Keller, the largest shareholder by far of the company he co-founded in 1983, remains in the No. 2 slot on the SP 200 in 2024. Keller’s steady, strategic hand at the helm kept Keller Williams Realty, the nation’s largest franchise brand by volume, sides and agent count, humming along in 2023.

Keller also welcomed back a proven business partner in 2023, with the return of Mark Willis to the CEO role, which he held from 2005 to 2015, a time of explosive growth for the firm. This sets the company on a stronger footing as it heads into 2024, as establishing a lasting CEO has eluded Keller in recent years.

In addition, Keller, by many accounts, was the strongest witness for the defense at the Sitzer-Burnett trial. With a clear and compelling response to questions, he stood up for Keller Williams and the industry. But the company, as many others, still faces the burden of appealing this case’s judgment and dealing with the many copycats that have cropped up.

The company also made a strategic move in 2023 to address the rise of fast-growing competitors eXp Realty and The Real Brokerage, and others, by slashing the share of profits KW agents who join a competitor receive from the company, from 100% to 5%.

Keller Williams, which has nearly 170,000 U.S. agents who do over $439 billion in annual sales, and Keller have ambitious goals, including a target to approximately double U.S. agent count. With Willis again at his side, Keller has a powerful partner to help him achieve this. They have done it before.

Keller has remained one of the five most powerful people in residential real estate every year since the SP 200 debuted in 2014. And in 2024, his run continues, as the second most powerful person in real estate.