Built for brokerages weighing a custom build against a configurable platform
The real estate CRM you were going to custom build, assembled from configuration instead.
Every three years, a growing brokerage looks at Follow Up Boss, kvCORE, Lofty, Boomtown, and Chime, decides none of them fit, and talks to a development shop about a custom build. The pitch is a 480,000 dollar engagement over six months, a maintenance retainer forever, and a team that holds the roadmap. Strkr runs the real estate CRM primitives (buyer and seller pipelines, listing records, transaction coordination, commission splits) as configurable modules that most brokerages fit without writing a line of custom software.
A custom real estate CRM build sounds like the right answer when the off the shelf tools feel wrong. kvCORE handles IDX and lead gen but the pipeline model is thin. Follow Up Boss nails the lead followup motion but does not touch transaction coordination. Boomtown and Chime run strong on broker owned lead sites but leave gaps for teams on 100 percent commission splits. Dotloop and Skyslope handle transaction coordination well but do not have the CRM depth. The gap tempts brokerages into a custom build. The custom build then runs 400 to 700 thousand dollars with ongoing maintenance, and the team ends up with a product nobody else is testing or iterating on. The honest path for most brokerages is to configure the primitives in Strkr and reserve the custom build budget for the one or two differentiators the platform cannot do.
The six month build
A custom real estate CRM runs 400 to 700K and six months.
A real estate CRM custom build at a competent development agency scopes at roughly 400,000 to 700,000 dollars over five to seven months. The scope covers CRM data model, agent and broker roles, buyer and seller pipelines, listing records, basic reporting, and a mobile app. Transaction coordination, commission splits, IDX integration, and MLS feeds add another 200K and three months. The all in cost before launch runs 600K to 1M for a mid sized brokerage.
Maintenance in perpetuity
Custom code needs a retained dev team forever.
A custom CRM is only as alive as the development team keeping it alive. Bug fixes, iOS and Android updates every quarter, MLS feed format changes, lender portal integrations, state regulatory changes to disclosure fields, security patches to the dependencies all require ongoing work. The typical retained budget runs 8 to 15 thousand dollars per month after launch, which compounds into another 500K over three years.
Nobody else is iterating with you
A custom tool stops improving the day the retainer pauses.
The off the shelf platforms (Follow Up Boss, Lofty, Boomtown) ship product updates every month because 20 other brokerages are pushing feedback. A custom build only gets the features your team specifically requests. The AI drafting tools, the new reporting dashboards, the mobile improvements that landed in Follow Up Boss last quarter are not landing in your custom tool unless you fund them specifically.
The real differentiator is small
Most of the custom scope is table stakes CRM.
When a brokerage lists the reasons they are considering a custom build, roughly 80 percent of the scope is standard CRM (contacts, pipelines, email, SMS, calendar, tasks). The actual brokerage specific differentiator is usually one or two things: a commission calculator, a disclosure workflow, a agent recruiting pipeline, a referral tracking pattern. Those are configurable in Strkr without writing a custom app.
MLS and IDX dependencies
MLS feeds change format and break custom integrations.
MLS feed formats (RETS legacy, RESO Web API, custom per market) change on their own schedule. A custom integration built against the 2024 feed may stop working when the local MLS updates to the 2026 schema. The platform teams (Lofty, Boomtown, Chime) carry MLS integration teams that absorb those changes across all customers. Strkr pattern is to lean on established listing data providers through the open API rather than build the MLS layer custom.
Mobile parity burns the budget
A real estate CRM needs real mobile, not a web wrapper.
Real estate is a mobile first business. Showing agents using the CRM between showings, lenders responding from the car, transaction coordinators updating from the closing table all need a real mobile experience. A real mobile app in a custom build runs 150 to 300 thousand dollars on top of the web scope, with ongoing iOS and Android maintenance. Strkr mobile ships on both platforms as part of the platform baseline.
What a real estate CRM actually needs
The primitives most brokerages assume require custom code.
A brokerage CRM needs seven or eight primitives most of which do not require custom development. The configurable version of each is below, with the custom build equivalent price tag for comparison.
Buyer pipeline
Lead to showing to offer to under contract to close.
The buyer side of the business runs as a pipeline with stages for new lead, qualified, showing, offer, under contract, close. Each stage has required fields (buyer preapproval status, price range, financing type, must have features). Strkr pipeline supports buyer specific stages, required fields per stage, and automatic followup rules without a custom build.
Seller and listing pipeline
Prospect to CMA to listed to under contract to close.
