estate Isn’t Changing — It Already Changed

The brokerage model we’ve known for 50+ years is antiquated.

Agents don’t want:

❌Desk fees

❌Commission splits that don’t scale

❌Local-only brands without modern tech

Agents want:

🔥Ownership

🔥Options

🔥Technology that drives efficiency

🔥Multiple income streams

Real didn’t create the new model.

Real IS the new model.

And it’s happening right now.

If You’re an Agent in Connecticut or anywhere in New England and You’re Feeling Stuck…

Let’s talk.

Whether you're:

• An agent in Connecticut

• A team leader in Connecticut

• Running your own independent brokerage in Connecticut

…there is a better way to build your business.

No pressure. No pitch. Just a conversation...