Compass Launches New Division Aimed At Helping Seniors

Compass, the nation’s largest real estate brokerage by sales volume, is looking to better serve senior citizens. With that intention, the firm recently introduced Compass Plus, a division that aims to “bridge the gap between older adults and essential real estate and adjacent services such as home health, move management, and estate planning.”

The division initially soft launched in August 2024. It’s led by Richard Spiering, Ryan Garson, Knute Brookshier and Ruth Reffkin, the mother of Compass founder and CEO Robert Reffkin. Since the official launch earlier this month, Compass Plus has doubled its enrollment and now has nearly 1,200 agents. 

Not another niche

To be a “certified agent” within the division, agents must become a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), which is a certification available across all industries for professionals who serve older adults.

“Any agent is perfectly capable of working with seniors, but to be a certified agent and use the Compass Plus marketing materials and have your name on our directory you have to get your CSA certification,” Ruth Reffkin said. “The CSA is not a real estate course, it is a class on aging in America and it gives you a good view of the challenges seniors face and the needs specific to them.” 

Compass decided to create this barrier to entry to dissuade agents who were just looking for another “niche” to help build their business.

“This isn’t a niche,” Reffkin said. “These are people who really need our help and need expert advice. I want the agents to be motivated by the mission and that is why our motto at Compass Plus is ‘Mission before commission.’” 

Reffkin, who will be celebrating her 80th birthday in a few weeks, said she was inspired to learn more about working with seniors after meeting a group of agents in Boston who were taking steps to familiarize themselves with senior-specific things in their communities. This included visits to assisted living communities to know which ones to recommend, as well as meetings with care managers and estate sale professionals.

But it wasn’t until discussing the things she had learned with her son that she decided to create Compass Plus. 

“It is such an underserved population that is often scammed and just not treated well,” Reffkin said. “I felt that there was really a need for good ethical services for seniors in real estate. The purpose of the group is not to reinvent the wheel, but to really level up our education and awareness, and give support to other professionals who work with seniors.” 

How it works

While buying and selling real estate is an emotional process for anyone, the process can be even harder on seniors, who frequently have to transition out of a family home and into a property or facility that is better suited to their current phase of life. 

“They are having to move because the house they have doesn’t serve them anymore. It might be too big or there may be too many stairs, or it is in an area where they have to travel long distances to go to the doctor or shopping,” Reffkin said.

“So it isn’t something where they woke up one morning and decided they didn’t like their house anymore. They are being forced to move by the circumstances of aging, and that in and of itself is already stressful.” 

In addition to leveraging the senior-focused expertise of Compass Plus agents, Reffkin also highlighted Compass Concierge and the company’s three-phase marketing plan as other tools for senior clients to take advantage of when working with a Compass Plus agent. 

With Compass Concierge, the brokerage gives the client a loan they can use to help with moving expenses or any needed repairs before selling their property. The client can repay the loan with the proceeds from their successful home sale.

Similarly, Compass’s three-phase marketing plan allows seniors, whose homes are frequently far from “showing ready,” according to Reffkin, to pre-market and possibly even sell their property while they’re fixing it up.

“There are often a lot of things a senior will need to get their home ready for sale and to prepare themselves for a move, like finding the right assisted living facility or conducting an estate sale to downsize furniture,” Reffkin said. 

“And by using Compass’s private exclusives and coming-soon (listings), they can generate interest in the property and get feedback without incurring negative insights like days on market and potential price drops.”