Sam Rodriguez, a member of the Board of Directors (Epique Realty), entered real estate by chance at age 23, having no prior experience. Originally approached through a recruiting call meant for his then-wife, he decided to explore the field himself. He quickly moved into leadership roles, gaining experience across departments and developing a passion for recruiting, coaching, and executive management.
Throughout his career, Sam has led both independent and national franchise offices, often focusing on growth and expansion. In 2021, he co-founded a national revenue-share model in the mortgage industry, successfully launching 45 branches by partnering top real estate teams with experienced mortgage professionals. This initiative evolved into Power Lending, Epique Realty’s national mortgage joint venture, and expanded further to include partnerships in the title insurance industry.
Revolutionizing the Real Estate Brokerage Model
Sam Rodriguez has observed a drastic shift in the real estate industry over the past 15 years. Many brokerages began removing benefits and support, instead increasing commission splits to retain and attract agents. This led to the rise of 100% commission brokerages, as agents sought the best commission plans and opted to purchase support services on their own.
According to Sam, many brokerages became “vanilla,” all looking and acting alike with different names and branding. The landscape changed with the rise of the cloud brokerage model, as well as revenue share and equity share models. These new approaches, which Sam’s former brokerage helped pioneer, proved more popular than the traditional, brick-and-mortar franchise systems burdened by heavy expenses.
Epique Realty, however, didn’t just copy this new model; it revolutionized it. Sam, who previously served as a Vice President of U.S. and International Growth, spearheaded a growth effort that saw his former company expand from 2,600 agents in 2017 to over 53,000 agents globally in less than five years.
He was drawn to Epique Realty because he had never seen a brokerage that provided such robust systems, technology, and support with such unique value propositions. To him, the model was “business made simple,” all wrapped in an attractive brand. Sam was compelled to join the company, inspired by the founders’ vision and successful track record.
The “Car Wash” Brokerage: A New Approach to Real Estate
Sam Rodriguez notes that Epique Realty has grown from a local company to a global brand, with expansion into more countries underway. He emphasizes that Epique Realty is the first and only national real estate brand that is truly agent-centric, not just in name. This unique value proposition has attracted some of the country’s top talent, as agents, teams, and brokerage owners are all looking for something more.
Epique Realty’s growth strategy is straightforward: they don’t focus on becoming the biggest or fastest-growing brokerage. Instead, their goal is to be the best, providing an incredible number of agent benefits to keep their agents happy and productive. This approach not only helps attract new talent but also retains top agents and influential leaders.
Affectionately and humorously, the company is known as the “car wash real estate brokerage” because it offers unlimited monthly car washes to its agents. This is just one of many benefits, which also include roadside assistance, free leads, free social media ads, free digital billboards, free agent healthcare, and free transaction coordination. In fact, the company provides 93 included benefits to its agents.
Why Epique Realty is Making Headlines?
Sam Rodriguez notes that no other brokerage in history has reached 4,000 agents as quickly as Epique Realty. Over the past two years, the company has experienced more than a 10x growth, expanding from fewer than 50 agents in Texas to approximately 5,000 agents now operating in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Epique Realty has also begun its global expansion, with plans to open in Canada this summer.
This rapid growth has led to a massive increase in sales. The brokerage closed over 13,000 transactions in 2024, which represents a year-over-year increase of more than 3,000%. The company is on pace to double that figure in 2025. According to Sam, if they had submitted their 2024 sales data to RealTrends, they would have ranked among the Top 10 Rapid Top Movers and the Top 25 for Closed Volume and Closed Units. Epique Realty also takes pride in its high productivity, enjoying one of the highest sales-per-agent ratios in the industry. This rapid agent growth and significant increase in sales have led to record brokerage revenues, keeping the company on track to become publicly traded in 2026.
Furthermore, the company recently debuted on the t3Sixty Mega1000 for 2024 in the following categories:
- #23 largest brokerage by agent count
- #31 closed transaction sides
- #52 closed transaction volume
Tech-Forward Approach to Real Estate
Sam Rodriguez notes that Epique Realty is also known as an AI real estate brokerage, having heavily integrated automation and artificial intelligence into its marketing, operations, support, and training. This technology is also used within its client management system and for its recruiting and retention efforts.
Epique Realty is currently in consultation with a law firm that is assisting the company with the process of going public. The firm is also conducting due diligence as the brokerage considers three to four possible tech acquisitions. The company also continues to build its own proprietary technology in-house and is always seeking out new partnerships to better serve its agents and their clients. The brokerage is finalizing its vertical expansion into both mortgage and title insurance and preparing to launch the highly anticipated RevShare+. This industry-first initiative will allow every agent to participate in and earn revenue share without being actively involved in agent attraction efforts.
Sam Rodriguez on the Future of AI in Real Estate
Sam Rodriguez believes that the ongoing use and implementation of AI, especially the next wave of advanced AI, will provide even greater value for brokerages, agents, and clients throughout the home-selling process. He states that Epique Realty will continue to lead and innovate in the AI space. The company was recently recognized as a finalist for an Inman Innovator Award for best use of AI and was previously named the number one AI service for real estate by RealTrends.
Looking ahead, 2025 marks the beginning of the company’s global expansion, with a goal of entering at least 10 new countries over the next five years. Epique Realty has also essentially relaunched its entire brand in Spanish for its Epique En Español initiative. This effort aims to support the rapid growth of Hispanic real estate professionals and the broader Hispanic community both in the U.S. and globally. By the fourth quarter of 2025, the company’s commercial, luxury, and teams divisions will be fully operational.
Not a “Race to the Bottom”
Sam Rodriguez frequently addresses concerns about the sustainability of Epique Realty’s business model, which he acknowledges are valid due to the company’s unconventional approach. However, he finds it ironic that traditional brokerages—struggling to compete with modern, virtual models—rarely face the same scrutiny. He emphasizes that Epique is not trying to be the cheapest brokerage but the best, avoiding the “race to the bottom” seen elsewhere in the industry.
Rodriguez explains that Epique Realty is designed for long-term success. The company forms strategic vendor partnerships to secure services and technology at a fraction of retail costs, and it develops its own apps, websites, and AI tools in-house, significantly reducing expenses. By leveraging AI, RestAPI, and automation, Epique cuts labor costs and improves efficiency. New benefits are added by reallocating existing resources rather than increasing the budget.
He stresses that while Epique isn’t a discount brokerage, it also isn’t expensive. Agents pay a mix of monthly fees, company splits, and transaction fees, and the company generates multiple revenue streams through its integrated real estate services. The focus remains on providing high value to both agents and clients.
The Accolades of Sam Rodriguez
Sam Rodriguez has been recognized as a prominent figure in the real estate industry and featured as a below:
- 2025 Marquis Who’s Who Top Executive – Recognized for outstanding leadership and professional excellence.
- Inner Circle Continental Who’s Who in Real Estate – Selected for significant impact and achievement in the real estate industry.
- Most Influential Leader to Watch for in 2025 – Named by Visionary CIOs Magazine for his forward-thinking leadership and industry influence.
These honors reflect his strong reputation, influence, and leadership within the real estate sector.
Sam expresses that he is most proud of the thousands of lives he has positively impacted. His efforts have not only helped individuals in their real estate careers but have also extended to their personal lives. He takes great satisfaction in helping others create additional streams of income and generational wealth, believing these efforts will positively affect their children and great-grandchildren.
