Every year in January, the Swanepoel Power (SP) 200 celebrates the best and the brightest in residential real estate; those who are making powerful moves at a national, and sometimes even multinational, scale.
It’s not easy to get on the list. Each of the 200 leaders included in the rankings has been carefully selected by a team of executives from US-based T3 Sixty, who evaluate contenders based on the scope of their position, the financial resources at their disposal, and their overall impact on the industry, amongst more.
This year’s rankings include 10 Canadian industry leaders — many of whom you may recognize from STOREYS’ own most influential list, which was unveiled this past October. Here are the Canadian powerhouses that made the cut:
Philip “Phil” Soper
- Role: CEO of Royal LePage, President and CEO of Bridgemarq Real Estate Services
- Rank: 13
- What the SP 200 said: “Soper runs Canada’s largest real estate brokerage enterprise, Bridgemarq Real Estate Services, which owns and operates the brands Royal LePage, Via Capitale and Johnston & Daniel, collectively consisting of over 20,000 agents in approximately 670 company-owned and franchised offices. He has run the company with consistency and balance since assuming the CEO role in 2003.”
Gavin Swartzman
- Role: CEO of Peerage Realty Partners
- Rank: 31
- What the SP 200 said: “Swartzman runs Peerage Realty Partners, which owns a network of brokerages in the luxury real estate space across North America. Its more than 4,700 U.S. agents do approximately $28 billion in annual sales, which makes Peerage the nation’s eighth-largest brokerage firm. The firm has grown quickly through acquisitions of large brokerages, many of them affiliates of Sotheby’s International Realty. He joined Peerage in 2014 from MDC Partners where he oversaw 15 partner firms and real estate activity across the company’s entire network.”
Tamir Poleg
- Role: Co-Founder and CEO of The Real Brokerage
- Rank: 36
- What the SP 200 said: “As co-founder and CEO of The Real Brokerage, Poleg leads one of the fastest-growing brokerages in the U.S. The firm, launched in 2014, became the nation’s 18th largest brokerage in 2023 with more than 7,000 agents who do over $12 billion in annual sales. Real, which now has a presence in all 50 states, leverages a revenue-sharing, capped model similar to eXp Realty to achieve this growth. The company went public in 2020 and continues to scale rapidly. In 2023, it released an agent-focused financial suite, a consumer app, and an AI-powered virtual concierge.”
Christopher Alexander
- Role: President of Re/Max Canada
- Rank: 48
- What the SP 200 said: “As president of Re/Max Canada since 2021, Alexander helms the country’s largest real estate franchise brand. He oversees operations in all Canadian provinces but Quebec, which remains independent, although he works closely with their leaders to build comprehensive brand strategy across Canada. Alexander, who began his career as a Re/Max sales associate in 2010, is the grandson of Frank J. Polzler who co-founded the first Re/Max region in Atlantic Canada in 1980.”
Martin Charlwood
- Role: President and CEO of Century 21 Canada
- Rank: 58
- What the SP 200 said:“As head of Century 21 Canada, one of the franchise’s most successful regions globally, Charlwood oversees nearly 400 offices across Canada. He succeeds his father, who launched the firm in 1976, in that position. He is also a director at Century 21 Canada-owner Charlwood Pacific Group, which includes a travel agency and a property management group.”
John DiMichele
- Role: CEO of Toronto Regional Real Estate Board
- Rank: 66
- What the SP 200 said: “DiMichele manages the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, North America’s largest local Realtor board with over 67,000 members. In addition to leading the over-100-year-old association, DiMichele also serves on the board of directors for Council of Multiple Listing Services.”
Tim Hudak
- Role: CEO of Ontario Real Estate Association
- Rank: 121
- What the SP 200 said: “Hudak has run the Ontario Real Estate Association, Canada’s largest association with approximately 96,000 professionals from 34 boards, since 2016. In 2023, OREA announced a Wellness Program benefits program. Previously, Hudak served for 21 years (1995-2016) in the provincial legislature, including as leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party.”
Carolyn Cheng
- Role: COO of Royal LePage
- Rank: 146
- What the SP 200 said: “As chief operating officer, Cheng oversees the development of new services for Canada’s 100-plus-year-old company Royal LePage, a division of Bridgemarq Real Estate Services with over 20,000 agents. COO since 2016, she has overseen the company’s introduction of new services since 2003. The London School of Economics grad is also an award-winning landscape photographer, who has shown her work In Canadian galleries.”
Morgan Carey
- Role: Founder and CEO of Real Estate Webmasters
- Rank: 157
- What the SP 200 said: “Carey runs Real Estate Webmasters, which provides websites, lead generation, and CRMs to over 35,000 North American real estate professionals. In 2023, the Vancouver-based company he founded in 2004 launched a tool to provide an extra layer of security for listings, a new CRM source-tracking feature, and a human-assisted AI tool.”
John Lusink
- Role: President of Right at Home Realty
- Rank: 178
- What the SP 200 said: “Lusink runs Toronto brokerage Right at Home Realty, which has over 6,000 agents and is one of the city’s largest brokerages. He also serves as president of RealServus, a Canadian property technology investment firm that acquired Right at Home Realty and fellow Toronto brokerage Property.ca in 2022. Lusink, who started as a CB Richard Ellis sales rep in 1987, has also served on the Toronto Real Estate Board and Ontario Real Estate Association.”
