Real Estate Veteran Dane Briggs Partners with HomeSmart NEXT Founder Phil Sexton in Leadership Capacity

Real Estate Tech Veteran Will Focus on Continued Advancement of Team’s Agent-Centric Mission

PHOENIX, AZ, UNITED STATES, November 5, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Phil Sexton, founder of HomeSmart’s NEXT team, announced this week his business partnership with fellow Arizona real estate industry veteran Dane Briggs. In this leadership role, Briggs will support the team’s growth, including developing agent-focused workflows and AI integrations.

Sexton and Briggs have spent the majority of their mutual careers working collaboratively, though this endeavor marks the beginning of what is sure to become a notable partnership.

“It’s rare to find a multi-faceted real estate talent like Dane; someone who has both run a brokerage and launched — then sold — a proptech startup. He’s fully on board with our mission of helping agents be more successful,” Sexton said.

With roots in real estate as a designated broker, Briggs’ impressive career has spanned more than 20 years. He went on to secure leadership roles in title, founded a tech-driven referral brokerage, and led expansion initiatives at Homie. He is also one of the most visible educators in the Arizona market, having delivered more than 1,000 trainings and presentations over two decades, spoken at numerous Inman Connect conferences, and served as an Inman Ambassador for several years. Today, Briggs holds a strategic role at the Greater Phoenix market platform The Cromford Report, co-hosts weekly statewide market update classes, and continues to advise real estate, title, and proptech companies on growth strategy, technology, and operations. With a background covering brokerage ownership, title and escrow executive management, he is naturally positioned for the NEXT team approach.

“Over the last few months, I’ve talked with a lot of companies about where I might fit and what we could accomplish together. But I kept coming back to what Phil was building. It was different from anything else I was seeing,” Briggs said. “Those conversations led to me getting involved and helping bring some of the technical ideas to life. Before long, we weren’t just talking about what Phil was building. We were talking about what we could build together.”

Said Sexton of the announcement, “We’re built for agents that are out there doing the business but don’t want to worry about AI implementation or the ROI of marketing efforts. Dane and I are both industry veterans who love leveraging technology and taking leaps of faith. I’m very excited about where this will grow!”

About NEXT:
NEXT is a new style of real estate team built around one core belief: agents should be the star of their own business. Unlike traditional teams that prioritize building the brand of a top producer, NEXT puts the focus and energy into elevating the individual agent.

Team leadership works alongside each agent to handle the marketing, lead follow-up, nurturing, open house conversion systems, and other operational details agents often don’t have time for—so they can focus on their clients and shine in their market. By combining smart technology with proven relationship-based strategies, NEXT does the work behind the scenes while the agent gets the spotlight and the results.

At NEXT, the mission is simple: to empower agents to grow profitable, sustainable businesses without sacrificing their personality, their time, or their identity.

For more information, or to inquire about joining NEXT, visit NextRealEstate.Team.

About HomeSmart:
Founded in 2000 with a revolutionary 100%-commission, full-service model, HomeSmart is a top national real estate enterprise powered by its proprietary end-to-end technology platform. HomeSmart exists to unlock the transformative power of real estate for everyone, providing integrated solutions to agents, franchise partners, and, ultimately, consumers.

HomeSmart’s footprint covers over 26,000 agents across 250+ offices in 48 states.

For more information on HomeSmart and its opportunities for buyers, sellers, agents or franchise owners, visit HomeSmart.com.

Hayley Ringle
Evolve PR and Marketing
+1 6024990352