In what has become the latest M&A deal in a quickly consolidating industry, LPT Aperture Holdings, parent company of the Robert Palmer-founded firm LPT Realty, has acquired AI software platform Humaniz, along with team and brokerage support platform Reside.
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The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Robert Palmer | LPT Aperture Holdings
“I firmly believe that teams will replace real estate franchises over the next decade,” Palmer told HousingWire, which first reported the news. “This belief is driving a lot of the action in our core enterprise. This is a big part of why LPT Realty embraces teams and also why we have this relationship with Humaniz and Reside. I view them both as two of the best-in-class team services platforms in our industry. So, to continue to support that momentum and move across all brokerages, we will be able to help teams grow and scale through these two companies.”
Humaniz empowers teams with AI software for recruiting and management, and Reside features coaching, training and community support for team and brokerage leaders.
Suneet Agarwal
With the acquisition, all companies will remain independent when it comes to operations and will retain their current leadership. Humaniz and Reside will also continue to be available to teams at any brokerage in the industry.
“We are not the kind of business to force agents to move to LPT; we want to embrace agent choice,” Palmer told HW. “We think these are two amazing platforms, and we want to help them continue to grow. In the past, we have seen brokerages purchase technology and turn it into a walled garden and that is the exact opposite of what we want to do. We want to prove to the industry that we can be a good steward of technology and these types of companies and continue to serve teams at all brokerages at the highest level. It is a commitment that I don’t think many brokerage CEOs would have made, and it is one we take very seriously.”
Jon Cheplak
LPT will also be providing Humaniz and Reside with capital to jumpstart growth across the U.S. and Canada.
“This acquisition by [LPT Aperture Holdings] accelerates everything we’ve been building,” Reside Principal Suneet Agarwal told HW. “Their resources, technology and reach allow us to go deeper for the teams and brokerages we serve across North America.”
Reside co-founder and Principal Jon Cheplak added in an email to HW, “Robert and LPT were a natural fit when looking at the best interests of our members and their vision for growth. Robert is one of the best marketers, business operators and growth strategists in the real estate industry to support the growth vision of team leaders.”
Chris Giannos
Humaniz’s CEO and founder, Chris Giannos, called Palmer an “amazing entrepreneur.”
“We think partnering with LPT is going to help us better serve the industry regardless of what brokerage someone is with,” the CEO told HW. “[It] is going to give us the resources and guidance we need to take our platform to the next level.”
LPT Aperture Holdings is the parent company of LPT Realty and luxury segment Aperture Global Real Estate. The company is actively pursuing an IPO, and reserved the ticker symbol of #LPTA with Nasdaq last August.
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