The listing side runs a parallel pipeline. The record carries listing specific fields (list price, square footage, year built, lot size, HOA fees, days on market) and the agent moves the record through CMA, listed, under contract, close. The pipeline fires marketing automation at listed (open house schedule) and feedback collection post showing.
Transaction coordination
Checklist by state with required documents and dates.
Transaction coordination runs as a checklist tied to the under contract deal: inspection scheduled, inspection complete, loan commitment, appraisal, title clear, final walkthrough, closing. Each item has a due date, an owner, and required documents. Strkr runs the checklist as a configurable template per state so the Virginia disclosure flow differs from Texas without a custom app.
Commission split engine
Per agent, per deal, per cap and company dollar logic.
Commission splits are the one piece most brokerages assume requires custom code. Strkr handles the common patterns: fixed percent split with cap, graduated split per year to date production, company dollar deducted first, referral fee off the top, royalty line, errors and omissions deduction. The calculator writes a split preview on every deal that the agent and broker both see.
Agent recruiting pipeline
A separate pipeline for recruiting licensed agents.
Growing brokerages run a recruiting pipeline alongside the sales pipelines. Prospective agent flows through outreach, intro meeting, split proposal, offer, onboarding. The record tracks their current brokerage, production history, split expectation, and transition timing. Strkr handles the pipeline as a configuration on the standard Deal object pointed at recruits instead of properties.
IDX and listing data
Pull from MLS or listing aggregator via open API.
Rather than build a custom MLS integration, Strkr connects to listing data through the established MLS gateways (Spark API, Realogy data services, local RETS feeds via a third party aggregator) and writes the listings into Strkr listing records. The brokerage pays the aggregator for the feed and Strkr handles the storage and search. No custom MLS code required.
Lender and title relationships
Vendor contacts attached to the transaction.
Each transaction carries a lender contact, a title contact, an inspector contact, an appraiser contact. The vendor records live as a contact type in Strkr with the vendor firm, direct contact person, phone, email, and preferred communication channel. Automations fire tasks against the vendor contacts at the right transaction stage.
Referral tracking
Who sent the lead and what fee is owed.
Referral sources (past clients, builder partners, lender partners, agent to agent referrals) attach to the lead record with a configured referral fee. The commission split engine deducts the referral fee off the top and generates the referral payment task after close. The referral partner contact gets a thank you flow that the brokerage configures.
Marketing library
Shared marketing assets and email templates.
Branded listing flyers, open house signage orders, email templates for each stage, SMS templates for showing confirmations, social media post templates all live in a shared marketing library. Each agent branches a template for their listings. Strkr handles the shared library through the standard document and template system with per-agent personalization fields.
When a custom build is still right
The narrow cases where configuration will not do.
The honest advice is to configure the standard primitives in Strkr and reserve the custom build budget for the one or two things the platform cannot do. Here is where a custom build is still the right call.
A proprietary pricing model
An iBuyer or novel transaction model.
If the brokerage runs a proprietary pricing model (iBuyer offer calculation, instant cash offer, novel seller participation structure), the pricing engine itself is intellectual property that justifies custom development. The surrounding CRM still runs on Strkr; the custom build is just the pricing engine that writes offers back into the CRM through the open API.
A consumer facing portal
A branded buyer or seller portal with transaction visibility.
If the brokerage wants a public, consumer facing portal where buyers log in to see their showings, saved listings, and offer status, the portal UI itself may justify custom frontend work. The data behind the portal still lives in Strkr and the portal pulls through the open API. The custom scope is the frontend experience, not the CRM backend.
Proprietary scoring
Lead scoring built on proprietary data signals.
If lead scoring draws on proprietary data (an exclusive data partnership, a bespoke engagement signal from a brokerage web property, a partner event signal), the scoring model may justify a small custom service. The service produces a score that writes back to the Strkr lead record through the open API. The CRM is still Strkr.
A regulatory structure
Fully custom disclosure workflow in a regulated structure.
A few state and provincial regulatory structures have highly specific disclosure chains (dual agency documentation, specific brokerage structures in certain Canadian provinces, specific government backed loan workflows) that need custom document generation and signature. The custom work covers the document generation layer; the CRM and client record stay in Strkr.
A novel agent compensation structure
A compensation model outside the standard patterns.
If the brokerage runs a compensation model well outside the standard patterns (equity sharing, revenue participation across teams, highly nested royalty streams), the compensation engine may need custom code. Strkr handles percent split with cap, graduated splits, company dollar, royalty, and referral off the top; anything significantly more complex may justify a small compensation microservice that writes payment records into Strkr.
Deep MLS augmentation
A proprietary layer on top of MLS data.
