eXp World Holdings and Kind Lending are shutting down their mortgage joint venture, Success Lending, and Newrez will potentially become a new partner for the brokerage group, the companies confirmed to HousingWire.
“Success Lending’s owners have made a mutual, strategic decision to wind down the joint venture,” an eXp spokesperson said in a statement. “We’re grateful for our partnership with Kind Lending and excited about the next chapter for eXp’s mortgage strategy. As part of that next chapter, eXp is exploring the potential formation of a new joint mortgage venture with Newrez.”
The spokesperson added that the joint venture will bring together “Newrez’s origination platform with eXp’s agent network to serve more homebuyers.”
“We can confirm that Newrez and eXp are exploring the potential formation of a joint mortgage venture,” a Newrez spokesperson told HousingWire. “We are excited about the opportunity to bring together the strength of Newrez’s origination platform and eXp’s vast U.S. agent network and look forward to sharing additional information when we can.”
Joint ventures between real estate brokerages and mortgage lenders have proliferated in recent years as firms seek steadier purchase volume and tighter integration between agents and loan officers. But companies have reevaluated these agreements amid margin pressure and a competitive landscape.
Success Lending, formed in 2021, has originated about $270 million in mortgages on a year-to-date basis, according to InGenius. Its production in 2025 was $526.5 million, down from $658 million the prior year. It had 113 sponsored loan officers across 22 active branches as of Wednesday, according to the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System.
The JV was formed by eXp World Holdings – the parent company of eXp Realty – and Kind Lending, founded by industry veteran Glenn Stearns.
Kind Lending started in April 2020, after Stearns spent more than two decades running his namesake mortgage firm, Stearns Lending. Stearns exited that company after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and was bought by Blackstone Group, with Guaranteed Rate later acquiring the business.
Kind Lending was a top-35 mortgage lender in the first half of the year, with $7.5 billion in production, up almost 50% year over year, according to Inside Mortgage Finance (IMF).
But Newrez is an even bigger business. As the sixth-largest U.S. mortgage lender in the first half of the year, it produced $31.3 billion in mortgages, up 11.5% year over year, IMF reported. Its website shows the company has about 15 active joint ventures.
In addition to its mortgage joint venture, eXp also has a partnership with America’s Preferred Home Warranty (APHW) to provide integrated home warranty options for agents, buyers and sellers. In May 2026, eXp announced its acquisition of NextHome, adding a full franchise option alongside its cloud-based brokerage model.
Editor’s note: This story was updated with comments from Newrez.