If the brokerage builds a proprietary analytical layer on MLS data (market timing predictions, neighborhood trend models, custom valuation adjustments), that layer is intellectual property that justifies custom development. The augmentation lives as a service; the CRM reads the augmented values from Strkr listing records through the open API.
The honest cost comparison
Six month custom build versus six week configuration.
Here is a straight dollar comparison for a 50 agent brokerage with buyer side, listing side, transaction coordination, and commission splits.
Custom build year one
Roughly 650,000 dollars all in.
A 50 agent brokerage custom build at a competent agency scopes at roughly 480,000 dollars for the CRM core and 170,000 dollars for mobile. Year one total is 650,000 dollars before any ongoing retainer. The build takes six to seven months, during which the team runs on their legacy tool and the broker funds both.
Custom build years two and three
Another 400,000 dollars in retainer and feature work.
Years two and three carry a 10,000 dollar per month retainer for maintenance, plus roughly 15,000 dollars per quarter in feature work driven by broker requests. Three year total adds up to roughly 1.05 million dollars for a system only your brokerage uses.
Strkr configuration year one
Roughly 60,000 dollars all in for the same scope.
A 50 agent Strkr deployment runs roughly 50 dollars per agent per month, which is 30,000 dollars per year for seats. Configuration services (buyer and listing pipelines, transaction templates, commission split rules, data migration from the current tool) run 25,000 to 35,000 dollars one time. Year one total is roughly 55,000 to 65,000 dollars.
Strkr years two and three
Just the seats, with the product improving monthly.
Years two and three run only the per agent seat cost, roughly 30,000 dollars per year, with the product shipping monthly feature updates driven by thousands of brokerages pushing feedback. Three year total runs roughly 115,000 to 125,000 dollars with no retained dev team required.
The difference compounds
The 900K dollar delta funds something strategic.
The three year delta between the custom build and the Strkr configuration is roughly 900,000 dollars. For a 50 agent brokerage that is enough to fund two senior recruiter hires, a video content program, a market expansion into an adjacent zip code, or a stronger commission split to recruit top producers. The strategic opportunity cost of the custom build is where the real pain sits.
The custom build still waiting
Reserve 50 to 100K for the real differentiator.
If the brokerage has a proprietary edge (iBuyer pricing, consumer portal, scoring model), reserve 50,000 to 100,000 dollars of the saved budget to build that specific service against the Strkr open API. The CRM is standardized; the differentiator is custom. That is the right allocation.
Head-to-head
Strkr configuration vs custom real estate CRM build.
Side by side on the dimensions that matter to a brokerage evaluating both routes.
Feature
Strkr
Custom real estate CRM build
Year one cost
Approximately 55,000 to 65,000 dollars
Approximately 480,000 to 700,000 dollars
Three year total cost
Approximately 115,000 to 125,000 dollars
Approximately 1 million to 1.3 million dollars
Time to live
Four to six weeks
Six to nine months
Mobile apps included
Native iOS and Android on launch
Add 150 to 300K for mobile
Transaction coordination
Configurable state templates
Custom build or integrate Dotloop
Commission split engine
Configurable with graduated and cap logic
Custom build if beyond standard patterns
MLS integration
Via Spark API or aggregator through open API
Custom RETS or RESO integration
Product iteration cadence
Monthly platform updates
Only what you fund
Maintenance burden
Zero retained dev team required
10 to 15K per month retainer typical
Room for proprietary edge
Build the one differentiator against the open API
Build everything including the standard
How teams use Strkr
How brokerages choose configuration over custom.
The common thread across brokerages that pick Strkr instead of a custom build: they want to spend the development budget on growth, not on recreating standard CRM.
72 agent independent brokerage
Scoped a 540K custom build, shipped Strkr in six weeks for 42K.
A 72 agent independent brokerage on the east coast scoped a custom build at 540,000 dollars after frustrations with their legacy platform. The broker owner, Petra, took a last look at configurable options and ran a Strkr proof of concept. The buyer pipeline, listing pipeline, transaction templates for the two states the brokerage operates in, and commission split rules all configured in five and a half weeks. The brokerage went live for 42,000 dollars all in and redirected the 500K difference into recruiting bonuses for top producer transitions.
Boutique luxury firm with proprietary scoring
Reserved 80K for the differentiator and standardized the rest.
A boutique luxury firm had built a proprietary buyer scoring model that read from private club memberships, past purchase patterns, and specific demographic signals. The firm had been considering a 600K custom CRM to house both the scoring and the CRM. Instead they built the scoring service as a small 80K engagement that writes scores to the Strkr lead record through the open API. CRM runs on Strkr; the proprietary edge stays proprietary and runs faster to ship.
12 state regional brokerage
Twelve state disclosure templates configured, no custom code.
A regional brokerage operating in twelve states had assumed state specific disclosure workflows required custom development per state. The transaction coordination manager, Rohan, built twelve configurable transaction templates in Strkr, each with the right disclosure documents, required dates, and signature requirements for that state. The configuration took three weeks total. No custom development was needed for the state variance.
Franchise office with corporate commission requirement
Corporate royalty line and E and O deduction configured in one afternoon.
A franchise office with a corporate royalty requirement (6 percent of gross commission off the top), company dollar deduction, errors and omissions deduction, and graduated agent split configured the full commission waterfall in Strkr in an afternoon. The managing broker, Beatrice, had been quoted 90K for a custom commission engine. The configuration passed the controller review on the first try.
Growing team planning IDX and lead gen
Hooked Spark API through the open API, kept Lofty for site hosting.
A growing team of 24 agents did not want to replace their Lofty branded search site but wanted a better CRM than Lofty provided. The team kept Lofty for the public site, hooked the Spark API MLS feed into Strkr for the listings data, and routed Lofty leads into the Strkr buyer pipeline through the open API webhook pattern. The team ran on both tools without redundancy and the lead to showing time dropped meaningfully in the first quarter.
Configure the standard, build the one thing that differentiates you.
See a working buyer pipeline, listing pipeline, transaction template, and commission split calculator in a Strkr sandbox before you sign a custom build engagement. The sandbox takes 20 minutes to spin up.
Why would a brokerage ever still choose a custom build over Strkr configuration?
A custom build is still right when the brokerage has one or two genuine differentiators that the platform cannot do: a proprietary pricing or iBuyer engine, a consumer facing branded portal with transaction visibility, a proprietary scoring model built on exclusive data, a highly novel compensation structure outside standard patterns, or a regulatory structure needing custom document chains. In those cases, the honest advice is to use Strkr for the standard CRM and reserve a 50 to 100K custom development engagement for the differentiator, which writes to Strkr through the open API.
How do commission splits work when agents have different arrangements with the brokerage?
The commission split engine supports per agent split configuration including fixed percent splits, graduated splits that step up as the agent passes year to date production thresholds (a cap), company dollar deductions taken first, errors and omissions deductions, royalty line deductions for franchise offices, and referral fees paid off the top. Each agent record carries their current split configuration with an effective date, and the calculator writes a split preview on every deal that both the agent and the broker can see. Year to date production rolls automatically and the split transitions at the cap without manual intervention.
How does the MLS feed integration work without a custom build?
Rather than build a direct MLS integration per market, Strkr connects to established MLS gateway providers (Spark API, specific regional aggregators, Realogy data services) through the open API. The brokerage pays the aggregator for the feed access (typical range is 100 to 400 dollars per month depending on markets) and Strkr handles the listings data storage, search, and attachment to buyer and seller records. When the local MLS updates its schema, the aggregator absorbs the change rather than the brokerage carrying the integration maintenance.
What is the compliance posture for real estate specific requirements?
Strkr is HIPAA compliant with a BAA available (relevant for brokerages that handle any protected health information through assisted living referrals or 55 plus community transactions), SOC 2 Type II in progress with completion targeted for 2026-Q4, and GDPR and CCPA compliant for brokerages selling to international buyers or California residents. The transaction audit trail records every status change, document upload, and signature event with timestamp, user, and IP address, which satisfies the common state real estate commission audit request. Data retention policies configure per state regulatory requirement (typical hold is seven years post close).
Can we migrate from Follow Up Boss, kvCORE, Lofty, Boomtown, or Chime without losing historical data?
Yes. The import tool reads from the common real estate CRM platforms either through their native export (CSV for Follow Up Boss and Lofty) or through their API (kvCORE and Chime). Contacts, pipelines, notes, tasks, email history, and transaction records migrate with their field values preserved. Historical commission records migrate with the split details intact for audit lookup. The migration typically runs two to four weeks for a brokerage under 100 agents with under 50,000 contacts, including a parallel run period where both systems stay in sync before full cutover.
How does Strkr mobile compare to a custom mobile app a brokerage would commission?
Strkr ships native iOS and Android apps on the platform baseline (no additional cost, no custom app development). The apps cover the agent daily motion: pipeline review, contact lookup, call and SMS from the record, task completion, document capture through the camera, calendar view of upcoming showings and closings. For context, a custom native mobile app at a competent agency scopes at 150 to 300 thousand dollars for the initial build plus roughly 60 thousand dollars per year in maintenance for iOS and Android updates. The platform mobile means that budget stays available for other investments.
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